GURPS Martial Arts - Home

Miller, Frank and others. Daredevil (Marvel, 1964-present).
Daredevil is a blind martial-arts master who contends
with ninja, a supervillain Throwing Art expert, and other
martial artists. Created by Stan Lee, but look for Miller-era
comics (1979-1982). The spin-off comics and movie are of
uneven quality.
Movies
36th Chamber of Shaolin (Chia-Liang Liu, 1978). This
Gordon Liu kung fu classic has a horrible plot but some of
the best Shaolin training sequences ever made.
Above the Law (Andrew Davis, 1988). This Steven Seagal
action flick plausibly combines gunplay and martial arts in
a modern setting.
Adventures of Robin Hood, The (Michael Curtiz, 1938).
Features a Basil Rathbone vs. Errol Flynn fencing duel, plus
cinematic archery!
Batman Begins (Christopher Nolan, 2005). This Batman
remake sets a quest for the master (with an interesting
turn), ninja, and a revenge quest against a superheroic backdrop.
Big Trouble in Little China (John Carpenter, 1986). An
overconfident trucker gets entangled in magic and martial
arts in San Francisco’s Chinatown. First American attempt
at a wuxia film is a mixed bag, but fun.
Bruce Lee: A Warrior’s Journey (John Little and Bruce
Lee, 2000). This documentary on Bruce Lee’s life and his
unfinished final film, Game of Death, has great footage of
Lee in action – both in “cinematic” form and demonstrating
his true skills.
Dirty Ho (Chia-Liang Liu, 1979). Groundbreaking kung
fu comedy, with death-touch, proxy fighting, and a gullible
thief dragooned into helping a master with a secret.
Drunken Master II (Chia-Liang Liu, 1994). Outstanding
nonstop action and drunken-style kung fu. Possibly Jackie
Chan’s best work – although every Chan movie should be
considered inspirational for comic games!
Duellists, The (Ridley Scott, 1977). Two Napoleonic officers
are locked in an affaire d’honneur. Features duels with
sabers and smallswords, and even one on horseback. Based
on a Joseph Conrad story.
Enter the Dragon (Robert Clouse, 1973). Bruce Lee’s
influential final film introduced many common “action
movie” tropes. Also check out The Big Boss (Wei Lo, 1971),
The Chinese Connection (Wei Lo, 1972), and Return of the
Dragon (Bruce Lee, 1972) – the first two of which are both
sometimes called Fists of Fury.
Fatal Flying Guillotines, The (Raymond Lui, 1977).
Cheesy kung fu action, unlikely weapons, bad acting, and
poor dubbing make this worthy viewing for those running
silly campaigns!
Hero (Yimou Zhang, 2002). A story of assassination and
philosophy – told and retold several times as lies and deceptions
are unmasked. Features beautiful wuxia action.
Karate Kid, The (John G. Avildsen, 1984). A bullied teen
gets tutored in karate by an Okinawan master (played brilliantly
by Noriyuki Morita).
Kill Bill: Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 (Quentin Tarantino, 2003 and
2004). Tarantino’s two-part homage to kung fu, revenge,
samurai, and the Hollywood Western. Volume 1 features a
samurai-movie swordfest and a killer schoolgirl. Volume 2
features an Ancient Master, cinematic martial-arts training,
and a Western-style brawl.
Kung Fu Hustle (Stephen Chow, 2004). Gangsterwannabes
trigger an escalating war between martial-arts
masters. Mixes kung fu with dancing! The equally fun
Shaolin Soccer (Stephen Chow, 2001) combines kung fu
with soccer.
Once Upon a Time in China (Hark Tsui, 1991). Features
Jet Li as Wong Fei-Hung. This movie and its many sequels
(especially the first two) feature great martial-arts action set
amidst Chinese nationalism and Western colonialism in
late-19th century China.
Ong-bak (Prachya Pinkaew, 2003). A Thai villager – and
Muay Thai and Krabi Krabong expert – uses flying knees
and elbows to punish religious-artifact thieves.
Raging Bull (Martin Scorsese, 1980). This searing look at
mid-20th century pro boxing features brutal fight scenes.
Required viewing for a contender campaign!
Rocky (John G. Avildsen, 1976). A young boxer (a wellcast
Sylvester Stallone) struggles for an unlikely title shot.
Great training sequences. The sequels are formulaic.
Seven Samurai, The (Akira Kurosawa, 1954). Seven ronin
help poor villagers defend themselves against bandits. A
classic plot – and a fine example of how to assemble an
“adventuring team” with diverse martial-arts experience
and backgrounds.
Silent Flute, The (Richard Moore, 1978). A young seeker
– accompanied by a blind, flute-playing master – sets out to
defeat a legendary foe. Bruce Lee collaborated on the writing.
Originally released as Circle of Iron.
Spartacus (Stanley Kubrick, 1960). A slave is trained as a
gladiator before leading a revolt against Rome. Great training
sequences, a famous gladiatorial duel, and an inspiring
transition from a contender theme to a quest/war story.
Swordsman II (Siu-Tung Ching and Stanley Tong, 1991).
A powerful warlord emasculates himself to achieve mystical
powers. The heroes must use their own cinematic skills to
stop him. Magic-heavy wuxia action ensues.
Three Musketeers, The (Richard Lester, 1973). This film
and its sequel, The Four Musketeers (1974), feature excellent
swashbuckling action.
Television
In addition to fictional works like those below, mixed
martial arts tournaments are becoming more common television
fare.
Cowboy Bebop (Hajime Yatate, 1998). This anime series
includes an ex-gangster and bounty hunter who’s a Jeet
Kune Do expert. The martial-arts action has both style and
verisimilitude. Cowboy Bebop: Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door
(2001) has two of the best animated martial-arts scenes ever
made.
Green Hornet, The (George W. Trendle, 1966-1967).
Notable mainly as Bruce Lee’s first major Hollywood break:
as Kato, the Green Hornet’s kung fu-using sidekick.
Kung Fu (1972-1975). David Carradine as Kwai Chang
Caine, a Chinese monk exiled in the Wild West. A classic, full
of “Shaolin wisdom” and kung fu action.
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