Kung Fu Movie Guide Podcast Tour Announced
We have exciting news to announce: The Kung Fu Movie Guide podcast is going on tour! We will be hosting screenings of classic action and martial arts movies starring the likes of Jackie Chan, Michelle Yeoh and Jean-Claude Van Damme in cinemas across the southeast of the UK throughout November, followed by live discussions with special guests which will be recorded for the podcast.
The events will be presented by KFMG host Ben Johnson and, following the tradition of the end-of-year shows, I will be co-hosting, all as part of the BFI’s Art of Action season, in association with the Independent Cinema Office and Film Hub South East. Tickets are booking now, with more details and announcements coming soon.
7 November: Dragon Inn (1967) at the Depot Cinema, Lewes
A defining film in the history of martial arts cinema, Dragon Inn finds bandits, noble fighters and vagabonds gathered together for a beautifully choreographed royal rumble at a sleepy inn. Director King Hu (A Touch of Zen) pares the wuxia (‘martial chivalry’) genre down to its essential elements: balletic fight choreography, superhuman action sequences, and a charismatic roster of characters, including many trailblazing roles for female fighters. Shot in stunning widescreen, it was a major breakthrough in Hu’s career and a massive box office success in Hong Kong.
The Kung Fu Movie Guide Podcast will break down wuxia – China’s swordplay and chivalry genre – and explain how King Hu forged a new path in Chinese action cinema, influencing a generation of filmmakers from Tsui Hark (New Dragon Gate Inn) to Ang Lee (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).
12 November: Heroic Trio (1993) at The Ultimate Picture Palace (UPP), Oxford
A true cult classic, The Heroic Trio is a bonkers, female-led superhero caper which combines mind-bending action, kung fu fighting, motorcycle chases and crazy wire stunts. Maggie Cheung (In the Mood for Love), Oscar-winner Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All At Once) and singing sensation Anita Mui (Rumble in the Bronx) combine as Wonder Woman, Invisible Woman and Thief Catcher to take down the mysterious Evil Master who is kidnapping babies for his own nefarious plans. Directed by action legend Johnnie To (Drug War), who throws every genre imaginable into the pot, this is Hong Kong action cinema at its most delirious and entertaining, led by three of its biggest female stars.
The Kung Fu Movie Guide Podcast will break down the magic of ‘wire fu’ via the career of action director Tony Ching Siu Tung, whose work can be seen in Hong Kong classics including A Chinese Ghost Story and Zhang Yimou’s House of Flying Daggers. ‘Wire fu’ would also influence huge Hollywood action movies, from The Matrix to Charlie’s Angels to Kill Bill Vol. 1 and 2.
19 November: Drunken Master (1978) at the Gulbenkian Arts Centre, Canterbury, Kent
The film that helped to make Jackie Chan a household name in Hong Kong, Drunken Master is a kung fu comedy classic which set the foundations for his future successes, from Police Story to Rush Hour. After one scrape too many, Wong Fei Hung (Chan) – a talented but arrogant young martial artist – is sentenced by his father to become an apprentice of Beggar So (Simon Yuen), a merciless and frequently inebriated master of ‘drunken boxing’. Dripping with hilarious set-pieces, this is an essential film in the development of Hong Kong action cinema.
The Kung Fu Movie Guide Podcast will break down how this film revolutionised the kung fu movie genre, establishing a new star and kick-starting the career of Yuen Woo Ping, who would later become known for his outstanding fight choreography in huge international films including The Matrix, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Kill Bill Vol. 1 and 2.
21 November: Hard Target (1993) at the Nova Cinema, Woking
Jean-Claude Van Damme stars as Cajun drifter Chance Boudreaux in this iconic action classic from master director John Woo (Face/Off, A Better Tomorrow, Mission Impossible 2). Taking the ‘muscles from Brussels’ to the streets of New Orleans, Van Damme’s Chance finds himself drawn into a deadly game when he helps Natasha (Yancy Butler) track down her missing father. John Woo’s first Hollywood film set a new style in the action genre, full of outrageous stunts, explosive gun play and snake-punching WTF moments.
The Kung Fu Movie Guide Podcast will break down ‘gun fu’, a subgenre which added firepower to the balletic grace of kung fu action sequences. Looking at the career of ‘heroic bloodshed’ pioneer John Woo, Ben and Mike will discuss the birth of the bullet ballet and its enduring influence on Hollywood films ranging from The Matrix to John Wick.