Bruce Lee brought kung fu to the Western world,
Jackie Chan expanded the use of kung fu in action comedy,
Jet Li kicked and showed that size does not matter while,
Sammo Hung proved that potbellied Chinese man can fight.
Donnie Yen.. created a new trend in portraying Chinese Kung Fu !
Donnie Yen has just added another notch in his belt with the recent release of a movie called FLASHPOINT ( 2007). The punches and kicks filmed in this movie felt so real; that at times, you may just want to shift in your seat to dodge the punch. Imagine watching this in IMAX !
I feel that this is the most interesting martial art film made to date because it uses a lot of unconventional camera angling with close up on fights instead of a side angle. The film also features realistic fight moves with realistic reactions ( i.e not flying through the air with just a punch). The fighters have a degree of separation in the beginning of the fight and as they inch closer, kicks were exchanged and as distance drew even closer, elbows and knees are engaged.
Realistic fights also engage some form of impact and in slow motion you can see the punch landing on the face. It was reported that the actors experience injuries due to the aim of minimal body double.
In FLASHPOINT, Donnie engages his enemy with some sharp kicks and good haymaker punches but the real crowd drawer would be utilising his leg sweeps to make a Jiu jitsu lock and put them to submission. His floor fights were also very impressive and is usually not seen in majority of Hong Kong martial art movies.
Check out the trailer :-
More about Donnie
Donnie entered the realm of film making with the debut of Xiao Tai Ji ( Drunken Taichi) in 1984 after being recognised by the renown Hong Kong martial art Director Yuen Wo Ping ( choreographed Matrix, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Kill Bill and many more since 1978).
Raised in a martial arts environment by his mother a Tai Chi master -Bow Sim Mark, Donnie excelled in Wushu and was later accepted to study in the then prestigious school of The Beijing Wushu Team. Donnie Yen and Jet Li studied from the same master of this school and were coincidentally born in the same year. They were destined to meet and their paths are crossed later in the filming industry. Rumour has it that both of them can never see eye to eye and hence proving a well known Chinese saying: A mountain can never keep two tigers.
Beijing Wushu Team
This is the team where China's budding martial artist were selected, trained and squeezed to produce gold medal in the China's National Wushu Competition.Winning a gold was more than a family's honor because it guaranteed better financial prospects and opportunities for family members. Back in the late 70s' China was still in a communist state with a close door policy.
Donnie In Flicks
Jackie Chan expanded the use of kung fu in action comedy,
Jet Li kicked and showed that size does not matter while,
Sammo Hung proved that potbellied Chinese man can fight.
Donnie Yen.. created a new trend in portraying Chinese Kung Fu !
Donnie Yen has just added another notch in his belt with the recent release of a movie called FLASHPOINT ( 2007). The punches and kicks filmed in this movie felt so real; that at times, you may just want to shift in your seat to dodge the punch. Imagine watching this in IMAX !
I feel that this is the most interesting martial art film made to date because it uses a lot of unconventional camera angling with close up on fights instead of a side angle. The film also features realistic fight moves with realistic reactions ( i.e not flying through the air with just a punch). The fighters have a degree of separation in the beginning of the fight and as they inch closer, kicks were exchanged and as distance drew even closer, elbows and knees are engaged.
Realistic fights also engage some form of impact and in slow motion you can see the punch landing on the face. It was reported that the actors experience injuries due to the aim of minimal body double.
In FLASHPOINT, Donnie engages his enemy with some sharp kicks and good haymaker punches but the real crowd drawer would be utilising his leg sweeps to make a Jiu jitsu lock and put them to submission. His floor fights were also very impressive and is usually not seen in majority of Hong Kong martial art movies.
Check out the trailer :-
More about Donnie
Donnie entered the realm of film making with the debut of Xiao Tai Ji ( Drunken Taichi) in 1984 after being recognised by the renown Hong Kong martial art Director Yuen Wo Ping ( choreographed Matrix, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Kill Bill and many more since 1978).
Raised in a martial arts environment by his mother a Tai Chi master -Bow Sim Mark, Donnie excelled in Wushu and was later accepted to study in the then prestigious school of The Beijing Wushu Team. Donnie Yen and Jet Li studied from the same master of this school and were coincidentally born in the same year. They were destined to meet and their paths are crossed later in the filming industry. Rumour has it that both of them can never see eye to eye and hence proving a well known Chinese saying: A mountain can never keep two tigers.
Beijing Wushu Team
This is the team where China's budding martial artist were selected, trained and squeezed to produce gold medal in the China's National Wushu Competition.Winning a gold was more than a family's honor because it guaranteed better financial prospects and opportunities for family members. Back in the late 70s' China was still in a communist state with a close door policy.
Donnie In Flicks
Holding a US citizenship, Donnie needed little struggle to work in Hong Kong and made more kung fu films in the 80s but with little success. His real breakthrough came with the film Once Upon A Hero II where he starred opposite Jet as an antagonist. From then onwards, he took on lead role in Iron Monkey but by the early 90s the market was jaded with kung fu films. He starred in many other films but never was the lead until recently.
Iron Monkey
From Left: DonnieDonnie's Breakthrough
Since then he has acted in many movies including as cameo in Hollywood ones ( Blade II) but without lasting impression. Only in recent years, that his film i.e. SPL(2005) & Dragon Tiger Gate 2006 has made punching impact on the silver screen. The combination of Donnie's new fighting style and the Director's (Wilson Yip) uncanny ability to make a fight look REAL drew flocks of punters to the big screen and the thirst for this new genre of fighting gave birth to FLASHPOINT (2007)
Dragon Tiger Gate : Donnie in middle
SPL: Donnie Flying Kicks
The typical old school kung fu style of leg sweeps coupled with pugilistic styles have been ommitted by Donnie.
The typical old school kung fu style of leg sweeps coupled with pugilistic styles have been ommitted by Donnie.
In this new film; FLASHPOINT you can find that his style is cutting edge fighting with no rules, almost no choreography, fast, impactful and mixed-martial-arts approach.
Defying The Norm
In most kung fu films especially those made in the 70s and 80s were typically very choreographed. This era of kung fu Ballroom dancing like routines are shattered with the innovation brought by Jackie Chan with the infusion of comedy and acrobats into fights hence creating his signature of fight engagement.
Back then, pure form of martial art was never shown to be mixed with another form because the pure form reflects the identity of the art and blending it was deemed blasphemous to the master who taught it. This was clearly reflected in Bruce Lee's film in which he created a new form of style which he later termed as Jeet Kune Do to differentiate from his roots of Wing Chun.
Now, Kung Fu or in a more encompassing terminology Wushu has taken a new twist. Never before on the big screen have we witnessed a bold act of defiance in breaking usual norms. Donnie Yen has certainly taken Hong Kong Wushu Film to a new level with the introduction of Mixed Martial Arts in a film which normally would depict the usual Chinese Wushu.
Read more about Donnie here
Defying The Norm
In most kung fu films especially those made in the 70s and 80s were typically very choreographed. This era of kung fu Ballroom dancing like routines are shattered with the innovation brought by Jackie Chan with the infusion of comedy and acrobats into fights hence creating his signature of fight engagement.
Back then, pure form of martial art was never shown to be mixed with another form because the pure form reflects the identity of the art and blending it was deemed blasphemous to the master who taught it. This was clearly reflected in Bruce Lee's film in which he created a new form of style which he later termed as Jeet Kune Do to differentiate from his roots of Wing Chun.
Now, Kung Fu or in a more encompassing terminology Wushu has taken a new twist. Never before on the big screen have we witnessed a bold act of defiance in breaking usual norms. Donnie Yen has certainly taken Hong Kong Wushu Film to a new level with the introduction of Mixed Martial Arts in a film which normally would depict the usual Chinese Wushu.
Read more about Donnie here
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