Explainer | Hong Kong martial arts cinema, starring Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Donnie Yen: everything you need to know
- Before Bruce Lee made kung fu – unarmed combat – films popular, Hong Kong martial arts cinema was full of wuxia – armed combat, involving lots of swordplay
- Today’s martial arts stars are well known, but what of their forebears? Who are the top directors? Which films should you see? Your questions answered
What is a martial arts film?
The word wuxia translates roughly as “martial heroes” and has its origin in the rich tradition of martial arts literature from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and mainland China.
The wandering swordsmen and swordswomen who serve as the heroes and heroines of the genre inhabit the semi-mythical martial arts world of jianghu (which translates as “rivers and lakes”, although that description is metaphorical rather than descriptive). These “knight errants” and “lady knights” come in many different shades, although they are generally chivalrous, and almost always end up on the side of good.
Kung fu is a collective term that describes a variety of Chinese martial styles. Kung fu is broken down into two main traditions, Northern and Southern, and two conceptual approaches, internal and external.
Within this, there are many distinct styles, such as Hung Gar (a popular southern style) and wing chun (the style which Bruce Lee first learned). Martial arts in kung fu films are also heavily influenced by the acrobatics of Peking Opera, which are themselves heavily stylised forms of northern-style kung fu.
