Best down-to-earth Martial Arts Movies (without wireworks)
This list is a compilation of my favorite martial arts movie where the fighters tend to stay with their feet on the ground! The so called wire-fu in these movies is minimalist or non-existent, as is the CGI. There are such movies I enjoy a lot, but in its time and place, not here now, on this raw and real driven list of fighting action flicks!
There is somewhat an order to this, being the top movies the ones I consider the best and so on. However, the numbered positions are not necessarily set in stone, and numbers like 6, 7 or 8 for instance may be very close quality-wise or even interchangeable. It's all still very subjective, as this list shall always and forever be PERSONAL ranking and opinion! :)
Enough writing, on to the list!
There is somewhat an order to this, being the top movies the ones I consider the best and so on. However, the numbered positions are not necessarily set in stone, and numbers like 6, 7 or 8 for instance may be very close quality-wise or even interchangeable. It's all still very subjective, as this list shall always and forever be PERSONAL ranking and opinion! :)
Enough writing, on to the list!
List activity
1.4K views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
32 titles
- DirectorWilson YipStarsDonnie YenSimon YamSiu-Wong FanDuring the Japanese invasion of China, a wealthy martial artist is forced to leave his home when his city is occupied. With little means of providing for themselves, Ip Man and the remaining members of the city must find a way to survive.Very minimalist wire-fu in what I consider to be the best achievement, as a whole, in the martial arts movie genre, that I have seen so far. As a bonus (for me at least), the main character is my action star of choice, Donnie Yen, in the role of a somewhat known historical eastern figure to the west, Yip Man, a martial arts legend, spreader of wing chun and the master of charismatic Bruce Lee, a legend himself as well.
- DirectorRonny YuStarsJet LiLi SunYong DongA biography of Chinese Martial Arts Master Huo Yuanjia, who is the founder and spiritual guru of the Jin Wu Sports Federation.There is a bit of wire-fu involved in some scenes, particularly in the first fights, but it doesn't feel overdone, and it actually fits with the mood when it is used. Despite that, this movie belongs in this list, for this is a homage to kung fu movies and spectacularly choreographed fights! This beautiful movie is simply epic in scale.
- DirectorChia-Liang LiuStarsChia-Hui LiuYuka MizunoYasuaki KurataA Chinese man (Liu) marries a Japanese woman through an arranged marriage and manages to insult all of her Japanese martial arts family by issuing a challenge to her that is misinterpreted by the others. He must then prove how good Chinese Kung Fu really is through a series of duels with the seven Japanese martial artists who come to meet the challenge.This Shaw Brothers movie from the busy 70's is something of an entire different caliber from kung fu films of that time. From the originality of the plot, the actual cinematography which is incredible, to the mesmerizing and unique fighting scenes depicting various Chinese styles vs different Japanese styles makes this one of my favorite martial arts movies of all time.
- DirectorGareth EvansStarsIko UwaisAnanda GeorgeRay SahetapyA S.W.A.T. team becomes trapped in a tenement run by a ruthless mobster and his army of killers and thugs.The king of martial arts in movies, seriously, I've never seen fights as well choreographed as the ones presented here... Raw, violent, bloody, desperate... as fights to the death should be. So much talent.
- DirectorWilson YipStarsDonnie YenXiaoming HuangSammo Kam-Bo HungCentering on Ip Man's migration to Hong Kong in 1949 as he attempts to propagate his discipline of Wing Chun martial arts.Like its prequel, the wire-works are minimum, but there is a particular scene, that actually feels out of place, that has quite a bit of wirefu going on in a very peculiar scenario... But besides that scene, this sequel delivers the good action of the first movie, with more variety, in a movie that is almost as good as the original.
- DirectorIsaac FlorentineStarsScott AdkinsMykel Shannon JenkinsMark IvanirBoyka is back. This time he is fighting in the first ever inter-prison tournament with one knee.You know, it's surprising, but there is actually an American movie in the top 10, and with GOOD REASON! This movie is amazing, the fights are unbelievable, the talent of Scott Adkins is undeniable, the rest of the cast is incredibly talented as well, the story isn't that bad and this is how American tournament movies should thrive to be more! Hollywood could learn a few things from this humble, fantastic, fantastic movie!
- DirectorGordon ChanStarsJet LiShinobu NakayamaSiu-Ho ChinIn 1937, a Chinese martial artist returns to Shanghai to find his teacher dead and his school harassed by the Japanese.Simply Jet Li, in a fantastic movie with incredible fights.
- DirectorChia-Liang LiuJackie ChanStarsJackie ChanHo-Sung PakLung TiA young martial artist is caught between respecting his pacifist father's wishes or stopping a group of disrespectful foreigners from stealing precious artifacts.The drunken style that made Jackie Chan unique, in roles that no one else can replicate! One of the best final showdowns in history!
- DirectorWilson YipStarsDonnie YenSimon YamSammo Kam-Bo HungA near retired inspector and his unit are willing to put down a crime boss at all costs while dealing with his replacement, who is getting in their way. Meanwhile, the crime boss sends his top henchmen to put an end to their dirty schemes.Dat alley fight... dat Donnie Yen... Dat Sammo Hung...
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungCorey YuenStarsJackie ChanSammo Kam-Bo HungBiao YuenThree successful Hong Kong lawyers are hired by a chemical company of questionable ethics and must eventually make a difficult decision when their employer's motives become clear.The three Dragons (Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao) and the legendary kickboxing champion Benny "The Jet" in an entertaining martial arts extravaganza with some of the best fighting choreography I've ever seen! See this amazing trio in Project A (1983) and Wheals on Meals (1984) as well.
- DirectorAnthony RussoJoe RussoStarsChris EvansSamuel L. JacksonScarlett JohanssonAs Steve Rogers struggles to embrace his role in the modern world, he teams up with a fellow Avenger and S.H.I.E.L.D agent, Black Widow, to battle a new threat from history: an assassin known as the Winter Soldier.I know that this movie seems out of place here, but if you look beyond the superhero filter, you'll see spectacular one-on-one fights of undeniable quality and attention to detail. There's not much wirework here, and the CGI is barely noticeable in the melee fights as well. Captain America vs the Winter Soldier is a duel that deserves its place among the best choreographed screen fights of its time. And its a great movie!
- DirectorLee Jeong-beomStarsWon BinKim Sae-ronKim Tae-hoonA quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug-and-organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.A movie that is just so good...
- DirectorPrachya PinkaewStarsJeeJa YaninHiroshi AbePongpat WachirabunjongAn autistic girl with powerful martial art skills looks to settle her ailing mother's debts by seeking out the ruthless gangs that owe her family money.A movie that is just so original...
- DirectorJackie ChanChi-Hwa ChenStarsJackie ChanMaggie CheungBrigitte LinA virtuous Hong Kong Police Officer must clear his good name when the drug lord he is after frames him for the murder of a dirty cop.
- DirectorLouis LeterrierStarsJet LiBob HoskinsMorgan FreemanA man enslaved by the mob since childhood and raised into behaving like a human attack dog escapes his captors and attempts to start a new life.
- DirectorWilson YipStarsDonnie YenLynn XiongJin ZhangWhen a band of brutal gangsters led by a crooked property developer make a play to take over a local school, Master Ip is forced to take a stand.
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsJackie ChanSiu-Tin YuenJeong-lee HwangWong Fei-Hung is a mischievous yet righteous young man, but after a series of incidents his frustrated father has him disciplined by a master of drunken martial arts.
- DirectorChia-Liang LiuStarsChia-Hui LiuLieh LoYue WongA man studies kung fu at the Shaolin Temple to fight back against the oppressive Manchu government.
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsBiao YuenChing-Ying LamSammo Kam-Bo HungA young man discovers that his reputation as a fearsome martial artist is manufactured by his rich father, after meeting a real martial arts master, who's also a master thespian, and is determined to apprentice under him to learn kung fu.
- DirectorGareth EvansStarsIko UwaisYayan RuhianArifin PutraOnly a short time after the first raid, Rama goes undercover with the thugs of Jakarta and plans to bring down the syndicate and uncover the corruption within his police force.Unlike most of its fanbase, I think this is a step backwards. This sequel is still a great action movie with amazing fights, but it tries to be so much more that ends up all over the place.
- DirectorWilson YipStarsDonnie YenLouis KooRay LuiA hot-headed inspector takes on a small but powerful Vietnamese-Chinese gang, after a series of crimes and murder attempts committed and putting an undercover cop and his girlfriend in great danger.
- DirectorPierre MorelStarsCyril RaffaelliDavid BelleTony D'AmarioIn the ghettos of Paris in 2010, an undercover cop and an ex-thug try to infiltrate a gang in order to defuse a neutron bomb.
- DirectorRobert ClouseStarsBruce LeeJohn SaxonJim KellyA Shaolin martial artist travels to an island fortress to spy on an opium lord - who is also a former monk from his temple - under the guise of attending a fighting tournament.Bruce Lee's most accomplished movie.
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsJackie ChanSiu-Tin YuenJeong-lee HwangAn orphan who has been raised at a kung fu school, where he is treated as little more than a dogsbody and practice target for the students, has a life-changing experience after helping an old peripatetic beggar.
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsJackie ChanBiao YuenSammo Kam-Bo HungTwo Chinese friends, who operate a food truck in Barcelona, Spain, use their martial arts expertise to help their private investigator friend protect the pickpocket Sylvia, who's been targeted by a ruthless gang.Again, the three Dragons and Benny Urquidez in a funny movie with an incredible final fight between Jackie and Benny!
- DirectorIsaac FlorentineStarsMichael Jai WhiteScott AdkinsBen CrossSequel to the 2002 film. This time, Heavyweight Champ George "Iceman" Chambers is sent to a Russian Jail on trumped-up drug charges.
- DirectorPrachya PinkaewStarsTony JaaNathan JonesXing JinA young fighter named Kham must go to Australia to retrieve his stolen elephant. With the help of a Thai-born Australian detective, Kham must take on all comers, including a gang led by an evil woman and her two deadly bodyguards.
- DirectorPrachya PinkaewStarsTony JaaPhetthai VongkumlaoPumwaree YodkamolWhen the head of a statue sacred to a village is stolen, a young martial artist goes to the big city and finds himself taking on the underworld to retrieve it.
- DirectorBenny ChanJackie ChanStarsJackie ChanMichelle FerreMirai YamamotoA Secret Agent loses his memory after falling from a crashing helicopter. He is then chased by several other agency operatives, but he has no idea why.I really like this movie! I believe nostalgia played a very important role here!
- DirectorWei LoStarsBruce LeeNora MiaoJames TienA young man seeks vengence for the death of his teacher.I think this is the movie with the best Bruce Lee fighting scenes. I am a great admirer of Bruce Lee skills, but not the biggest fan of his movies.
- DirectorStanley TongStarsJackie ChanAnita MuiFrançoise YipA young man visiting and helping his uncle in New York City finds himself forced to fight a street gang and the mob with his martial art skills.Similar to Who Am I in regards to nostalgia. Yup, I can't deny I am a Jackie Chan aficionado!
- DirectorBen RamseyStarsMichael Jai WhiteJulian SandsEamonn WalkerIn Los Angeles, an ex-con takes the underground fighting world by storm in his quest to fulfill a promise to a dead friend.