Ten glazes
Editor|Zhouzhou Film and Television Entertainment Review
When it comes to classic kung fu movies, everyone will inevitably think of Hong Kong kung fu movies.
Hong Kong, once known as the "Hollywood of the East".
In the last century, there were also its glory moments.
At that time, Hong Kong was famous in the film industry.
It has attracted talented people from all over the world to come and develop.
Among them is such a group of martial arts athletes.
They came here with a love and yearning for martial arts.
fantasizes about getting ahead, hoping that he can bring his favorite martial arts to the screen.
However, the imagination is very happy, but the reality is very skinny.
In the fiercely competitive Hong Kong film industry at the time, their dreams seemed insignificant.
Because they were not well-known, they could only match famous stars such as Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Sammo Hung and others at that time.
or appear in the public eye as a villain.
Even if they perform well, they will look dull in the light of the protagonist.
Therefore, what they leave everyone with is only the image of the characters in the movie.
Even now, people may only look at them and may not be able to remember their names.
01. Huang Zhengli
When it comes to Hong Kong kung fu stars, how can you not mention the "Asian four-thigh king".
Huang Zhengli, as the "first leg king" among the four, should not be underestimated.
Huang Zhengli, who first entered the Hong Kong film and television industry, starred in "South Fist and North Leg".
The villain image "Silver Fox" he created showed the audience his powerful leg skills for the first time.
Everyone who watched it was fascinated, and it also let everyone know Huang Zhengli.
Since then, Huang Zhengli has officially started his development in the Hong Kong kung fu circle.
After that, he starred in many classic kung fu films such as "God Leg Iron Fan Gong" and "Wing Chun Big Brother", all of which are classics.
In Huang Zhengli's actor career, he played with Jackie Chan the most.
And most of the time Huang Zhengli appears as a villain.
Even when starring in "Serpentine Trickster", Jackie Chan was kicked out of his front teeth by Huang Zhengli.
Therefore, Huang Zhengli is also nicknamed "Jackie Chan's sworn enemy".
In addition to Jackie Chan, Huang Zhengli has been booming in Hong Kong kung fu films for several years.
Relying on his good legs, he "kicked" various kung fu stars in the Hong Kong circle.
It can be regarded as worthy of his title of "first leg king".
What's funny is that he always plays the villain, when he plays the decent in the movies he directs.
The audience didn't buy it at all, resulting in a dismal box office for the movie.
It seems that Huang Zhengli's villain image has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the audience.
02. Cassava
Another of the "four-legged kings", Cassava.
Compared with Huang Zhengli, his fame is a little smaller.
But since he can become one of the four thighed kings, he must also have his advantages.
At that time, Sammo Hung, the boss of the Hong family's class, admired Kasavar very much.
and brought him into the Hong Kong film and television industry.
In Sammo Hung's "Three Virtues Monk and Chung Mi Six".
Cassavar also seized the opportunity to make a big difference.
not only cooperated with a number of powerful kung fu stars at that time, but also made his unique leg method out of the circle.
He's very good at difficult moves, even to the extent of three consecutive kicks in the air.
So Sammo Hung after that, he even more praised the extraordinary strength of Cassava.
Even for him, he was willing to match in "Mr. Zan and Looking for Qianhua", so as to set off Casava.
And Casava did not live up to Sammo Hung's expectations.
In this film, Cassavar kicks his opponent several meters away with a spinning kick in the air.
It perfectly demonstrated his profound leg skills, which amazed the audience.
It's a pity that after the 80s of the last century, the market for Hong Kong kung fu films gradually declined.
Kung fu comedies led by Jackie Chan and others have become the trend of the new era.
Traditional performance forms such as Cassava have gradually been eliminated with development.
Casava's appearance in Hong Kong film history was like a flash in the pan and soon withered.
Now Cassavar has returned to his hometown and has completely withdrawn from the film industry.
But his name as one of the "four-legged kings" will always exist in the hearts of the audience.
03. Chuck Norris
The first two, as the "leg king", are both famous for their outstanding leg kung fu.
And the next thing to talk about is Chuck Norris's "hand work".
Chuck Norris was born in the United States and practiced karate from an early age.
In an American karate competition, Bruce Lee appeared as a special guest.
Chuck Norris, as a contestant, recommended himself to Bruce Lee.
After that, Chuck Norris became a student of Bruce Lee and gave him the Chinese name "Luo Lishi".
What really made Chuck Norris famous was "Raptors Across the River" with Master.
At that time, this drama was actually going to be starred by another disciple of Bruce Lee.
But because he didn't want to be a loser in the movie, he refused to act.
That's what Chuck Norris "picked up a leak".
Despite just "playing soy sauce", Chuck Norris still seized the opportunity.
staged a wonderful fighting duel with his master Bruce Lee in the movie.
This clip has also become a classic in the history of kung fu films in Hong Kong and even the world.
Chuck Norris also won the favor of Hollywood in one fell swoop because of his vigorous skills.
After returning to his hometown of the United States, he continued to star in many classic action movies such as "Vietnam War Vanguard".
As a result, it has gained a large number of fans.
In "The Expendables 2", Chuck Norris was also invited by director Stallone to play an important role.
In the movie, his outstanding performance made the audience can't believe that he is in his 60s.
I'm afraid of Chuck Norris, the guy who was crawling in the Hong Kong film industry at the beginning.
I didn't expect to become a Hollywood star in the future.
04. Billy Zhou
Billy Zhou, who is known as the "first person in off-screen fighting" in the movie.
As a Canadian boxing champion, he is still the only world-class Chinese boxing champion.
The boxing champion bravely entered the entertainment industry, probably only because of his hobby.
In 1988, Billy Zhou made his debut from the movie "The Bride".
So began his acting career.
Because of his appearance, he usually plays the role of a Japanese yakuza leader or an East Asian killer.
can be called a representative of the "Oriental master" in Hong Kong film and television.
But because of the limitations of appearance, most of the roles can only be supporting roles.
Therefore, although it has been active in Hong Kong action movies for more than twenty years.
But most of them are small characters who run the show.
For example, movies such as "Dragons and Phoenixes", "Miracle", "Rat Guts" and other movies all have Zhou Billy's appearance.
But until the end, Billy Zhou failed to really leave a strong mark in Hong Kong film history.
But even he didn't become a household name martial arts star.
He is very athletic and has a proven strength.
It also won him a good reputation in the circle.
Although it seems obscure.
But Billy Chow has also contributed a lot to the development of Hong Kong kung fu films.
05.Yasuaki Nida
In fact, the real "Oriental master" should be Kurata Yasuaki.
After all, Kurata is a real Japanese.
Kurata is also a legendary figure in the Hong Kong film industry.
He was not only the first Japanese to develop smoothly in the Hong Kong film industry.
It has even witnessed the golden age of the development of the Hong Kong area.
But the way Kurata Yasuaki entered the Hong Kong film and television industry was very "sloppy".
In 1969, the boss of Shaw Brothers decided to go to Japan to find suitable kung fu talents.
Kurata was favored by the boss for performing a brick splitting with his bare hands in front of the boss.
Immediately was praised by the boss of Shaw Brothers.
Kurata quickly got the opportunity to star in "The Wicked".
In this film, Kurata Yasuaki plays a Japanese thug with strong kung fu.
A Japanese master with extraordinary skills, he was still defeated by Hong Kong's kung fu star in the end.
It was a pleasure to watch, and the audience applauded.
Kurata Yasuaki also became popular for his outstanding skills.
Even Bruce Lee came to find Kurata Hoaki.
I want him to play a Japanese karate coach in "Jingwumen".
Kurata is a karate master, so he naturally happily agreed.
The friendship between the two was also formed from then until Bruce Lee unfortunately passed away.
After Bruce Lee's death, Kurata not only lost his friend, but also his good partner.
Therefore, after that, Kurata Yasuaki continued to travel under many directors.
He has also collaborated with many Hong Kong kung fu superstars, such as Jackie Chan, Liang Xiaolong and others.
Until the 90s, Kurata Yasuaki, who entered middle age.
still sticks to the kung fu film career he loves.
He co-starred with Jet Li in the movie "Jingwu Hero".
The battle between the two is still talked about today.
Today's Kurata Hoaki has long faded out of the Hong Kong film industry.
But his position in the Hong Kong film industry is irreplaceable.
06. Li power
Speaking of Hong Kong stars, how can there be no famous family class?
In the early days of the establishment of the family class, there were only 5 people, and Li Qiangquan was one of them.
He only learned martial arts at the age of 17, Wing Chun, karate, etc.
Although he started to practice martial arts relatively late, he was gifted and intelligent, and his martial arts level was quite good.
However, he is willing to be a mute in "Police Story 2".
As the saying goes, "gold always shines".
Even if he plays a mute, Li Qiangquan can play this role out of the circle.
Wearing suspenders and glasses, he will only be "Abba Aba".
In fact, he is a master of three consecutive kicks in the air.
With a great performance in this movie.
Li Qiangquan also has the title of "Dumb Detective".
Since then, Li Qiangquan has been given many opportunities to show his face in film and television dramas starring Jackie Chan.
It was not until after the 90s that the Lebanese power turned to the background.
Mainly in the role of martial arts instructor.
Today's "dumb leg king" Li Qiangquan is also in his 60s.
He is physically strong, and occasionally makes cameos in film and television dramas.
Li Qiangquan has not only experienced the golden age of the family class.
At the same time, it has also witnessed the glory of Hong Kong films.
epilogue
Today's Hong Kong movies are no longer as brilliant as they were back then.
The older generation of kung fu stars are no longer young, and most of them have retired from the rivers and lakes.
They once used their love and dreams to create a glorious era of Hong Kong films.
Every time we rewatch these classic films, we can feel the blood boiling.
But now it only leaves us with a faint sadness that Shaohua has gone.
Now, the new generation of kung fu stars is in short supply.
I wonder when I will be able to recreate the glory of action movies back then?
Some references:
1. Zhihu|Huang Zhengli
2. Baidu Encyclopedia|Cassava
3. Douyin Encyclopedia|Chuck Norris
4. Kickboxing Champion |
5. Headline information|Li Qiangquan