Having won multiple wushu competitions as a member of the Beijing Wushu Team (former members including Jet Li and Donnie Yen), he made his cinematic debut in 1996's Tai Chi 2. It wasn't until receiving his breakout role as the assassin Jack in SPL that Wu Jing began claiming his fame in the worldwide martial arts movie scene. Interestingly, earlier in his career, Wu Jing's character would die in almost every movie he appeared in. He was like the Sean Bean of martial arts films. Starting out as a highly underrated Hong Kong film fighter, he has now become one of the most lucrative Chinese actors starring in films that consistently break box office records like Wolf Warrior and Wandering Earth. So here are my favorite Wu Jing fight scenes.
#12. Wolf Warrior 2 (2017)
(only drone scene preceding the fight shown below, scroll down for link to full fight)
Link to dailymotion video with full fight scene featured at 7:30 mark:
No one could have predicted what a kung fu cash cow Wu Jing would become in the 2010s and onwards. Wolf Warrior 2's colossal commercial success is what solidified his status as a cinematic action giant becoming the highest grossing Chinese film in history exceeding its predecessor as well as the highest grossing non-English language film until the release of another Wu Jing war film The Battle At Lake Changqin. Wu Jing returns as director from the first Wolf Warrior also reprising his role as a Chinese spec ops soldier who has recently been discharged after a fatal altercation with a hostile real estate tycoon forced into becoming a mercenary in an unknown African nation to defend humanitarian workers from rebel forces and the black market weapons dealers supplying them. Wolf Warrior 2 is an unapologetically nationalistic Chinese military film with a bizarre blend of grounded yet uniquely over-the-top action. A stylistic tone that Wu Jing would soon establish a reputation for and which has since overtaken the Chinese box office in the last decade. The Wolf Warrior series has made its way so far into the mainland mainstream that it's patriotic message has even been used by real Chinese politicians. Having such entertaining action set pieces, it isn't difficult to understand the appeal with Wolf Warrior 2 beginning with an underwater long take fight, followed later by some convenience store AK-47 gun-fu, an excellently staged shantytown car chase, not to mention crossbows, tanks, and of course, Wu Jing catching and redirecting an RPG with a goddamn fence. Serving as an emotional climax for the film is the final fight with the leader of the arms dealer mercenaries portrayed by the often overlooked action actor Frank Grillo who was responsible for the death of Wu Jing's character's fiancé.
But the most technically impressive fight sequence has go to be with one of the film's own fight choreographers Aaron Toney who plays a drone pilot and secondary leader of the mercenaries. Toney has risen through the ranks of Hollywood over the years stunt doubling for Chadwick Boseman and Anthony Mackie in various MCU films as well as choreographing the fight scenes for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, DC's Titans, and Netflix's Altered Carbon among other big budget movies and shows. Consolidating all of his experience, Aaron Toney is now currently hard at work on his own original series Project H. Until then, we have his past projects like Wolf Warrior 2 where we can appreciate his skills as a self-taught martial artist and eventual Taekwondo prodigy in a knife fight that is choreographed with greater speed and intricacy than the underwhelming duel with Scott Adkins in the previous film. Aaron Toney had always emulated his own variant of the Hong Kong flavor of action in his indie fight scene days and here he has been given a chance to bring it to a Chinese blockbuster working alongside one of HK's most successful movie martial artists Wu Jing.
Wu Jing, weakened by his exposure to a fictional African virus, only pulls through due to his undying patriotic spirit and love for the locals and humanitarian relief workers. In spite of that plot-based weakness, the knife play is still top-notch featuring both stand-up and ground fighting set to an old-fashioned Hong Kong rhythm but with closer camerawork and quicker cuts than even the Scott Adkins fight. Maybe to take advantage of the then popular impressionistic filming methods of its contemporaneous action counterparts. Wu Jing made sure to assemble a multinational stunt team for Wolf Warrior 2 consisting of action director Jack Wong Wai-Leung (former Jackie Chan Stunt Team member), action director Sam Hargrave (director of the Extraction series), fight choreographer Thayr Harris (87Eleven), action coordinator veteran Regis Harrington, and pre-vis action design by Vlad Rimburg, indie action film legend and fight coordinator of Netflix's Lucifer and Telltale's Batman video game. Hong Kong action cinema has had a long-standing tradition of hiring western fighters and the Wolf Warrior series, though a mainland production, continues that convention by casting some of the greatest gwailos to grace the Chinese silver screen. The first of them being Scott Adkins in Wolf Warrior and succeeded by Wolf Warrior 2's recruitment of prominent stuntwoman Heidi Moneymaker, the always charismatic Frank Grillo, and most of all for this entry on the list, Aaron Toney. Wolf Warrior 3 is already planned to complete the trilogy and we can only wait in baited breath to see what other physical talent from around the world will be brought together for the next film.
#11. Shaolin (2011)
Also known as The New Shaolin Temple, 2011's Shaolin was directed by the late Benny Chan who has been behind many Jackie Chan films like Who Am I?, New Police Story, Rob-B-Hood, and of course, Shaolin. Benny's final film Raging Fire starring Donnie Yen won him the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Director though years before he took home the gold he directed this modernized tribute to classic Shaolin-themed films. Andy Lau stars as a warlord seeking refuge in the Shaolin Temple from his enemies aided by a cleanly head shaven Wu Jing as one the temple's highest ranking monks. We get little action screen time from Wu Jing including a less-than-a-minute fight with Nicholas Tse who plays Andy Lau's traitorous and power-hungry second-in-command.
But most of Wu Jing's screen fighting is during a night-time rescue of illegally forced laborers who are to be killed once they find buried treasure. Wu Jing's staff skills are briefly put on display against an unarmed assassin before he switches to his shaolin fists and feet. This first fight is merely a lead-up to the main baddie however as a hand-to-hand engagement ensues with Xiong Xin-Xin, Nicholas Tse's top assassin. Xiong brings in his lethal legs, a trait he has become recognized for ever since his dual role of having stunt doubled Jet Li and playing Club Foot in the Once Upon a Time in China series. Xiong Xin-Xin is one of those familiar faces in Hong Kong martial arts cinema whose name is not nearly as well known as some of his colleagues but has worked his way up the HK hierarchy as both an actor and craftsman of martial arts action. Somewhat disappointingly, but for justifiable plot purposes, the fight sequence is cut short when Wu Jing enacts his Shaolin moral ideals by pushing Xiong Xin-Xin out of the way of Nicholas Tse's gunfire. An uncaring and sadistic Nicholas Tse represents the polar opposite of Wu Jing's altruistic principles willing to murder his own men to kill Wu Jing who heroically sacrifices himself by locking the main gate with nothing but his arms to allow his students to escape.
The fight scene was the work of legendary action director Corey Yuen and his team comprised of action choreographer Yuen Tak, Jackie Chan Stunt Team alumni Nicky Li Chung-Chi as action choreographer and Jack Wong Wai-Leung as assistant action choreographer, as well as assistant action choreographers Han Guan, Huang Kaihasen, Liu Fang, Sang Lin, and Hon Chun. Wu Jing is in as fine fighting form as ever adapting his Wushu background into moderately fast yet impactful Shaolin movements building up to an emotionally powerful moment that elevates him into a true embodiment of the Shaolin way.
Benny Chan would later work with Wu Jing in Call of Heroes as you'll see later on this list and their collaborations are clearly indicative of their capability in combining hard hitting action with an equally hard-hitting narrative.
#10. Twins Mission (2007)
Steering away from the dramatic impact of the last entry and onto more comedic territory, next we have Twins Mission, a light-hearted action film that parodies the popular pair of 2000s' era C-Pop singers Gillian Chung and Charlene Choi who play the movie's "good twins". When a Tibetan bead with supernatural healing properties is stolen by a group of "evil twins", Wu Jing and Sammo Hung, portraying two Tibetan lamas, team up with Gillian Chung and Charlene Choi. As an action comedy directed by veteran Hong Kong actor and action designer Benz Kong To-Hoi, you can expect the film to definitely deliver in the action department. Out of Wu Jing's 2 standout fight scenes in the film including the opening train sequence, the mid-movie fight takes this spot on the list.
Wu Jing faces off one pair of the bead-stealing twins who look nothing alike besides their hair and clothing. They're not even the same gender. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a readily available look-alike so you gotta make due with what you got right? Once the male twin played by prolific Hong Kong actor Baat Leung-Gam is knocked out, the female twin played by Leung Yuet-Wan unleashes her bodybuilder physique and iron body kung fu techniques. Wu Jing's only answer to that is his flashy wire-enhanced Wushu kicks. Meanwhile, Sammo Hung fends off 6 other twins: Mona & Lisa, Cody Liang Zi-Li & Andy Liang Zi-Qiang, and Albert Koon Yiu Leung & Herbert Leung Kun-Seun. It's a 6-on-1 that sees Sammo brandishing an umbrella of all weapons against the twins' chains, knives, and pipes.
An action director like Benz Kong To-Hoi would know exactly who to call in to help choreograph the fight sequences which include 2nd unit action choreographer Tsui Siu-Ming, assistant action choreographer Kang Jingqi and An Wande, as well as an action team of 21 individuals that you can read about on the film's Hong Kong Movie Database page if you're really interested. Being a product of the mid-to-late 2000s', the fight sequences are shot more "stylishly" than in Shaolin incorporating some slow-mo and close-ups of the actors' faces for....emotional intensity? Much of the action isn't too obscured by overly intimate camerawork however and the clappy blocking sound effects sort of take you back to a not-so-distant past in Hong Kong action's twilight years. It's a fun and humorous enough fight that takes advantage of the whole deadly doppelganger gag and certainly not the last time you'll see Wu Jing and Sammo Hung on-screen together on this particular top 12.
#9. Drunken Monkey (2003)
(skip to 1:24:00 for fight scene discussed below)
Martial arts cinema legend Lau Kar-Leung's directorial and choreographic credits stretch back all the way to the late 60s'. So it was with bittersweet sentiment that 2003's Drunken Monkey served as a cinematic send-off as it was the last movie he directed. Also marking almost 20 years since Shaw Bros. Studios' previous "Kung Fu film", the closest to that subgenre having been mainly action-driven comedies/dramas, Lau Kar-Leung's final film as director may have been an attempt to resurrect the retro runaway success of the Shaw-style kung fu movies of old. Lau Kar-Leung is the boss of a business that protects items that are transported across China but uncovers a black market drug trade embedded in his company run by his own brother played by Chang Chen-Huan who attempts to take him out of the equation so as to keep his illegal dealings safe. Lau Kar-Leung, presumed dead, plots his vengeance by teaching the secrets of the eponymous Drunken Monkey style to 3 students: Wu Jing, Sammy Lau Wing-Kin, and Shannon Yiu-King.
The 4 confront Lau Kar-Leung's back-stabbing brother and the head of the drug network played by Shaw Bros. star Chi Kuan-Chun in a climactic old-school showdown. After sipping on an alcohol soaked rag, the kung fu quartet take on the entire drug gang in their headquarters. Sammy Lau Wing-Kin and Shannon Yiu-King double team Chang Chen-Huan who is one of the few drunken monkey practitioners besides Lau Kar-Leung and his pupils. But the main fight is between Lau Kar-Leung and his top drunken disciple Wu Jing who pair up against Chi Kuan-Chun, a master of Hung Ga complete with the southern Chinese martial art's iconic forearm rings and a formidable wooden pole. Actors Sammy Lau Wing-Kin and Shannon Yiu-King are great in their inebriated monkey fist but Wu Jing really outshines them all melding his monkey moves with acrobatic wire-fu and use of the alcoholic cloth as both a chain-whip and staff-like weapon. Kung fu cinephiles may recognize that Drunken Monkey is sort of a call-back to kung fu cult classic Mad Monkey Kung Fu, another movie with Lau Kar-Leung in a directorial and lead acting role, though updating the familiar fight formula through contemporary camerawork and early 2000s' sound design.
Masterminding this monkey mayhem is Lau Kar-Leung himself and his brother Lau Kar-Wing joined by assistant action choreographer Wong Chung-Chung and Ma Yun. As a farewell to film-making, Lau Kar-Leung lays down his legacy by collaborating with members of his own lineage with not only his brother Lau Kar-Wing but also Kar-Wing's son who is, which I didn't actually know until now, Sammy Lau Wing-Kin. Lau Kar-leung leaves the rest to his simian successors Shannon Yiu-King and a relative newcomer to the genre but soon to take the Chinese action world by storm, Wu Jing, who in Drunken Monkey is in his physical prime. The result is a deadly drunken dance of masterfully made monkey martial arts that is the culmination of both the film and Lau Kar-Leung's ground-breaking career.
#8. Tai Chi Boxer (1996)
This sequel to Jet Li's Tai Chi Master (hence it's alternative title Tai Chi 2) shares no plot continuity and only a couple cast members reappearing but as completely different characters as is the convention of many Hong Kong martial arts movies. Though you can expect the action to be close to the caliber of the original as it was directed by the King of Choreographed Kung Fu Yuen Woo-Ping who also directed the first film and would go on a directorial hiatus until 2010's True Legend. Wu Jing makes his martial arts film debut as the titular Tai Chi fighter who clashes with some opium smugglers. As a gifted Wushu athlete, Tai Chi Boxer is a showcasing of Wu Jing's potential displaying a wide range of Chinese martial arts including a Mantis Fist fight against Yu Hai, one of the few returning actors from the prior film. Yet it's the closing fight sequence where he puts on the real show.
He's not the only one proving his worth in the world of Hong Kong action however as HK veteran villain Darren Shahlavi enters the fray in one of his earliest films beginning the fight facing off former kickboxing champion and fellow villainous vet Billy Chow, Chow in this movie a friend-turned-foe after a prior forest duel with Wu Jing. Darren Shahlavi outboxes an on the defensive Billy Chow in a few camera-punching POV shots, in retrospect a preview of the pugilistic prowess he would become recognized for in Ip Man 2. Shahlavi is more than just a fist fighter though having trained in Shotokan Karate, Muay Thai, and the martial form he seems to demonstrate most clearly in this fight sequence, Kickboxing. Performing high spinning kicks and a perfect splits, Darren Shahlavi's legs are just as lethal as his hands. Capitalizing on the contrast between his hard style and Wu Jing's soft style, Shahlavi doubles down on his menacing musculature by exploding out of his clothing and throwing around the smaller skinnier Wu Jing. Actor and stunt performer Tam Chiu also shows his stuff playing Wu Jing's character's cousin as a sort of sidekick holding off Shahlavi's business associates. Probably closer to peak physical form than in Drunken Monkey, Wu Jing playfully twirls around his "queue whip" ponytail like an extra appendage while inventively utilizing all manner of rice bags, ropes, and ramps in an exhibition of tai chi trapeze artistry and wirework wizardry that resembles a similar storage house ladder fight in Once Upon a Time in China.
Such skillful martial acrobatics took 16 days to shoot unsurprisingly due to the masterclass creation of action director Yuen Woo-Ping as well as assistant action choreographer Xu Xiang-Dong as a sharply dressed tiger claw fighter and Shaolin Temple series henchman Ji Chunhua as an iron-headed bald baddie. Aided by the likes of assistant action choreographers Kou Zhan-Wen, Tam Chiu, Chui A-Fai, and Xue Jian, Tai Chi Boxer was the year of Yuen Woo-Ping's respite from directorial duties but also his discovery of Wu Jing and the overlooked rise of Darren Shahlavi allowing both of them to make their mark on the martial movie map. Wu Jing would continue to test his Tai Chi talents in the 2003 Tai Chi Master TV series but it all began with his humble origins in the 1996 film.
#7. Call of Heroes (2016)
In another film directed by Benny Chan who had worked with Wu Jing before in 2011's Shaolin, an earlier ranking on the list, Wu Jing is in yet another minor role as part of the military force sent in to a small village holding hostage the son of a rival faction's governor played by a sadistic Louis Koo who had mindlessly murdered a school teacher and a few of her fellow refugees. The town militia is lead by Sean Lau in his first film in over 2 decades and his conflict with the golden gun carrying Louis Koo culminates in a climactic battle where Wu Jing regretfully duels his former friend and now wandering warrior played by Taiwanese singer/actor Eddie Peng.
Peng brought in his prior martial arts movie background from MMA drama Unbeatable and new age Wong Fei-Hung film Rise of the Legend, the former of which consisted of 4-hour boxing drills and the latter 10-hour Kung Fu routines. That intensive training had more than paid off giving him the ability to adapt to the intricate blade work necessary for his character as a dual swordsman. Eddie Peng's double daos make a magnificent match-up against Wu Jing's champion-level wushu, specifically his superb spear skills, a weapon Wu Jing wields with both his arms and his legs. The two allies-turned-enemies ascend up to the peak of a pile of pots in an interesting set piece integrating special effects that are part-CGI part practical. The computer-generated jars can be "jarring", pardon the pun, yet are adequately rendered enough to construct a more engaging environment for a fast-paced spear vs. sword sequence.
The fight scene is filmed as frenetically as the fighters' own movements heightened by quick cuts and the up close and personal perspective that would come to characterize action director Sammo Hung's later filmography earning him a nomination for the Hong Kong Film Award in the category of Best Action Choreography. Sammo only cameos in the film's final moments as the village's actual military general but his spectacular spear play in olden-day kung fu flicks like Odd Couple, Iron Fisted Monk, and Encounters of the Spooky Kind is re-envisioned in the skillful hands of Wu Jing. A weapon fight of this martial magnitude was not simply a Sammo solo effort however as he called in his very own stunt team for it: assistant action director Lam Hak-Ming, action choreographers Shi Zhanbiao, Wong Ming-Kin, Wei Yuhai, Zhang Guibo, Guo Yong, ex-Jackie Chan Stunt Team member Paco Yick Tin-Hung, and assistant action choreographer Tsim Siu-Ling. By the 2010s', Sammo Hung had mostly hung up his title as a top tier martial arts performer and concentrated on his choreographic craftsmanship to make way for the next generation of screen fighting superstars such as Wu Jing. And yes, those two have actually fought each other and that fight is on its way a few entries down....
#6. Legendary Assassins (2008)
Long before helming the Wolf Warrior series, Wu Jing made his debut as director in 2008's Legendary Assassin. Also the directorial debut of Jackie Chan Stunt Team specialist Nicky Li Chung-Chi, this film would be one of three collaborations with Wu Jing the other two being Invisible Target and Fatal Contact (more on those later). Wu Jing is the title character, an assassin who is connected to a homicide investigation run by a cop played by first-time actress Celina Jade, daughter of infamous Hong Kong foreign film fighter Roy Horan. You might recognize Jade from Wolf Warrior 2 and it was Legendary Assassin that marked the start of her acting career. Several fights are scattered throughout the movie the most memorable of which are one with a guan dao wielding foe and another featuring Chinese wrestler Jiang Bao-Cheng. As is often the case, the best is certainly saved for last in a 1-against-all rainy night fight.
This end scene feels like what would happen if Wu Jing replaced Keanu Reeves in The Matrix Reloaded's Burly Brawl at the same time echoing the epic entrance of Neo in the finale of The Matrix Revolutions surrounded on both sides by two endless lines of Agent Smiths. Even the horse-shoe-shaped design of the building resembles Pig Sty Alley in Kung Fu Hustle which itself spoofed the Burly Brawl in its own final fight. Aside from the clear Matrix influences, Wu Jing mixes in his own personal action sensibilities executing a whirlwind of cranium-cracking kicks held aloft by obvious but well applied wirework. The fight creatively incorporates the surrounding architecture as it begins on ground level and works itself up to the upper balconies and back down again escalating the sense of danger by employing some fully framed falls by the stunt men and one fatal face plant by Wu Jing himself. Much like Keanu Reeves in the Burly Brawl, Wu Jing is gradually overwhelmed at one point almost piled on top of by a large horde of henchmen. He is a "legendary assassin" but by no means an invincible one-man army. The last of the henchmen are the most coordinated of them all and not merely more disposable punching bags who hold down Wu Jing returning the favor with a brutal beatdown destroying every one of his limbs. A broken bodied Wu Jing is left on the rain-covered floor to defend himself with nothing but his wriggling torso.
Action choreographer Nicky Li Chung-Chi and fellow Jackie Chan Stunt Team alumnus Jack Wong Wai-Leung (also action director of Wolf Warrior 2) choreographically constructed this tragic testament to the tenacity of one hand-to-hand hitman trying to save the life of a woman whose moral compass is far more fixed than his ever could be. Up until then, Wu Jing was mainly seen as simply one of the next-gen competitive Wushu movie martial artists to succeed the likes of Jet Li and Donnie Yen. It was Legendary Assassin that surprised everyone by presenting to the world that he could direct just as well as he could perform.
#5. SPL 2: A Time for Consequences (2015)
Somewhere in an alternate timeline is a film that precedes the events of the original SPL film and centers around the rise to power of Sammo Hung's character. Sadly in our timeline, that storyline was scrapped yet we were blessed with an adequately entertaining though narratively disconnected follow-up, as Hong Kong action sequels normally are, in 2015's SPL 2. Released in English-speaking countries as Kill Zone 2, Tony Jaa breaks out into Hong Kong film for the first time ever sharing the screen with Wu Jing who flips the script as a protagonist rather than the antagonist he played in the prior movie. Wu Jing is now on the other side of the law as a cop who tries rescuing his brother from an underground organ harvesting in Thailand but is instead imprisoned and kept under the watchful eye of the warden played by a pre-Ip Man 3 Max Zhang and his vigilant guard played by Tony Jaa. After a frenetically fast face-off between Wu Jing and Tony Jaa in a jail cell, the two law enforcers team up upon the revelation that Wu Jing was the bone marrow donor to Tony Jaa's on-screen cancer-stricken daughter.
Together they clear an entire floor of Max Zhang's men before Zhang personally takes them on initiating an incredibly thrilling boss fight. Zhang's wire-powered aerial kicks totally outmatches that of his wushu colleague Wu Jing while also completely countering Tony Jaa's signature never-ending knees and endless elbows in never before seen ways. Readjusting their strategy to attacking both high and low with powerful strikes of their own, Jing and Jaa Jing-Jaa the shit out of Max Zhang forcing him into pulling out two elongated needles as is weapons of last resort. Taking the fight to even higher levels of dramatic absurdity, SPL 2 one-ups its predecessor's twist ending with an even more elaborate building falling near-death scene.
SPL 2 is for certain a spiritual successor in terms of storytelling but not necessarily in its approach to the action. The realistic stylization of the original SPL is substituted with the more orthodox Hong Kong aesthetic and the final fight especially diverges from SPL 1's grounded choreography in Max Zhang's wired wushu. Because credit to the fight sequencing goes to once head of Jackie Chan's Stunt Team Nicky Li Chung-Chi, known for their silly but practical stunts, the absence of SPL's innovative realism is all the stranger. Although having a more fantastical film fighter like Max Zhang without wires would seem like a waste of his talents so we can forgive Nicky Li Chung-Chi and assistant martial arts directors Christopher Chan Sai-Tang and Su Lin-Gao for giving in to their physics-defying impulses. Some reality is retained however as this movie thankfully didn't commit the cinematic sin of putting Tony Jaa on wires as was the case in Master Z: The Ip Man Legacy. Nicky Li Chung-Chi also dug back into his Jackie Chan roots of weaponizing clothing simultaneously paying homage to Wu Jing's older filmography, namely Drunken Monkey, by handing him a wet jacket as a whip-like object. What we get is something not as ground breaking as the first SPL but a serviceable sequel with a crazy climax set to a grand operatic score unexpectedly crossing over Hong Kong's hard-hitting action with Thailand's arguably harder-hitting action in martial megastars Wu Jing and Tony Jaa pitting them against their far more overlooked screen fighting cohort Max Zhang.
#4. Invisible Target (2007)
By this point in the list you would've realized how great of an actor-director duo Benny Chan and Wu Jing are and their 2nd film collaboration Invisible Target is by no means an exception. The bombing of a jewelry shop kills the fiance of a detective played by Nicholas Tse and hospitalizes the fellow officers of an inspector played by Shawn Yue. Jaycee Chan plays a cop whose older brother is an M.I.A. policeman accused of having joined the crime gang responsible for the bomb attack. All 3 connected together by the criminal crew behind the bombing, the 3 lawmen unravel a convoluted conspiracy of corruption that reaches towards the top of the local law enforcement agency leading to a final showdown at the Police Head Quarters.
If you thought the last entry was an epic final boss fight, then wait til you see this one. This time Wu Jing takes his turn as the big bad. A martial menace spotlighting his then underappreciated acting abilities mocking his co-stars with venomous taunts and flawless facial expressions in a display of absolute arrogance and aggression. Wu Jing unleashes an unflinching fury of fists and feet destroying Nicholas Tse and the surrounding office space.
Glass is shattered, desks are demolished, and Wu Jing blasts Nicholas Tse into a vault with a
particularly beautiful spinning twin side kick. Benny Chan demanded as little stunt doubling as possible and so our heroes' on-screen injuries were more or less the real deal. Nicholas Tse really was kicked down a flight of stairs and Shawn Yue actually jumped out of the upper floor explosion.
This might be a Wu Jing list but let's take a minute to explore his on-screen co-fighters. Starting with Nicholas Tse who would go on to switch sides as a despicable warlord in Shaolin opposite a very non-villainous Wu Jing. But here in Invisible Target he is in his usual role as the protagonist. Not quite as athletically adept as Wu Jing, Nicholas Tse is nonetheless fairly martial arts savvy. Like Eddie Peng in Call of Heroes, Tse is a music artist turned martial artist taught by some of Hong Kong's best cinematic action designers Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan, and JC Stunt Team vet and Invisible Target's fight choreographer Nicky Li Chung-Chi. Besides contemporary kickboxing type combat which he uses for this movie, he has also delved into Muay Thai and Wing Chun for later films becoming a lifelong practitioner regularly training with his action actor bros Philip Ng and Andy On. Shawn Yue is also in fine fighting form having co-starred with Nicholas Tse a year earlier in Dragon Tiger Gate as a nunchaku expert superhero. Alas, it's still Wu Jing that they're fighting and he outshine them in pure physicality as a superhuman villain landing an impossible number of front kicks in mid-air albeit with wires. Not to mention the unnatural strength to catch and throw back a large metal frame onto the vulnerable throats of Nicholas Tse and Shawn Yue.
It's a 2-against-1 yet still an unfair hand-to-hand affair. I might be making a controversial statement as this isn't really discussed as such but I seriously think this is the most brutally intense 1 v. 2 fight scene in modern martial arts cinema before 2011's The Raid: Redemption. Furthering this brutality is Jaycee Chan who convinced the director of rewriting the film to kill off his character for a more emotionally impactful story. And killed off he is, violently stomped to death sacrificing himself simply for Nicholas Tse and Shawn Yue to have the slightest chance of taking down Wu Jing. In a literally explosive set piece in the latter half covered in flaming shards of glass, this practical effects driven fight was superbly sequenced by a trio of Jackie Chan Stunt Team-mates: aforementioned action choreographer Nicky Li Chung-Chi as well as assistant action choreographer Jack Wong Wai-Leung and He Jun. Add to the fact that Jackie Chan's son, Jaycee Chan also made an appearance, we witness the Chan clan evolving their choreographic craft into a distinct action aesthetic that is a little less reality-based and over-the-top but hits just as hard physically and hits even harder dramatically. It's a fight scene of visceral virtuosity and a case in point where Wu Jing's dramatic performance stands up to other acting veterans like Nicholas Tse and Shawn Yue.
#3. Fatal Move (2008)
Not nearly reaching the fame of his directorial contemporary Benny Chan, director Dennis Law has made his fair share of entertainingly action-packed films like the Wu Jing led Fatal Contact (read on for elaboration on that later) and Bad Blood. 2008's Fatal Move, also titled Triad Wars, is one among his trinity of martial thrillers. Remember how SPL 2 was initially meant as a prequel to the first SPL? Well, Fatal Move was an even earlier try at that concept but was thrown out when director Dennis Law felt restricted in ideas for the plot in particular the character dynamics between Sammo Hung and Wu Jing. Hence the two reuniting in essentially the same roles as triad boss and top enforcer respectively. Adhering to standard Hong Kong crime drama conventions, a series of sudden twists and turns and back-stabbing betrayals all lead to Sammo Hung and Wu Jing trapped in a warehouse encircled by an army of cops. Fully aware that these are their last moments, Wu Jing challenges Sammo Hung to a duel having always questioned Hung's in-film reputation as an undefeated fighter.
Wu Jing is once again in a hairstyle that isn't his natural color a la SPL, lookin' like a gothic vampiric assassin. Unusual hair or not, there is still no denying Wu Jing's world class wushu weapon work in a rare example of him brandishing a jian only seen a few times before like in 2001's Zu Warriors. The malevolent melody of a high-pitched flute builds to a burst of metal-on-metal sparks as Wu Jing's slender sword clangs into and off of Sammo Hung's powerful pole. Sammo brings his beastly belly and the strength that comes with it, sending wooden crates flying in all directions forcing Wu Jing to rely on his acrobatic agility. A semblance of Sammo's staff skills from Pedicab Driver is blended together with his second-to-none spearmanship shooting through wood and human flesh alike killing Wu Jing in one "fatal move". Out of the countless choreographic callbacks in this fight scene is how Wu Jing is just like in SPL, disadvantaged by a shorter range weapon. The two's in-movie camaraderie was just as reflective as in real life; Sammo Hung would supposedly purposely surprise Wu Jing when preparing for the final fight by introducing unrehearsed moves to test Wu Jing's screen fighting reflexes.
Another surprise may be that Sammo Hung was not the choreographic captain of the fight sequence. Instead it was action choreographer Nicky Li Chung-Chi yet again. Standing beside him was assistant action choreographer and fellow Jackie Chan Stunt Team-ster Jack Wong Wai-Leung. Nicky Li Chung-Chi's kinetically choreographed camera is as evident as ever opening with a wide angled longer take before transitioning to over-the-shoulder viewpoints, a top-down perspective, and a couple face shots (see some SPL similarities?). Basically long-range weapons but filmed at close-range. The action performers and designers ultimately owe their creative freedom to director Dennis Law whose unwillingness to tone down the blood and gore earned the film a Category III rating for graphic violence causing it to remain unreleased in Mainland China. Dennis Law's desire to appeal to North American fans of action cinema resulted in him putting special effort into the creation of the martial arts sequences which he stated was the strongest feature of the film. Hence this final weapon fight. Fatal Move didn't exactly achieve as much a western cult classic status as SPL but this choreographed climax at the very least is a must-watch for martial cinephiles. It's a representation of Sammo Hung's Peking Opera generation crossing over with Wu Jing's Competitive Wushu generation integrating classical Chinese weaponry in a contemporary setting. It was also back in a nostalgia-filled time when Wu Jing would always die.
#2. SPL (2005)
To say that SPL has left an indelible impression on the Hong Kong action landscape and the global martial arts industry is to state the obvious. Yet it could never be stated enough and one reason why this is the 3rd time it's appeared on my lists. Climbing ever higher up the Hong Kong hierarchy is Donnie Yen who, in SPL alone, not only cinematically stylized mixed martial arts but also designed one of the greatest knife fights ever seen on celluloid. As much of a minor break out for Wu Jing as it was for Donnie Yen, SPL, known to some as Kill Zone, was the stepping stone to greater success to come arriving at a time when the Wolf Warrior and Ip Man series were yet to be conceived. Wu Jing in fact was supposed to play a more significant role in the film as the adopted son of Sammo Hung's triad boss. Unfortunately their deeper relationship was cut out leaving Wu Jing as simply Sammo's silently psychotic and enigmatic right-hand man. But what a killer character he is. And by that I mean in the literal sense. A hot-headed inspector played by Donnie Yen finally confronts Wu Jing in an alleyway fight to end all alleyway fights.
An epic entrance like this could only be because of the audiovisual mastery of frequent collaborators of Donnie Yen's: director Wilson Yip and film composer Kenji Kawai who were both the directorial and musical masterminds behind Dragon Tiger Gate, Flash Point, and the Ip Man series. Kenji Kawai's electro-opera composition and Wilson Yip's bright blue color scheme blend into a musically martial masterclass from the tense build-up marking the first minute of the fight to it's climactic crescendo. Donnie Yen's black leather is a clever contrast with Wu Jing's all-white outfit and blonde hair. Wu Jing's spotless clothing perfectly painted by the progressively messier splashes of blood. There is both a look of modernity and tradition as the two near-present-day combatants utilize contemporary weaponry but in a kind of classical manner. Donnie Yen and Wu Jing were once world-renowned Wushu competitors separated by a single decade and their traditional martial arts are evident in Yen's sword-like swings and Wu Jing's exaggerated looping slashes. Packed with memorable moment after moment, SPL is one of the first in a long line of fight scenes to feature the knife-catch move ever since 1995's The Hunted but invents its own less imitated but possibly more awesome spinning side catch slash that comes right before its more impressionable counterpart. If you recall Wu Jing's situation in Fatal Move, he is out-ranged by his opponent. Here in SPL he's in a similarly fatal scenario causing him to make a Homer Simpson type utterance and convincing him to switch from his overconfident and flashier icepick grip to a more practical normal grip to extend his reach.
Hong Kong fight sequences are famous for unexpectedly changing the pre-planned format of the fight on set and this SPL duel is an extreme example. Donnie Yen and Wu Jing's choreographic chemistry were in a complete class of their own so much so that half of the scene was entirely unscripted with the two actually going at it for real in a frantic full-contact ballet of baton-on-blade brutality. This juxtaposition of the choreographic and non-choreographic lends an organic flow to the fight spicing up the standardized yet spectacular Hong Kong stylizations with a very specific sense of spontaneity and subtlety that makes SPL so special. Supplementing the uncut durations of the duel are the edited and choreographed parts filmed in mostly 3rd person and behind-the-back/1st person vantage points likely due to the narrow and thus limited space of the alley which actually intensifies the already frantically paced fractions of the fight by accelerating the apparent speed of movement. In choreographic command of all this improvised insanity is Donnie Yen who leads his specialized action team composed of assistant martial arts director Kenji Tanigaki (2 Kenji's making the same movie!?), supreme swordplay craftsman of the live action Rurouni Kenshin series, assistant martial arts director Yan Hua, past Jackie Chan Stunt Team and later Donnie Yen Stunt Team member Jack Wong Wai-Leung, Junya Iwamoto, and So Tung. Wu Jing upends his own weapon 1-on-1 in SPL 2 by being the baton guy defending himself from another knife-wielding aggressor in a finely sequenced fight. But it could never live up to the unforgettable frenzy of a fight scene that was produced by the pioneering Donnie Yen and an up-and-coming Wu Jing. Did I also mention that Wu Jing dies? Also, anyone interested in a Top 12 Baton Fight Scenes list?
#1. Fatal Contact (2006)
From Dennis Law, director of Fatal Move mentioned in an earlier spot on the list, comes Fatal Contact. Those people behind the English retitles really love the word "fatal" don't they? Wu Jing is a member of a Chinese opera troupe and former fighting champ (as in real life) pulled into the martial arts underworld to earn a bit of cash. Ordinarily known for his theatrical Wushu having fought with Donnie Yen and Jet Li (Badges of Fury) all of which are alumni of one of the world's most prestigious Wushu schools, the Beijing Academy, Wu Jing went against the grain by learning Sanda. Also known as Sanshou, this martial art is considered to many as "Modern Kung Fu. First devised as a Chinese military combat system, Sanda is now a martial sport that resembles kickboxing allowing every standard set of stand-up striking and grappling. Wu Jing's Sanda training was so hardcore in fact that he was almost knocked unconscious by one of his Sanda trainers which truly emphasizes the film's title keyword "fatal" both on and off screen. Fatal Contact is obviously a fight fest of a movie as are most tournament-themed films and among the fantastic fight scenes is one with the relatively unsung martial arts movie actor Xing Yu. However, the standout sequence of the film is when Wu Jing takes on 3 consecutive opponents in fighting game like fashion each with distinct outfits and individual fighting styles only strengthening the campy video game like aesthetic.
This line-up of 3 mini-bosses starts off in a rematch against a wrestler type played by small-time Hong Kong actor Paul Smith oiled up to deflect Wu Jing's blows. After adjusting the angle of his attacks to more effectively and directly land his strikes, Wu jing finishes off the greasy gwailo putting him in an terrific back flip standing arm bar submission. Next is a fighter that spent the last minute or so sticking nails into his gloves and boots and...wait, is that Kenji Tanigaki? Loads of Wu Jing's blood is spilled most of it during a neck-tearing clinch before he manages to outgrapple him. The last and most skilled of the 3 opposing combatants front flip kicks into the match donning the strangest and most stylish anime-esque wardrobe yet. The mysterious kicking specialist is played by the always awesome Andy On who would team up with director Dennis Law again in 2010's action crime thriller Bad Blood. Wu Jing counters Andy On's kicks by adopting a close combat approach reinforced by an equally close camera consisting of an unending combination of elbows topped off by a double knee drop that would make Tony Jaa jealous. In hindsight it kinda
feels like a foreshadowing of their future collaboration in SPL 2. Looking down upon the critically injured Andy On, Wu Jing comes to the revelation of how much of a merciless martial machine this underground fighting competition has made him into.
Fatal Contact's hand-to-hand havoc was hand crafted by action choreographer Nicky Li Chung-Chi who you are probably very well acquainted with now from this list. Li Chung-Chi and Wu Jing together created specific techniques for the fight sequences that they'd then show to other cast members before incorporating the moves into the choreography. In contrast to the mostly wireless SPL, Fatal Contact gives in to some of the usual wirework of Wu Jing but just enough to fit the intentionally over-the-top style that also happens to unintentionally resemble retro beat 'em up games. Nicky Li Chung-Chi is paired up with assistant action choreographer Jack Wong Wai-Leung providing the presence of two Jackie Chan Stunt Team pros in Fatal Contact hence the inclusion of a leg master in this sequence. A Jackie Chan fight scene trope that Andy On is no stranger to having also played another kicking-oriented opponent in New Police Story. Wu Jing appeared in the cinematically significant MMA-infused SPL but wasn't able to show off any actual MMA-based action. Fatal Contact came out just a year after and is the closest we had gotten up to that point in seeing Wu Jing use a less fancy fighting form and instead a more practical martial art albeit sprinkled with bits of good ol' Hong Kong camp. The dirty tactics employed by his opponents, the unique strategies necessary to beating each of them, all without breaks in between blends seamlessly into one single street fighting spectacle that is with certainty Wu Jing's #1 fight scene. Spoiler alert! Wu Jing dies at the end.
And another article is completed. Are you excited for Wu Jing's upcoming and first major American action film Meg 2: The Trench alongside Hollywood heavyweight Jason Statham? Did you lean as much about Nicky Li Chung-Chi's action design as much as I did? Comment if you will about those things and subscribe to the website to be email-notified about the next list which will be on the heaviest of Hong Kong heavy hitters, Sammo Hung.