The greatest… martial arts movies

The re-invented 'Karate Kid' is set to introduce a whole new generation to the benefits (not merely environmental) of replacing fly repellent with chopsticks, courtesy of veteran martial artist Jackie Chan and Will Smith's son Jaden. Many hold the 1984 original version's onus on fence painting, floor waxing and face punching in nostalgic esteem, but which martial arts films should be crowned 'the greatest'? Read on to find out...

'Seven Samurai' (1954)

This undisputed masterpiece is regarded as a solid cornerstone of the genre, and its director Akira Kurosawa could populate this list with his defining body of work alone. The titular 'Seven Samurai' deliver a poor village from marauding bandits by teaching them to defend themselves. The film was transplanted to the Wild West and remade as 'The Magnificent Seven' in 1960, and then the less numerically accurate 'Three Amigos' in the '80s. Sort of.

'Enter The Dragon' (1973)

While some prefer 'Way Of The Dragon', perhaps largely thanks to a climactic performance from action ledge Chuck Norris, 'Enter The Dragon' will always maintain an additional resonance as it was the last film Bruce Lee made before his death in 1973. Shaolin master Lee is invited to fight in a tournament held by the shadowy Han, and is recruited by British intelligence to uncover Han's heroin smuggling operation. The final showdown in a room of mirrors remains iconic (though the acting is unintentionally hilarious).

'Iron Monkey' (1993)

Like a cross between Hong Kong Phooey and Robin Hood, Iron Monkey is a mild-mannered doctor by day, treating the poor for free, and over-charging the rich. But by night, he's robbing the rich, slapping about their henchmen and giving the proceeds to the poor. A nice touch, and something GPs in the UK could learn a thing or two from, the lazy lot.

'The Legend of Drunken Master' (1994)

Much like 'The Godfather: Part II', many regard this sequel to 1978's 'Drunken Master' as quite superior to the first installment. Deftly balancing Jackie Chan's gifts for kung fu and his trademark comic timing, 'Legend' finds his Wong Fei-Hung, a master of the 'drunken boxing' style, embroiled in an export feud. The final seven-minute fight sequence took four months to film. Largely less boozy than it sounds.

'Fist of Legend' (1994)

Jet Li broke through with 'Fist of Legend', essentially a remake of Bruce Lee's 'Fist of Fury', considered not only to be an improvement on the original but one of the best contemporary kung fu films ever made. Chinese-Japanese tension runs high in this breathless masterpiece, cited by the Wachowski Brothers as a vital influence (the brothers consequently hired 'Legend's choreographer Woo-ping Yuen for 'The Matrix').

'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' (2000)

Whether you love or hate the almost ballet-like quality of Oscar-winning 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's 'wire work' (where actors appear to defy gravity, suspended by wires on set), Ang Lee's film paved the way for a series of intensely visual, big budget martial arts epics, including the sumptuous 'Hero' and 'House of Flying Daggers'. A classical tale, Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat) suspends his retirement to pursue Jade Fox, a female warrior who murdered his master.

'Kill Bill Vol. 1' (2003)

A controversial choice for the martial arts purists perhaps, and of course it's a colossal pastiche of the genre, but few would deny that what Tarantino's two-part kung fu homage lacked in soul it made up for in dizzying, ultra-violent action, never more so than when Uma Thurman's The Bride despatches 88 bad guys in a classic sequence bathed in litres of spraying blood and choreographed by the legendary Woo-ping Yuen.

'Kung Fu Hustle' (2004)

For sheer manic originality, 'Kung Fu Hustle', much like prolific writer/actor/director Stephen Chow's previous effort 'Shaolin Soccer', is hard to beat. Melding frequently breathtaking choreography with eye-popping cartoonish lunacy and a wicked sense of humour, his vision of a 1940s Shanghai riddled with warring gangs is a dazzling joy to behold, and due a sequel in 2012.

'Ong-bak' (2003)

Thai boxing got its most high profile outing in 'Ong-bak'. It made a star out of its leading man Tony Jaa and is now held up as one of the best, most brutal martial arts films of the last decade. Dispensing with the comedic escapades often prevalent in kung fu movies, this made a virtue of bone-crunching action, as Ting (played by Jaa) travels to Bangkok to recover a religious treasure stolen from his village by an unscrupulous businessman. Suits be warned.