Martial arts have always gone hand-in-hand with action movies, particularly the open-handed style known as karate.
Here are 10 karate movies every movie buff and martial arts fans must see.
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1. The Karate Kid
A feel-good story about a boy who gains the confidence to confront his bullies through martial arts, this movie has become a staple around the world. Besides the moral lessons infused into the story, the movie also comes with lots of entertaining fight scenes and a few funny ones.
2. Enter the Dragon
A Chinese spy is sent to investigate a brutal villain using a highly-exclusive tournament as his cover. Participants in the tournaments use various fighting styles like karate, while the hero, played by the legendary Bruce Lee, destroys his competition with Kung Fu.
3. The Karate Kid 2
The continuation of the international classic, Danielson’s skills continue to evolve, skills he uses to ward off his growing number of antagonists.
4. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
A young martial arts protégé wrecks havoc in ancient China, prompting the greatest fighter in the land to set things straight in this entertaining thriller packed with intense fight scenes featuring martial arts staples like Kung Fu and Karate.
5. Ip Man
Based on the legendary Bruce Lee’s earlier days, this story focuses on Lee’s sensei, Master Ip, who is forced to take a stand against Japanese invaders. This movie is filled with some of the best fight scenes in martial arts movie history with everything from Kung Fu to Muay Thai.
6. Ip Man 2
A continuation of part 1, Ip man 2 brings more entertaining fight scenes, and a young Bruce Lee is finally introduced to the story.
7. Ong Bak
One of the most realistic martial arts movies ever made, Ong Bak leaves out the movie magic, giving the audience an authentic experience. The primary martial art in the movie is Muay Thai, but styles like boxing and judo are also utilized in the fight scenes.
8. Hero
An inspiring story about a man who defeated all including himself, this movie is packed with moral lessons every martial arts practitioner should know.
9. Fist of legend
A martial artist returns to his native home in China only to find out that his life has been turned upside -down by Japanese invaders who murder his sensei. What else is a guy to do in that scenario besides teaching the bad guys a lesson?
10. 13 Assassins
Like the title implies, 13 of the best assassins in feudal Japan sacrifice themselves to bring down an evil war lord. Lots of entertaining fight scenes with an equal amount of open-handed and weapon based fighting styles.
The entertaining movies listed above should keep any martial arts fan happy for at least a few weeks.
