Original subtitles

"The best of the Martial arts films"

The martial arts. An ancient form of self-defense.

Two opponents fight each other, hand-to-hand...

in a contest of physical strength, agility, and will.

To some, the term "martial arts" may seem like a contradiction.

But primitive fighting was first elevated to an art form...

when Bodhidharma, an Indian monk,

brought the discipline of yoga to fifth-century China.

Bodhidharma introduced breathing and meditation...

as a means to increase mental and physical powers.

His pupils at the Song-Shan Shaolin Temple...

achieved a heightened awareness of mind and body...

through a combination of meditation and strenuous physical regime.

Some students would reach an most superhuman level of physical ability.

By the sixth century, the study of martial arts...

had spread throughout China with different schools of Kung fu.

Aikido, judo, karate, and tae kwon do...

flowered in different regions of Asia over the centuries.

All reflected the philosophy Buddhism.

In nineteen-sixty-six,

a young Chinese martial artist caught the public's attention...

in the American television series "The Green Hornet".

Two years later, he returned to Hong Kong...

and starred in his first martial arts film "Fist of Fury",

also known as "The Big Boss".

The film was an international success.

It began the worldwide fascination with martial arts movies.

It brought instant acclaim and stardom for the young marital artist,

the extraordinary Bruce Lee.

Bruce Lee began his early training in the fluid movements of tai-chi.

As a young man, he became a devotee of wing chung,

an ancient form of kung fu that dates back to the Shaolin Temple.

It is based on speed and reflex and agility rather than brute strength...

as this excerpt from "The Warriors Two" demonstrates.

Stretch out two fingers.

You must try to catch it when I let it go.

Pick it up.

Do you realize why you can't catch it?

Because when your eyes see it fall,

your brain signals your hand nerves to react.

But there's a delay.

So we're aiming to minimize that delay.

That's why wing chung concentrates on touch and speed.

Practice. There is no other way.

The wooden man is wing chung training aid...

used to develop flexibility and strength.

The rigorous demands of training is a common theme...

used in martial arts films.

You should always watch your opponent's eyes.

The eyes are always revealing, the most accurate indicator.

Not the hands. The hands are too deceptive.

And never commit yourself to a move in advance.

You should leave yourself free to react to any situation.

That way, you're flexible, your body isn't rigid.

Mind you still need a basic tactic.

Of course this will come. It takes experience.

After a while it becomes automatic, something you don't even think about.

With the proper training,

even a simple paper fan can become a deadly weapon.

And now a demonstration.

Come on...

Good.

In this scene from "Dreadnought"...

Yuen Biao proves you can train and do your wash at the same time.

Like any demanding sport...

martial arts training begins at an early age.

When I was little, I naturally did not like school.

Mom had to work, and I lived with my grandparents,

who had no time to take care of me.

So I was out quarrelling and fighting all the time.

My family didn't know what to do with me.

Then a friend said,

"Why don't you send Samo to the Beijing Opera School...

to learn acting?"

So they agreed to take me to see the place.

I saw some people somersaulting and thought that was fun.

So I told my grandfather I had to learn that.

Let me learn acting. Finally, my grandfather agreed.

We had to sign an agreement, a contract to learn for seven years.

On the third day after I signed it, I started to regret it...

because the master beat the hell out of me.

Cut! And what else?

Right...

- Show me some more. - Left.

- Continue. - Jab...

Jab? Dumb Idiot! What else can you do?!

Many of today's martial arts stars...

began their training at the Beijing Opera School,

famous for its precise discipline and exacting demands.

We were once made to do a handstand on a stool placed on a table.

We did that for an hour and a half.

By that time, the tears were falling and my nose was running like mad.

I said, "Master, I really can't do this anymore."

But the Master said, "You have to do this."

Finally, my arms gave way and I fell.

To this day, I have a scar this big on my head.

Why must you always make trouble?

Why do you do it?

- Look, Master... - Don't call me that!

I'll explain.

Don't bother! Not a word from you today!

The rigorous training Samo received...

helped him to develop his amazing acrobatic skills.

No matter how much action or fighting there is,

there must always be a comic element...

That's my trademark.

Real fighting is different from fake fighting.

Whether you win in real fighting is decided in about ten seconds.

Very quickly.

In "Shanghai Express",

the brute strength of Samo Hung,

was pitted against a woman...

is the American martial arts champion Cynthia Rothrock.

Samo has very great control.

When we fought, we didn't, we didn't do so many takes.

We would do just maybe one take. And the techniques were great,

because he's just your know, he...

I was not afraid of him hitting me at all.

So, it was great to work with him.

Cynthia's outstanding among women because she is a foreigner,

and yet she is a true expert in many of the Chinese martial arts.

Her movements are beautiful...

and her punches and kick are very powerful.

Now that was a multiple attack.

If you have any questions, please see me later.

Use all available weapons.

A simple right cross.

I think that the stereotype is that people think...

women have to be big and strong.

To be effective in martial art...

which is totally opposite, you know, because it's pure technique.

It doesn't matter, you know, how big or strong you are.

And I think one thing that has helped...

is from my travels doing demonstrations and performing,

you know, all over the world, women see that,

"This girl isn't big and strong and muscular and macho...

and she's very feminine. But she could still do martial arts.

So, hey, if she could do it and it's realistic, maybe I could do it."

I'm really happy on that, because it's something I strongly believe.

And I think that all women should know some sort of self-defense.

In this scene from "Above The Law"...

five-time champion Cynthia Rothrock...

is challenged by another female martial artist...

Karen Shephard.

Women have always held their own in the world of kung fu.

Here is Angela Mao...

the first internationally acclaimed female martial arts star.

In a scene from "Lady Whirlwind".

Another rising star, Joyce Godenzi, a former Miss Hong Kong,

proves that women can be as dearly as men...

in a scene from "Eastern Condors".

Hi, fellas. Look who's here to keep you company.

In "My Lucky Star" Sibelle Hu goes one-on-one with...

Japanese body-builder...

and power-lifting champion Michiko Nishiwaki.

Samo Hung meets a group of women...

who are not all they appear to be.

Four Amazon women know just what to go...

for in this fight with Jackie Chan...

from "Armor of God".

Sorry.

Our style is more jumping...

and jump kick and spin kick,

and which is good for the movie. Our style.

Jackie Chan has become the most popular martial arts star...

of the decade.

He's a fan of the old American silent movies,

and the influence of Buster Keaton can clearly be seen in this clip...

from "Project A".

Who is it?

Right now, I think that video is my teacher.

I love, I watch a lot of Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin.

And these two help me a lot.

Out of the way!

There he is!

Jackie Chan began his career...

as a stunt man in a Bruce Lee film.

After Bruce Lee kick, he jump in the sky, fall through the window.

I was do, I was double.

And I didn't use anything, I didn't use anything, any pads.

I just do it myself. After Bruce Lee kick, then cut.

Then I just pretend Bruce Lee...

kick the Japanese guy through the window about twenty feet.

I just ran by the window...

and broke the glasses, and through the floor.

Jackie Chan in many ways...

was a more talent, talented person than Bruce was.

Jackie is a better actor.

He is an acrobat. And he can handle comedy.

That really is his strong suit.

Jackie demonstrates his unparalleled skills...

in this scene from "Dragons Forever".

Samo, Yuen Biao,

Samo is my bigger brother.

We call bigger brother because our school is Chinese addition.

Who came first, who's the biggest.

Samo came biggest, then a couple more,

then me, then a couple more, then Yuen Biao.

That way, we three together were in the same company.

So Samo, still right now still my bigger brother. Like my father.

I'm like Yuen Biao's father.

So Samo, when we making a movie, I always listen to Samo.

And Yuen Biao listen to me.

Yuen Biao honed his skills at the Beijing Opera School...

with Samo Hung and Jackie Chan.

The three have remained life-long friends.

In "Above The Law", Yuen Biao almost meets his match...

when he comes up against Cynthia Rothrock.

Alright Chan, you're finished!

Damn you Chan!

We've been together since we were small,

we fought together, ate together, slept together, bathed together,

we did everything together.

- Musketeers all for one. - And one for all.

Now strike the head.

Now below.

Chinese fire drill.

All for one and one for all.

But sometimes even the best of friends have their differences.

I'll get you for that!

Ah, my radio must be still on, just a second.

My work with Jackie was actually half work and half play...

because every time we would see each other and get ready to act,

we would burst out laughing.

We even made a rule that whoever laughs first...

has to put $100 into a kitty.

We ended up with more than $10,000, that's how bad it was.

I'll see you again soon.

Hey, cut that out!

I said quit fighting, stop it...

Just stop it!

Hey, stop it!

Excuse me, you've got a black eye.

It's black? Well, what do you want?

- You've got my coat in there. - Stay there.

Leave me alone.

Stop it...

Oh, now your nose is bleeding.

My nose? Bleeding?

You've been drinking, bye-bye.

Stop fighting!

Jackie, Samo and Biao bring their own unique style to the movie screen.

Biao used a lot of tricky jumping and duck,

because when punching Biao,

if Biao cannot drop by that punch...

because I'm more heavy and more powerful than Biao,

then he would be jumping a lot.

Tell me, you all right...

A headache.

Get him!

Samo is two hundred pounds,

but when he moves, like a monkey.

Today, Jackie Chan not only stars in,

he directs most of his own films.

Tell Joey it's a new dog.

Get him, boys.

What lies in Jackie's future?

Four more years to go...

and to continue making action and doing, still can do the stunts.

I think after this, I be a producer.

I have my own company, I can produce movies.

Maybe only be a director,

and I'm looking for some new, young, new blood.

Jackie found a powerhouse fighter in Benny "The Jet" Urquidez.

Here they are in a scene from "Wheels on Meals".

You bastard.

American Peter Cunningham another rising martial arts star,

was brought to Hong Kong to fight Yeun Biao in his scene...

from "Above The Law".

In "Wheel on Meals",

Yuen Biao fights another martial arts newcomer, Keith Vitale.

Jump...

Come on, jump...

Australian Richard Norton has co-starred in over twenty-five films...

and is highly regarded by aficionados.

His technique, charm, and good looks...

all add up to a karate star on the rise.

Painful?

No, I'll be okay.

All right, let's go.

How about now?

I'm all right. A little blood, that's all.

Again?

You son of a bitch.

Painful?

Nothing.

Excuse me.

You've got to be hurt now.

Doesn't hurt at all. My whole damn body is numb.

Painful?

Jean Claude Van Damme has taken the martial arts world by storm...

with his unique kick-boxing style.

Here he is in a scene from "No Retreat, No Surrender".

Take him! Get him!

Kill him...

Deduct one point!

Break! Freeze!

Here's Benny "The Jet" Urquidez in a rematch with Jackie Chan.

"Inside Kung Fu" magazine...

call this one of the best on-screen fights ever.

Use my stuff.

A cool head does it. Relax.

Treat it like a training session.

Another round.

One, two, three, four...

Really good.

Got you.

Should've trained more. I'm getting soft.

What a punch. Getting good.

Keith Cooke is one of the brightest new stars...

in the world of martial arts films.

Here he is doing a triple kick...

in his film debut, "China O'Brien".

I got started back in about 1973,

when I saw "Enter The Dragon".

Yeah, I won the 1987 Walker world championships...

in forms and weapons,

and the Bermuda Internationals four years in a row...

and most of the major tournaments in the U.S.

I've won them at one time or another over about the last six years.

Fred Weintraub, the producer of "Enter The Dragon",

says that Keith Cooke is as fast with his feet as...

Bruce Lee was with his hands.

Get up.

Get him! Damn! Get that son of a bitch.

Hey! That's my car! What are you doing?!

Get out of here, punk!

I think part of the reason that I like that fight scene is...

because it was real in the sense that I felt the danger, you know.

And when you feel the danger it brings out more of,

you know, what's inside of you...

and makes it, it makes it realer for the camera, too.

And, when you got three big guys swinging baseball bats at you,

you know, you got to get out of the way or you get hit.

What works in reality isn't always what works in film.

Sometimes you have to,

for the camera you have to swing your kicks a little wider.

You've to extend them a little more than you would in a real situation.

The distance always has to be set up perfectly so you won't injure anyone.

The timing is different.

And just the types of techniques that...

you might use to take some one out...

might be slightly different or adjusted for the camera.

Here is a behind-the-scenes look at "China O'Brien",

directed by Robert Clouse starring Cynthia Rothrock,

Richard Norton, and Keith Cooke.

Each fight is choreographed and rehearsed dozens of times...

before it's filmed.

Rehearsal.

The delay was too much. Too much delay. Right away.

When you're faking it for the movies, you just want to look like...

you're pulling a hundred percent power into it.

You know, using proper technique and your facial expressions...

and your feeling.

And of course the real thing is...

when you're doing it for real you don't hold back.

You just go, you know, straight forward and give it all you got,

and you know, follow through more than you would do on film.

With my stunt group, we think, I think totally for me,

for one fighting scene two month, including shooting.

The difference in their height,

inspired Bruce Lee to choreograph a fight between himself...

and a former pupil.

American basketball star Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

Bruce was something very special.

He was extremely inventive and he seemed not to sleep.

He would call at midnight or one o'clock in the morning and say,

"Hey, I've got an idea for a change in the script.

Meet me at so-and-so restaurant."

I wasn't getting any sleep,

and, but he didn't seem to need it.

And so we'd make changes and so on,

and he also worked out fight scenes.

Drawing little stick figures, which he was very good at.

And he would choreograph the entire fight on paper,

with little stick figures.

And very easy to follow.

A true martial artist develops both mind and body.

A warrior must achieve spiritual purity...

in order to perform superhuman acts of strength.

Many martial arts films delve into the supernatural.

In "Duel To Death"...

two combatants call upon the realm of the supernatural...

as they cross swords at the edge of a cliff.

"Dreadnought" combines the world of martial arts with black magic.

In "Zu",

Yuen Biao utilizes his astounding acrobatic skills...

to combat evil spirits.

Help me!

The mystique of the ninjas was created to terrify Japanese peasants...

into believing they could magically appear and disappear.

Today, the ninja mystique holds a worldwide fascination for movie fans.

Internationally acclaimed Sho Kosugi...

has starred in a number of ninja films.

Here he's in a scene from the American television series...

"The Master"

fighting Lee Van Cleef.

The brotherhood of the ninja was shrouded in secrecy and mysticism,

attributing superhuman powers to its disciples.

Proficient use of weapons plays a key role in many martial arts films.

In this scene from "Dreadnought",

the Master demonstrates the use of the long staff.

Richard Norton displays his skill with the same weapon...

in a scene from "China O'Brien".

Cynthia Rothrock is one of the few women, adept in the use of the staff.

Hey, now it's your turn, bitch.

I love to work with weapons.

I think that's one thing that attracted me to the Chinese style,

is the weapons.

Because some of it is very difficult.

It's very challenging for me to work with weapons.

Jackie Chan displays the deadly Chinese style of spear-fighting...

in this scenic from "Hand of Death".

"Mister Boo" is a popular series spoofing martial arts films.

Here is Mister Boo with his own home-made nunchucks.

Perhaps the most important weapon of all is the traditional sword.

Crafted by hand,

the swordsmith would beat the metal flat and fold it thousands of times.

A great swordsman would take pride in the perfection of his weapon.

It's quality could make the difference between life and death.

It was said that a perfect sword could cut through stone.

Won't you change your mind?

Dad!

I'll teach you! Taught you kung fu, and now you rebel!

Kurata Yasuaki demonstrates her remarkable ability with a sword.

In this scene from "Shanghai Express".

Sword play, gymnastics, and comedy all come together...

when Samo Hung and Yeun Biao are caught between two opposing armies.

In this scene from "Zu".

Right. What the hell are we gonna do now, huh?

Let's pretend to fight, and when the chance comes, we'll run.

You want to kill me?

We're just pretending.

- Look. Don't get serious. - Sorry.

Hey, shall we continue or not, huh?

Let's get up on my left. Let's keep on fighting. Move there.

Okay, let's do it.

- No fighting, let's get out of here. - Oh, right.

Come on.

I said don't get serious.

Where'd he go?

Hey, buddy! I'm trapped here.

Don't worry, I'm on my way!

Get him!

Hey, I'm not your enemy.

They're the ones over there. Go on!

Get them!

Let's all get him!

Come on...

Pretend to be dead.

Remember to keep still.

In "Broken Oath",

the fighters wield an unusual assortment of weapons.

With a little ingenuity,

even a tailor's simple tools can be utilized as weapons.

Kwan Tak Hing, who plays the Oriental Master in this scene,

starred in over seventy-five films and a television series...

based on the same character, Wong Fei Hung.

- Long or short sleeve? - I don't care.

Six-inch cuffs.

Two-foot steps. Five foot long.

Waist.

Thirty inches.

Oh, why do you need a pin to measure me?

You button's loose. I'll fix it for you.

Oh, thank you.

Don't mention it.

Now your collar.

Two inches high.

Have you finished yet?

In a moment. I'll finish quickly.

That one's good enough.

The melding of two genres sword and sorcery...

come together in this astonishing film "Duel To Death".

What you've just seen are sequences...

from some of the greatest martial arts movies.

But it's only the tip of the iceberg.

With the large number of exceptionally...

talented martial artists,

we had to carefully pick and choose these sequences.

I had the honor and the privilege of appearing in a film...

believed to be the greatest achievement...

of the martial arts genre,

"Enter The Dragon" with the legendary Bruce Lee.

So we've saved the best for last.

Here now is Bruce Lee fighting with the deadly nunchaku...

in a scene from "Enter The Dragon".