American martial arts films have never been up to the standard of their Asian counterparts – mostly due to their low budgets, slack fighting and horrendous acting. There are of course exceptions, as everyone knows of the Van Dammes and the Seagals, but this list aims to uncover the hidden gems that may have fallen under the radar, those films which you probably haven’t seen, and possibly haven’t even heard of. Some movies are included because of their fantastic fight sequences, others for their original narratives and some merely because of their sheer lunacy.
So next time someone has a go at the American martial arts film, you can respond with one of the entries on this list and thereby prove that it’s not just Asia that makes the best fighting flicks.
1. KING OF THE KICKBOXERS
The first on the list isn’t a true American martial arts film – it was co-produced with Seasonal Films – but it was made to appear American. It’s English language and the leads are American so we’ll assume it is for this feature (there are other co-productions on the list as well). KING OF THE KICKBOXERS stars Loren Avedon, who although an extremely talented martial artist (and a relatively charismatic actor) never really hit the big time. It’s a damn shame, because his performance in this film should have rightly propelled him to martial arts stardom.
Avedon stars opposite Billy Blanks (practitioner of the mysterious and deadly art of Tae Bo) who stars in what has got to be his most villainous role to date, as a murderous psychopath who is involved in an illegal snuff movie ring. Avedon plays a cop who travels to Thailand to stop these films (in which champion martial artists are fought and killed for real) being made and to defeat Blanks.
Aside from the morbid storyline, the film is actually a truly exciting slice of Hong-Kong style martial arts. The Asian influence is obvious, whether through Lucas Lo’s manic direction or Tony Leung’s breakneck choreography, and the film is better for it. The final fight between Blanks and Avedon is standout and matches many Asian martial arts films in complexity and performance, and this combined with the film’s other virtues (err, actually it doesn’t really have any other virtues) make it essential viewing for fans of the sub-genre.
2. MARTIAL OUTLAW
A lesser known outing for Jeff Wincott (wait…I can’t actually think of an outing that was well-known), that pairs him with Gary Hudson and has the two investigating the Russian mafia or something (the plot sort of flies out the window once Wincott starts smashing seven shades of shit out of all the bad guys). Narrative aside, the fights are the ONLY reason to watch this film. Tired sub-plots about dirty cops and alcoholic fathers only slow down the action, which when it comes, comes thick and fast and all over the tits of most American martial arts films. These fights are lengthy (but not overlong) brawls that have some of the most entertaining bad guy dispatching I’ve seen in a long time. A fight in a gym is the most impressive (read: hilarious), as it displays the bad guys’ uncanny resistance to Wincott’s patented ‘Weights in the Face’ style of martial arts.
This film exists solely for the fights, and on that promise, it delivers in spades (and dumbells) and emerges a fantastic dose of American martial arts mayhem. Also, Al Leong is in it, so it’s a must for Leong completists. If you don’t know who he is, Google him and you WILL recognize him.
3. UNDISPUTED II: LAST MAN STANDING
A modern entry here, from 2006 in fact, and starring the (for those in the know) man of the moment – Scott Adkins. UNDISPUTED II is a sequel (really?) to 2002′s UNDISPUTED (REALLY?) and has Michael Jai White take over from Ving Rhames in the lead role. Scott Adkins plays opposite him as the Russian antagonist and MMA master, Uri Boyka, and is the real reason to watch this film. Jai White has always been an underrated actor and martial artist (and has some rather impressive fight scenes in this film), but here it’s Adkins who really shines. The amount of fancy, flashy kicks the man can do is incredible and some of the combos he puts together have to be seen to be disbelieved. He’s got a fair pair of acting chops too and easily holds his own up against Jai White’s more seasoned performance.
But the film isn’t about acting, it’s about fighting. Fighting that hits hard and appears realistic while also utilizing a clear Eastern influence courtesy of Isaac Florentine’s Asian-infused direction and J.J. Perry’s seamless choreography. The fights really are as good as much of the recent Hong Kong output and provide endless rewatchability and slow-motion analysis (there’s not much wire-work going on here folks).
UNDISPUTED II is easily Florentine and Adkins best film yet (until NINJA which I’m sure will fart in NINJA ASSASSIN’s mouth), and a must see for fans of the team, but also of Jai White.
4. GUYVER: DARK HERO
“Wait…Mark Hamill plays a superhero who’s half alien? Looks shit mate. Oh, he’s not actually the main character? Oh, so the cover was lying? Still looks shit mate.”
The above might have been the thoughts that went through your head upon viewing the box art for GUYVER (aka MUTRONICS), and you’d be forgiven for dismissing its sequel as more of the same. BUT YOU’D BE WRONG.
GUYVER: DARK HERO is approximately 115 times better than the first entry and although it retains the same amount of cheesy monsters and hammy acting, it blows the first out of the water with its fight sequences. Koichi Sakamoto and Alpha Stunts were behind these scraps, guided by the keen eye of Steve Wang, and the outcome is what can only be loosely described as an adult Super Sentai with better fight scenes (although it’s strange that the same team was involved with the first one and it still turned out laughable).
Yes, GUYVER: DARK HERO is about as cheesy as it gets, with some of the ‘Zoanoids’ looking like cast-offs from “Power Rangers: Ultimate Dino Sex Force In Space Turbo” (or whatever series they’re on now), but the sense of fun is infectious and the film manages to maintain the overall feel of the OTT manga upon which it’s based. This is one for those that watched either the original anime, or enjoyed the Saban-produced kids shows of the ’90s, as this will bring back memories and it’ll resultantly be hard not to like. Also David Hayter, the voice of Solid Snake in METAL GEAR SOLID and co-writer of loads of comic book movies like X-MEN stars as the main character, so it might be of interest to fans of his work.
5. SHOWDOWN
Billy Blanks again, this time playing the good guy, a lonely janitor who just happens to be an expert martial artist (phew!). SHOWDOWN is basically a rip-off of THE KARATE KID but with Blanks as Mr. Miyagi, and someone who looks like Ralph Macchio playing Ralph Macchio’s part. But so what? It’s not that original, but it is a hell of a lot of fun.
The bad guys are hilarious, with Patrick Kilpatrick playing much the same role that he plays in most of his films and Ken McLeod backing up as the rich kid who really deserves a beating. Also Christine Taylor’s in it, and that is always a good thing in my book.
With regards to the Daniel-san part, newcomer Ken Scott partakes in a number of surprisingly good fight scenes, not Hong Kong standard, but clearly above the level usually found in American martial arts films. Blanks also has a couple of good fights, but the final showdown (oh I see…) is the most impressive, with both Scott and then Blanks going up against opponents in an organized ring fight.
The whole film has an overriding mushy sentimentality about it, but in a sense, that’s what makes it so good, in the same way that THE KARATE KID’s cheesiness worked in its favor. In short, if you liked THE KARATE KID, you’ll like this too.
6. BROKEN PATH
Koichi Sakamoto directed this.
It has a former Power Ranger in it.
It is pretty much one long, unbelievable fight scene.
OUT.
7. NO RETREAT NO SURRENDER 2: RAGING THUNDER
This is Loren Avedon’s second appearance on this list, and for good reason. NO RETREAT, NO SURRENDER 2: RAGING THUNDER is in my opinion the best in the NO RETREAT, NO SURRENDER series of unrelated martial arts actioners as it contains the most complex and impressive fight sequences. The acting is shit but the fights are good. You only need to pay attention to the second part of that sentence because acting isn’t really a determiner in any discussion about whether an American martial arts movie is good or not. This is clearly something the makers of this film had in mind as it seems all the effort was put into making sure this film had Hong Kong-standard biffing sequences. Like KING OF THE KICKBOXERS, this was another America/Hong Kong co-production with Seasonal Films, and like the Blanks/Avedon starrer, it wears its Asian influence on its sleeve, but mainly on its fist.
It also stars a smorgasbord of famous fighters, with Cynthia Rothrock, Hwang Jang-lee and Matthias Hues (learning martial arts especially for this, his first fighting film) all showing off their skills in and out of the ring. So for an American martial arts film with Asian style fighting, NO RETREAT, NO SURRENDER 2 is certainly a safe bet.
8. SPECIAL FORCES
You’ll hopefully be beginning to recognize a certain theme in this list, insofar as there’s quite a few recurring people; Koichi Sakamoto, Steve Wang, Isaac Florentine, Loren Avedon, Billy Blanks and Scott Adkins. It’s because these guys are the ones who are making (or were making) the American martial arts films that stand above so much of the rubbish out there; for it seems they are the ones who care a little more about giving the fans what they want through a bit more effort and a little less of a cash-in mentality.
Adkins and Florentine therefore appear on this list for the second time in SPECIAL FORCES, another American gung-ho action film that contains some inexplicably good Asian-style martial arts. Once again, it’s quite possible (and probable) that the storyline was sidelined to accommodate the tremendous fighting prowess on display from particularly Adkins. Like in UNDISPUTED II, Adkins shows exactly why he should be a major star and a new action hero for this generation, and why Florentine is a director who should be working with bigger budgets and releasing mainstream films.
On the downside, as an earlier effort, SPECIAL FORCES is a bit rough around the edges, but diamonds are to be found amongst the slightly bad acting (Adkins has come a long way in this regard) and the obviously low production values (the titles look like they were made on Microsoft Word). Said diamonds are again, the fight scenes – chiefly the end fight between Adkins and some annoying long-haired guy who never says anything but is AMAZING at fighting. This fight would hold its own up against many Hong Kong martial arts movies of late and is easily the best part of the film and only cements the fact that Scott Adkins is the MAN, at least until, in a high-pitched voice he utters the terrible line:
“Remember the name Paul Cathis……When you’re in Hell!”
Unfortunately I’m not sure who Paul Cathis is and why anyone should remember his name, so a better line would probably have been:
“Remember the name Scott Adkins……When you’re in Blockbuster!”
That would be better advertisement.
9. RAW FORCE
I had no idea what the hell went on in this film but lots of women ran around completely naked, there was lots of martial arts, there were monks, there were zombies, and lots of women ran around completely naked.
10. BEST OF THE BEST 3: NO TURNING BACK
(This isn’t a trailer or fight scene, but the music is so damn good I had to post it, and if this scene alone doesn’t make you want to watch the film, then you’re not a fan of any movie, ever)
I like all of the BEST OF THE BEST films, and so should you. Part one is the best of the best (ouch) but along with part two, is quite well known, so I’ve opted for the third part as an example of a great American martial arts film that you probably haven’t seen. BEST OF THE BEST 3: NO TURNING BACK follows only Tommy Lee from the first films (no Eric Roberts here unfortunately) and his ensuing battle against a gang of white supremacists terrorizing a small town. What makes this entry so good is not only its above average scraps but also its brave tackling of controversial issues and head-on dealing with racism.
American martial arts films of the ’80s and ’90s had an unsavory habit of mostly making villains either Asian or Russian and this film, along with entries such as BLOODFIST III, aimed to tackle this notion by having the villains as Americans themselves, possibly in an effort to bring attention to the stilted views that many of these films had. As a result, the film rises above more standard narratives and is effective as not only a martial arts film (Phillip Rhee is a bad-ass) but also as an action/thriller that considers wider concerns.
P.S. I’ve got to mention the theme music again, it’s so sweet you’ll be humming it for days, especially if your car is broken down and you have to walk up a dusty road with nothing but a vest, jeans, some aviators and a bag of clothes to keep you company… and you’re Phillip Rhee.
11. DRIVE
I know this isn’t a top 10 list, but if there was to be a number one, DRIVE would be it. You CANNOT say any American martial arts film is better than DRIVE.
Directed by Steve Wang with fight choreography by Koichi Sakamoto, and starring the always impressive Mark Dacascos, DRIVE truly is not only the best American martial arts film ever made, but one of the best martial arts movies period, from any country. The fights are incredible, each one utilizing a different environment – from close-quarters motel room fighting to a fight set in a futuristic bar where all the bad guys are on motorcycles – with each one besting the previous sequence. This is true Hong-Kong style choreography and surpasses the fighting in a huge amount of Asian martial arts films.
It’s also really funny, with the RUSH HOUR-style pairing of Dacascos and Kadeem Hardison proving just as effective as Chan and Tucker. It’s essentially a hilarious road movie that stops off at different places (very frequently) in order to have lengthy, intense fight sequences that never get boring and are always inventive. Everything about this movie is ace, and you really cannot call yourself a martial arts fan if you haven’t seen this movie. I guarantee that you will enjoy it.
Brittany Murphy is in it too, which is nice.
Honorable mentions:
BLOODFIST III: FORCED TO FIGHT
U.S. SEALS II
FIST OF HONOUR
NO RETREAT NO SURRENDER III
THE EXPERT
RAGE AND HONOR
GUARDIAN ANGEL
THE SHEPHERD: BORDER CONTROL
If anyone has any comments or suggestions for other American martial arts films that they want on the list, throw a comment our way below.
Related Topics:Best of the Best 3: No Turning Back (1993) • Broken Path (2008) • Drive (1997) • Guyver: Dark Hero (1994) • King of the Kickboxers (1990) • Martial Outlaw (1993) • No Retreat • No Surrender 2: Raging Thunder (1988) • Raw Force (1982) • Showdown (1993) • Special Forces (2003) • Undisputed II: Last Man Standing (2007)
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