Drunken Master (1978, HK)

Starring: Jackie Chan, Simon Yuen, Hwang Jang Lee. Directed by: Yuen Woo-Ping

This is without a doubt one of the most successful kung fu movies of all time and the movie that cemented Jackie Chan's reputation as the "king of kung fu comedy." It's also the first of several Drunken Master movies that Yuen Woo-Ping would direct and the movie that brought the Drunken Fist style of kung fu into the international spotlight.

In "Drunken Master", Jackie plays a young Wong Fei-hung who has mastered his dad Wong Kei-ying's kung fu techniques, but is getting into quite a bit of trouble both in his kung fu school and in town with some of the other local kids.

When Fei-hung tries to make time with a new girl in town (who turns out to be his own cousin) and beats up the son of a local bigshot, Kei-ying sends Fei-hung away to his uncle Beggar So (Yuen) for a year to learn his own style of kung fu....and undergo the rigorous training that Beggar So is notorious for.

Fei-hung gives Beggar So quite a bit of trouble, but he gradually accepts his lot and learns...and becomes a master of the Drunken Fist techniques.

When the kung fu master known as Thunderlegs (Hwang) comes to town, Wong Fei-hung must put all his training to the test. But is he ready for the challenge?

Apart from the three main characters, the supporting cast also did a very good job in this movie. Lam Kau played Wong Kei-ying very well and Dean Shek did a great job as Professor Kai-hsien. Lee Chun Wah did a fine Bolo Yeung-style performance as the waiter known as "Gorilla" and his beating heart was a nice touch! Also in this movie is a cameo by Yuen Woo-ping himself and supposedly cameos by Casanova Wong and Shih Kien, but I haven't been able to find out who they played or where they appear in the movie.

This movie is a classic kung fu comedy you can't miss and if you haven't seen it, find it and watch it now! It's definitely one of Jackie Chan's greatest early movies!

Also known as: 醉拳/Jui kuen (original Cantonese title-HK), Zui quan (original Mandarin title-HK), Drunken Fist (literal English title), Challenge (India), Drunk Monkey (Japan), Drunk Monkey in the Tiger's Eyes (alt. English title-HK), Cakar monyet dalam pandangam harimau (Malay title-Malaysia), The Drunken Master (English title-Philippines), Ein Halleluja für 2 Schlitzohren/Jackie Chan - Der Superbomber mit der schnellen Faust/Sie nannten ihn Knochenbrecher (West German titles), Pijany mistrz (Poland), Le maître chinois (France), El mono borracho en el ojo del tigre (Spain), Eagle Claw, Snake Fist, Cat's Paw, Part 2 (unknown English title), and others.

Tiger's Claw (1974, HK)

Starring: Cliff Lok, Shih Kien. Directed by: Tin Chi Ng

Many kung-fu movies were filmed on a shoestring budget, but made up for the shoestring budget with a creative storyline, intense action, and scenic filming location. This film is a very good example of this. In this one, Cliff Lok plays Chen Yi-Hu, a very cocky and arrogant 19 or 20 year old kung-fu fighter who wants to do nothing with his life except be the best fighter around. At the beginning of the movie, he challenges all the best-known fighters and beats the snot out of them.

He then finds out about Tiger (Shih Kien, who played the villain in "Enter the Dragon"), who happens to have spent the past 20 years serving a prison sentence. Chen gets himself sent to prison, seeks out Tiger, and breaks him out so they can have their duel. Once Tiger is outside, his past quickly catches up with him and Chen has to watch out for him so noone else can defeat him except himself.

All in all "Tiger's Claw" is a very good and intense kung-fu movie. Both Cliff Lok and Shih Kien play their parts very well and this makes the movie very intense. This movie is worth at least one watch, especially if you're in the mood for a simple, quick, 85-minute time-killer of a movie!

Also known as: Er Long Zheng Zhu (original title)