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I havn't had a chance to watch this movie in the theatres but I borrowed the official Chinese DVD from a friend and I must say I was really impressed with this movie. I'm not a huge fan of the wire work as I've seen this done in so many different chinese martial arts tv shows and I thought Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon was overrated so I wasn't expecting anything spectacular from this movie.
Needless to say I was delightfully surprised with this movie and absolutely loved it. The fight scenes were good but lacked any real intensity; however, the artistic approach to the fights more than made up for it. I raelly loved the use of the vibrant colors, symbolism, and immagery used in the fights. Not to mention the artistic approach to describing the fights with the relation of martial arts to music and caligraphy. It was truly a beautiful movie.
Hero was a epic masterpiece It was a really good take on the myth of the formation of China and the first Emperor, while being majorly based on legend, it does hold a lot of truth to it. The story is a great one of twists and turns, never really letting you know the truth until the very end; I like how the Emperor was also portrayed as a strong, wise ruler, which makes it much more satisfying.
As far as the fight scenes, they were almost secondary in this movie to me. Great ones none-the-less, and some nice eye candy as well.
Extremely good movie. Its far from being an action-oriented movie, but I think its better off this way. I really liked the use of different colours in different tellings of the story as well.
My room mate has owned the DVD for a while now, but I am considering going to see it at the theatre just for the big screen effect.
Why does everyone think Zhang Ziyi is uber hot?
The woman playing Falling Snow is lightyears better. People just get brainwashed into thinking people are good looking I think, and Zhang seems to have a large following of these, much like Avril Lavigine (Jesus, I live next to Avril's hometown and have seen her in person many times, she is NOT hot at all, just average at best).
Back more on topic - I liked the Emperor's ideals at the end along the lines of "the path of the swordsman". That was really well done I think.
Yeah I bought it a couple months before the US release (special edition with the pretty texture and art/flip book) Its good stuff, yet after watching it 2-3 times I can't see much of a replay value in it (hah treating it like a video game) as the only martial arts scene that interests me is the first one. Why? Because I love kung fu and i've practiced it for quite some time, Its the only semi-realistic scene in it. The movie was absolutely beautiful, cinmetography deserves an oscar. The whole relationship between the warriors was so well played out that it brought tears to my eyes to see the fate of the two lovers (you know what I'm talking about).
I have to ask, is there any difference between the complete unedited Chinese Version and the one released by QT in the US?
"Only in the absolute stillness of the mind can truth be obtained..."
Dude, Hero was poetry caught in its pure, raw beauty. The emperor stunned me, being quite sad that he gave the command to assasinate nameless. The fight scenes were awesome...and Broken Sword, what he stood for was just...captivating.. seeing Nameless' choice was just one of the best thing I've ever saw in a movie. By the way, I swear to god almighty himself that one day I will marry Zhang Ziyi, Or Brooke Bayles.
When I went into the theater to watch this movie I was expecting a badass action movie, But when I left I felt that I had watched a very poetic and inspiring movie. I loved all of the vibrant colors and scenery portrayed in the movie, Excellent story as well. I would suggest this to anyone.
The whole thing between broken sword and his lover at the end was a TOTAL surprise and a tear came out from my eye. I was just like HOLY SHIT, I hadn't had a movie make me cry so suddenly, usually its always predictable when its going to happen.
"Only in the absolute stillness of the mind can truth be obtained..."
I adored the use of colours with every different account of the story, and the whole Rashomon-ish take they did on it. Zhang Ziyi is cute and hot, but I think Maggie Cheung has her own appeal--in the "Red" story, she had a very refined look, like a classical porcelain doll.
I definitely liked it tons better than The Emperor and the Assassin, which is about the same emperor, but sooo goddamn boring.
In the meantime, tonight I will go to see Lovers, aka Shi mian mai fu, aka House of Flying Daggers. With our girl Zhang Ziyi, Takeshi Kaneshiro (of Returner and "Onimusha" fame), and Andy Lau. Trailer here: http://www.apple.com/jp/quicktime/trail ... large.html
Aiva wrote:In the meantime, tonight I will go to see Lovers, aka Shi mian mai fu, aka House of Flying Daggers. With our girl Zhang Ziyi, Takeshi Kaneshiro (of Returner and "Onimusha" fame), and Andy Lau. Trailer here: http://www.apple.com/jp/quicktime/trail ... large.html
Lovers looks like a really fun movie, although I can get tired of those kinds of fight scenes pretty quickly. I'm hoping there is a bit more attention on the actual story this time (think hot Zatoichi ) than making the fight scenes amazingly beautiful.
Wonderful, wonderful movie, purely poetic. A bit too melodramatic at the very, very end for my tastes, but other than that, it was a wonderful piece in which music, visuals and acting were all one in the same.
I doubt even the ancient writers who started such stories ever dreamed of such a wonderful presentation.
Thousands of years ago, before the dawn of man as we know it, I was known as Dakota... a primative, ape-like creature, making crude and pointless toys out of dino bones and his own waste...
Thousands of years ago, before the dawn of man as we know it, I was known as Dakota... a primative, ape-like creature, making crude and pointless toys out of dino bones and his own waste...
fire2ash wrote:Yeah I bought it a couple months before the US release (special edition with the pretty texture and art/flip book) Its good stuff, yet after watching it 2-3 times I can't see much of a replay value in it (hah treating it like a video game) as the only martial arts scene that interests me is the first one. Why? Because I love kung fu and i've practiced it for quite some time, Its the only semi-realistic scene in it. The movie was absolutely beautiful, cinmetography deserves an oscar. The whole relationship between the warriors was so well played out that it brought tears to my eyes to see the fate of the two lovers (you know what I'm talking about).
I also found the first fight scene to be the best of them all. The fights are beautiful but they lacked any real intensity to them. I thought I wouldn't enjoy the fight scenes because of the lack of intensity but the beauty and sheer poetry of them more than made up for that. It's very hard to find a fight scene that can convey so much more than words.
Yes, they were all masterfuly choreographed. Besides the story and emotion portrayed in the scene, I disliked the one where Flying snow (I think thats her name, been too long) and Zhang Ziyi were fighting and all Flying Snow did was fly away. Although I liked how they tried to convey the finesse and strength of flying snow, the constant flying got a little old after CTHD and all its clones.
This is in no ways related to the movie, as this movie is highly original and doesn't suffer from many flaws I see nowdays, but.....I am a practitioner of traditional Shaolin Kung Fu and traditional Wu style Tai chi, and there are MANY ways to protray grace and power than the common trend in movies today. The problem is most martial arts are watered down nowdays, TaeKwonDo being taught nowdays is like a watered down version of karate. The "POWER KARATE" or the "learn how to fight just like in the movies" classes are absolutely watered down, and not only that, but mostly bullshit. Martial arts have been dying since the beginning of the 19th century, and if it weren't for Bruce Lee (and his wisdom, as well as his ignorance, the martial arts would, for the most part, be dead.
The reason not necessarily being the invention of guns, but the laws and communism that banned Kung Fu practice in China. This is why American's are so ignorant of the chi theory (which is absolutely true and more and more scientific evidence is beginning to confirm 4,000 year old teachings) and the true power that every human is born with. Simply because there are very few true grandmasters left, and especially very few willing to reveal their secrets. What is the point if the student is only going to be there one year and then leave?
Back on a similar subject, Jet Li is was a national champion...but you know of what...? Wushu, you know what that is? A severely watered down version of kung fu that only utilizes tha fanciest/flashiest moves with no real applications in the forms practiced. Although Jet Li is phenomenally talented with his body, and is by no means arrogant, I have always doubted his ability to be a "true fighter." I know he is strong, he has trained for years and years, but even his internal martial arts in the movies he portrays (traits of true masters) are wrong, as many real grandmasters have shown me (if you remember The One, he uses Baguazhang at the end, only it is highly innacurate and shows no true knowledge of it). Clearly, he is quick and has a high level of focus, even wushu will give you this benefit, my question is can he compare to any true masters out there? Unfortuauntely, making wushu a national sport is not an encouragement to practice kung fu, but rather a commercialized watered down version (not even a real version, like 1/100th of it) of it meant to keep the nation from practicing its ancient art. And correct me if im wrong, but isn't Zhang Ziyi of similar talent? (hell, even Jackie Chan was known to have been trained in the Peking Opera which is a training ground of 'performers')
All these people are amazing performers, and not only is Jet Li as skilled wushu athelete, but also a superb actor. I plan to become an actor( and perhaps later: a director) in the future, and if I ever make it, I plan on making some similarly deep martial art movies, but slightly more realistic and true to the true essence of Kung Fu. It is simply just so incredibly profound and beautiful at the same time.
Anyways forget about my martial arts rant Should I start a martial arts thread and post on a similar subject?
"Only in the absolute stillness of the mind can truth be obtained..."
Yeah, you hit on all of the points I would bring up to dicuss their martial arts. Wushu is basically a performance art so you can't really discuss that. I think Jet Li is a phenominal talent though and I would not like to be in a fight with him at all. Jackie Chan I'm not as sure about, although he has performed as you mentioned with a Peking Opera, he does have undeniable talent in certain areas of martial arts.
You can pretty much point to Bruce Lee for all of this though. It has his ignorance of the customs that made him so great and allowed him to conceive such a wonderful martial art in Jeet Kune Do. By no means the strongest, but it allows one ot fully grasp the concept of fighting in a way that hadn't been done before and hasn't been done since.
hate to argue but kon fu = wushu = martial art... it is direct translation. There is no difference. Over the generation, the teaching has lost allots of realness and gain allot of myth because when you making a copy of a copy over and over again, you will lose something. That is how it is with konfu at this point and Tae Kwon Do is not a water down version of karate, it is one form of karate.
Movies are suppose to exaggerate, showing the fantasy side of martial art book to "wow" people in, although I have to agree that sometimes in the movie, they made no sense what so ever, but that’s Hollywood for you and we enjoys it.
From the artistic stand point, Hero is wonderful movie. From the historic standpoint, it made absolutely no sense whatsoever...
This movie was beautiful.
The fight scene between Zhang Ziyi and Maggie Cheung was
'' Wednesday, look at all the nintendo fanboys; their freckles, their bright little eyes, their friendly, eager smiles.... help them. '' - Morticia Addams
OMFG, I wrote a HUGE reply covering all aspects of bruce lee and martial arts as well and it friggin tells me to "log in" when I submitted, couldn't go back to get it either. GRRRRRRRRRRRR.
Anyways just because the chinese government decided to name this competition based form "martial art" doesn't do it any justice, it has nothing to do with self defense. Anyways, I will try to find or submit my "disappearing post"
EDIT: Grr looks like I will have to edit and type what I typed in an hour in a couple mins. Clearly it is Bruce Lee's philosophies and way of thinking that is most important, as he is the one who introduced them to the US. They are in no way new...they have been taught in teachings of traditional (especially Shaolin Kung Fu) kung fu and Zen. Bruce Lee's style of no style is also not very well developed, as he died before it could really become something great, perhaps over the years it will develop again. Also JKD is simply basic beginner Wing Chung mixed with karate, with a couple grapplings thrown in there. As Bruce Lee stressed, "simplicity" is the key, yet I have yet to see anyone who can fight like him. NOBODY is as fast or as powerful as he was, also, nobody trained as much as he did either (not every martial artist thinks like him), Therefore, his personal techniques could not be used as effectively as he did by your average joe or he will simply get owned. I have seen 'black belt' JKD practitioners get the floor mopped by Shaolin Kung fu Yellow belt practiotioners at a serious Shaolin school. How can a 20 year old art compare to one that is centuries old? Contrary to his beliefs, they have evolved and adapted to the times, unfortunately some becoming weaker and generic (wushu, and universal yang form of tai chi). Bruce Lee lived in a time when martial arts were dead, many masters died with their secrets while others simply refused to teach. This was all due to the burning of the Shaolin temple and the ban on martial art practices. I do give him credit for reviving the arts and showing Americans what its really all about though.
Bruce Lee was right, but one thing he didn't know much about were the stances. He oftened complained that the stances in traditional kung fu couldn't be used when in a fight. What he didn't know (simply because he never learned under any master besides Yip Man, wing chun does not revolve around that type of footwork) is that each stance/movement in each form has its own applicaitons (as well as many hidden ones) and reasons for being the one they are. These stances are meant to flow from one to another according to your opponents actions, it is much safer than standing in place and tyring to avoid or block your opponent as he can constantly attack, especially if you don't want to hurt him (which you could simply block>counter attack). They are not meant to "stand" in so your opponent can exploit its weaknesses and own you. For example, there are some stances that are higher some lower, someone kicks your leg or attempts to kick anywhere up to your navel, simply raising your leg in crane position (45 degree angle) will cause their attack to bounce off of you, sometimes breaking their feet/hand. Also if they try to sweep your leg and you do it, you already have the advantage and can drop your leg to kick or even trip/disable them. All of this without really moving. Each stance has its weaknesses and strength, but when someone attacks flowing into another one will close up some weaknesses or sometimes move somewhere else making an approach to attack completely different. At an advandced level you can barely see the flow as it is quick and decisive as well as the strike, attacks, and counter attacks. The most commonly knowns ones are the horse, and bow-arrow stance (or front stance), the horse is mostly for training, but at a beginner level it can be used to draw power up from the ground into your punches by rooting yourself. This should be done sideways, as you are easily toppable if your body is facing your opponent, but from the side you are nearly unpenetrable. Training in this stance is important, tuck in pelvis (butt), breathe through abdomen, chin slightly suspended, spine straight and tounge on roof of mouth, all so that your entire centerline is open and energy is able to flow from the pit of your stomach to the rest of your body, sitting here also develops the chi in your legs. By developing chi and bloodflow in your legs, your kicks will be incredibly destructive as well as develop explosiveness in the legs, allowing you to spring upwards or forwards at high speeds and long distances.
What was most interesting is how he came up with these ideas, that had been part of the martial arts for a while, but through deep internal thinking and analyzing, by himself (back then nothing had been published or revealed). This is what made him so great, IMO. Another thing he didn't really have much knowledge or experience with, was the internal "Styles" of martial arts. Although he developed alot of internal energy, it wasn't very "soft", instead it was similar to what Shaolin Monk's are capable of, extreme destruction with their body. Although in his scrapbook he had stories and pictures of internal masters who were before his time, he was without luck in finding one, so he often dismissed it. He also knew that what they did was not supernatural, but simply the highest potential of the human body/mind.
Just remember, almost all kung fu in movies nowdays is BS, just wushu atheletes/stuntment doing their thing, which still takes skill. If you want to view real traditional kung fu in movies, watch old shaw bro films
I have more to say but I'm out of time, more on this stuff later.
"Only in the absolute stillness of the mind can truth be obtained..."
I thought it was just common knowledge that most of the martial arts depicted in movies was BS to a certain degree. However, some of that BS is what makes them interesting in the first place. Of course, I would rather see an intense match between masters of equal level but it looks like we're not getting that anytime soon.
I would assume most real life fights are over in very few moves. This of course makes for a bad movie fight, so here we see why they use 'flashy' moves and not so hardcore fighting styles.
Well a fight between 2 kung fu practitioners of equal level can last quite a while, at least longer than your average "I'm bigger than you so I'm going to throw everything I got into one punch so you can avoid it and counter attack and put me in the hospital" fights that exist nowdays. Many times they can't hit eachother (the whole point is to never be hit, as, in kung fu, one hit can be fatal) they eventually try to use theirs legs and arms (as well as natural body mechanics, as opponents are often larger) to trip eachother and get on the ground. Most of the time, if they end up on the ground they begin Chinese wrestling, which is very different from the crap you see on American TV. It is wrestling using not only the fundamental concepts of kung fu, but attacking/squeezing/striking every vital point that is available to you, this is the hardest and most advandced to learn as it takes alot of energy and one mistake could result in death, as there is a counter to every hold and attack there is. But my favorite is Chin Na, the art of seize and hold, or seize and capture. Similar to Ju jitsu's grappling, this is the Chinese art of grapling, and in my opinion is by far the most expansive. There is no way to learn all of it, I have seen books of a single style of chin na with over 100's of different locks and all of them each with a counter. There is of course, no set way to counter, but once you learn how the body works and how to put your body in an advantagous position, Chin Na becomes a powerful tool.
I don't mind over the top fighting movies, although my favorites WERE the (no wires) Shaw brother films, they were a little too slow (as if in they did 1, attack, 2 block, 1 attack, 2 block etc.) which lets you see more of the action (even then it could be a little hard to follow) but sometimes at the sacrifice of quality. They usually didn't cut into one scene and into another to make it easier on the actors or include some crazy wire fu effect, but instead the entire fight was almost usually one cut, making it an incredible battle of endurance and showsmanship at the same time. Those, in my opinion, were some of the best martial artists back then.
I also don't mind some wire fu movies, as long as they dont exaggerate (in Hero and CTHD, are exceptions at all as they express more than just their ability to jump 1000 feet). For example, Fist of Legend is great, even if the martial arts is "unrealistic" to what I have stated above, it is still highly entertaining and at least pretends to be furious when it comes to battles. Jet Li, like Bruce Lee is simply too quick to be beaten in that movie. If you notice when he fights his friend his friend is using a more traditional style of kung fu while Jet Li is using more of his own, never though, in any of his movies, do you see him exhibit thorough knowledge of kung fu martial art applications besides your basic block, kick punch moves.
I don't want hyper realistic movies, I simply would just like more movies like fist of legend where the fighting is a tad bit more down to earth than what you see now. (God the kung fu in Daredevil was so cheezy). I admire many modern martial artists nowdays for their athletic talent and acting nowdays, more than their true abilities as martial artists, as you rarely ever see it. Bruce Lee, from the very beginning, you can see the power and intensity in the man's eyes (In fact, in the internal arts the eyes can end a battle before it even starts, as the intensity in their eyes becomes so strong that its almost as if it stuns you) and in all of his movements, on top of that he was very graceful. I have no doubt that he would utterly destroy me.
"Only in the absolute stillness of the mind can truth be obtained..."
Just one note I'd like to add on those essays, which are awesome.
JKD incorporates also a lot of boxing as well. The standup stance is a boxers, which provides a good overall stance that works well. The foot movement is also borrowing from boxing and wrestling.
Yeah, i noticed he took the best from boxing and added it. For example, the shifting of weight from one foot to the other by raising the one that is being transferred from and sometimes, slightly leaning into your punch onto your front foot. But in tai chi, it is possible to learn how to transfer your weight, or internal weight as they call it from one side to the other without really moving to significantly. He incorporated this because he had no idea what the stances in kung fu were for and really, how they worked. He thought most of the things were flowery and useless, but then again no one ever taught him either. Boxers rely alot on speed and training your punches to be powerful mostly be weight lifting and of course boxing training. In the martial arts alot of your power actually comes from the rooting, in otherwords up from your feet to your fists.
What I MUST stress, WHENEVER you throw a punch, use your waist not your muscles. WHENEVER you throw a kick, dont lean back instead stand upright or lean in more than lean back (see how much harder it is to kick high). In order to do this right, both feet have to be parellel, in pictures, of even supposed black belts they kick incorrectly by pointing their planted heel outwards and leaning their body back. Sure it looks pretty but has no real power. Observe when a martial artist can kick high and his feet are parellel and also his body is upright, not only is he quicker, but stronger as well. Rotating your waist is the main power source for most of kung fu, it is a natural motion and is very powerful. Your fist FOLLOWS your waist, not the other way around.
Also, BLOCKING in kung fu is the real deal, there are some redirecting style blocks but those are not really blocks, they are simply redirecting the punch elsewhere as you have to lean back or move in order to not get hit. Also in alot of karate they block by simply raising their hands or striking the attackers hands, but unless you have trained for a long time and have powerful hand strikes, this will not stop a forceful punch. In the Shaolin Kung Fu I have learned it is a body mechanic to perfection, for example a high block is done by using your OUTER forearm so your palm side faces downwards, as opposed to TKD's STUPID form of blocking upwards with the weakest bone in your forearm/wrist facing upwards. If you have ever slammed the outer forearm into almost anything, you will notice it does not hurt. This is the basic, the whole angle of your forearm is at a 45 degree angle (not completely vertical or sideways). You rotate your body AWAY from the block so that your block flies forward and also flows naturally as you rotate inwards to punch, making it easy to block and counter attack forcefully. The block goes out and up, the angle and way the body is rotated not only blocks the attack but completely deflects and redirects as well. So this can quite literally be used to REALLY block, not just put your arm in the way or redirect it. The middle is also a real deflection, rotating your body away as your arm flies from one side of your body to directly in front of its corresponding shoulder. All of them have to be done within the shoulder lines.
Those are just examples. Most important aspects in martial arts to remember is this :Butt tucked in, spine always straight never crooked (if crooked, a master could kick you right in the solarplexus and with enough speed and power, break your back), never swing or block outside of your shoulder lines unnless its sideways, while kicking body should be upright and front: planted fot 45degrees, side: planted foot 90 degrees, Roundhouse: 45-90 degrees planted. Although you could adopt a boxers stance, my reccommended would be 60 percent of your weight on the back leg and 40 on the front, very stable and the added weight in the back helps in explosiveness when moving. When practicing all stances should be as low as possible without sacrificing quality, all punches should have your waist behind them, even if only slightly, kicks should be done with the hip opened up to allow the leg to naturally come forward. Never practice height or flashiness at the sacrifice of technique. Most importantly make correct fist (so you dont have to break your hand or use only two knuckles) if done right your whole hand can be used. I will use this example, your arm should be as nimble and as relaxed as a chain or whip, and your fist (mostly only on impact) should be as hard as rock or iron. Its like a iron ball attached to a chain. Whats more effective, a weak iron ball that gives when it hits, or a solid firm iron ball?
For those of you that believe "killing with one hit" is BS. I will enlighten you on perhaps the scariest aspect of martial arts and should never be taken lightly
1) for one punch either a skileld practicioner can hit a vital spot at a correct angle OR Iron fist users can hit soft spots can quite literally the strength of their fist (done by a combination of external physical training and internal breathing excercies) is like that of a sledgehammer and is similar to someone who can bench 500 pounds punching you OR an internal practictioner who uses NO force, only his "chi"
2) Someone who is skilled in accupressure and knows every vital point and when chi flows through them at each time of day. This way he can finger stab (done by making your fingers so strong that some can even handstand on only two fingers on each hand) vital points and quite literally disable/kill (depending on which one, there are like 36 vital points that can kill you). Or by sending small bursts of energy by using fingers or strikes (like the middle knuckle sticking out) into the vital point, disrupting your blood/chi flow potentially killing/disabling you.
What I have just said is only a small glimpes and is rarely ever taught, I have only come about the knowledge by some serious internal thinking and also alot of searching, through reading, lectures and even practice. It is totally offtopic but I didn't want to start another topic as I have no idea how many would be interested. I sort of messed around with a wrestler and he had no concept of the true power of martial artists (I would simply say fighter, but nowdays there are so many "fighters"), He tried to tackle me and as soon as his body touched mine I slapped him down to the ground as I turned my body sideways and he hit the ground face first, hard. No effort, an old man could do it...It does take practice though....
Also I'm tired of people saying "you could never use that on the street". BULLSHIT, unless they have a gun, of course you could. My old school would do something called "walk the street" in which one man/woman would face wall and the master would get 1-6 guys to approach the victim as he would turn around it was the attackers choice on whatever they wanted to do. The point was to prepare the person for any spontaneous things that could happen in real life, sometimes they would say something goofy or mess around and sometimes they would just attack. The more advandced belts would have like 8 people attacking them at the same time ! Wether training in the internal or "harder" martial arts, to get results takes time and alot of thinking. Once you have become good at a "soft" martial art, you will be able to effortlessly "bounce" your enemies off of you, in a "harder" style you will be able to avoid and counter attack with fierce and decisive power, while it seems more effective they are really equally effective. Combing them together only brings even more interesting results....The harder styles (shaolin kung fu) start of fast and strong then gradually become softer and slower (in practice I mean) while the softer styles start of slow and soft and become fast and powerful. If you have ever seen tai chi in application, it is not only practical but very fast and very powerful. Sure you could learn some street fighting styles out there, but could a weak person use them, could a woman use them effectively? Will it cost them their dignity or honor? nowdays people are like kick him in the balls, jab him in throat, break his nose. Um, if some guy were dumb and decided to throw a punch at me, I'm not going to ruin his face or deprive him of children for a mistake he made. What you learn is only for emergencies, but mostly it is for the advandcement of yourself.
I have noticed that whatever walls I hit in martial arts I hit in real life, it is a way of mastering yourself, not the art.
What I meant about realizing that movies are bullshit is that it is easy to idolize people and say" he can kick anyone's ass!" etc. because of movies. For example when I was REALLY young (like before 11) everyone was in this Jean Claude Van Damme phase in which everyone thought he was ownage. In fact, for a while, he was sort of my idol (hey i was little!). All the man does is kick in badly choreographed movies! not only that but his kicks are so SLOOOOWW and you could see coming from a mile away. Or movies when you see muy thai fighers seem unnstoppable because they kick eachother's shins, in fact thats what I hate about muy thai boxing, how is using your shins or kicking eachothers shins practical? there is no use in that, unless you don't know how to kick properly. There is a movie out there called Ong back or something (its from thailand) in which the trailer completely disses Bruce Lee, Jet Li, and practically every martial artist out there. They claim to use no wires or CG, but guess what all the man does? He performs, sure he is athletically amazing and can do ariels through narrow moving objects and can run on people's heads, but can he fight? I also don't think any of the actors in the matrix (including keanu reeves, he is too stiff/rigid in all his movements) or charlies angels for that matter (haha) can kick any major ass in any way. I just see alot of people saying and thinking that because these actors trained how to movie-fight in a couple months that they are somehow talented martial artists. I at least admire Keanu Reeves for saying "Thanks to [famous martial arts choreographer, Woon pei wing i believe] for teaching memovie kuung fu." He purposefuly said it because he knew it wasn't the real deal.
Last edited by fire2ash on Sun Sep 19, 2004 9:12 am, edited 1 time in total.
"Only in the absolute stillness of the mind can truth be obtained..."
Hah, yeah. Honestly I haven't seen him in true action enough but it seems so. At least he shows different styles in his movies like Hung Guar Tiger or crane and not just one set style (like jet li, which is more like fast karate). Of course this doesn't really measure his martial prowness, but nevertheless I do like him.
Does anyone remember the Shenmue video where the main characters karate father attacks the villan (the one who knows kung fu) and avoids all of his attacks simply by changing his stance? That is what I was talking about, and each one puts you in a highly advantageous position after they miss.
"Only in the absolute stillness of the mind can truth be obtained..."
?
Its good stuff, yet after watching it 2-3 times I can't see much of a replay value in it (hah treating it like a video game) as the only martial arts scene that interests me is the first one. Why? Because I love kung fu and i've practiced it for quite some time, Its the only semi-realistic scene in it. The movie was absolutely beautiful, cinmetography deserves an oscar. The whole relationship between the warriors was so well played out that it brought tears to my eyes to see the fate of the two lovers (you know what I'm talking about).
