Comedy is not the first thing you think of when someone mentions karate movies, but the two have actually worked hand-in-hand for many years. Most people thinking of the intense fight scenes, fancy moves, characters flying through the air and high kicks, though for the past thirty years comedy has been as much a feature as anything.
Comedy and action have really worked well together ever since those first silent movies. Many of the stars at that time were very physical and that physical comedy lent itself well to action sequences. These influences can be seen in many movies, no more so than those that star Jackie Chan, a self-confessed fan of many stars of the silent era.
Jackie Chan was born in Hong Kong in 1954 and started training at the China Opera School when he was just 6. He began to break into movies in the 1970's playing small parts, and even had moments with Bruce Lee in Fist of Fury and Enter The Dragon. After Lee died, many people tried to fill his shoes, but rather than copy him, Jackie Chan began to develop his own style. By 1978 he had appeared in a number of movies but it was that year's Drunken Master that started his rise to stardom.
An avid fan of Harold Lloyd, Buster Keaton and other silent movie comedians, Jackie began to blend this physical comedy with martial arts, and when he directed his first movie in 1980, The Young Master, it was hailed as a breakthrough picture, effortlessly combining comedy and action.
Despite being a major star in the East, Jackie took some time to get noticed in Hollywood. Early in his career a few American producers tried to bring him to Hollywood, but their first attempt, The Big Brawl, did not pay off, and neither did his cameo in Cannonball Run as a Japanese driver, where he hardly got to show his martial arts skills.
Jackie was not alone in his crusade to combine comedy and karate movies, and his main partner-in-crime was actor and director Sammo Hung, who he had known since they had studied together at the China Opera School. Sammo was very often the director or fight choreographer on Jackie's movies, and is a recognizable face in many of the films too. He had a brief stint in Hollywood too, starring in the TV show, Martial Law.
Finally in 1995, Rumble in the Bronx brought Jackie that much wanted attention in America. It led to a slew of big Hollywood movies like Rush Hour, Shanghai Noon, Around The World in 80 Days, Kung Fu Panda and The Tuxedo. Jackie continues to be a huge star across the world.
There is no doubt that Stephen Chow was inspired by Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung. An actor for many years, he appeared in many TV shows and karate movies in Hong Kong before finally breaking through in the nineties in a few self-directed movies. It was his film Shaolin Soccer that brought him to the attention of Hollywood and his next film, Kung Fu Hustle, was the biggest grossing movie ever in Hong Kong. It also had the biggest cinematic release of a foreign film ever in the USA. While Chow directed most of the film, there were a few scenes directed by his hero Sammo Hung.
Comedy and action have really worked well together ever since those first silent movies. Many of the stars at that time were very physical and that physical comedy lent itself well to action sequences. These influences can be seen in many movies, no more so than those that star Jackie Chan, a self-confessed fan of many stars of the silent era.
Jackie Chan was born in Hong Kong in 1954 and started training at the China Opera School when he was just 6. He began to break into movies in the 1970's playing small parts, and even had moments with Bruce Lee in Fist of Fury and Enter The Dragon. After Lee died, many people tried to fill his shoes, but rather than copy him, Jackie Chan began to develop his own style. By 1978 he had appeared in a number of movies but it was that year's Drunken Master that started his rise to stardom.
An avid fan of Harold Lloyd, Buster Keaton and other silent movie comedians, Jackie began to blend this physical comedy with martial arts, and when he directed his first movie in 1980, The Young Master, it was hailed as a breakthrough picture, effortlessly combining comedy and action.
Despite being a major star in the East, Jackie took some time to get noticed in Hollywood. Early in his career a few American producers tried to bring him to Hollywood, but their first attempt, The Big Brawl, did not pay off, and neither did his cameo in Cannonball Run as a Japanese driver, where he hardly got to show his martial arts skills.
Jackie was not alone in his crusade to combine comedy and karate movies, and his main partner-in-crime was actor and director Sammo Hung, who he had known since they had studied together at the China Opera School. Sammo was very often the director or fight choreographer on Jackie's movies, and is a recognizable face in many of the films too. He had a brief stint in Hollywood too, starring in the TV show, Martial Law.
Finally in 1995, Rumble in the Bronx brought Jackie that much wanted attention in America. It led to a slew of big Hollywood movies like Rush Hour, Shanghai Noon, Around The World in 80 Days, Kung Fu Panda and The Tuxedo. Jackie continues to be a huge star across the world.
There is no doubt that Stephen Chow was inspired by Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung. An actor for many years, he appeared in many TV shows and karate movies in Hong Kong before finally breaking through in the nineties in a few self-directed movies. It was his film Shaolin Soccer that brought him to the attention of Hollywood and his next film, Kung Fu Hustle, was the biggest grossing movie ever in Hong Kong. It also had the biggest cinematic release of a foreign film ever in the USA. While Chow directed most of the film, there were a few scenes directed by his hero Sammo Hung.
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