Asian Cinema
by grieves909 | created - 05 Aug 2014 | updated - 11 May 2017 | PublicSome of my favourite Asian movies. Range between HK action, art movies, Martial Arts etc.
Listed by year.
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1. The Way of the Dragon (1972)
R | 90 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A man visits his relatives at their restaurant in Italy and has to help them defend against brutal gangsters harassing them.
Director: Bruce Lee | Stars: Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Nora Miao, Ping-Ou Wei
Votes: 41,006 | Gross: $4.06M
2. Enter the Dragon (1973)
R | 102 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A Shaolin martial artist travels to an island fortress to spy on an opium lord - who is also a former monk from his temple - under the guise of attending a fighting tournament.
Director: Robert Clouse | Stars: Bruce Lee, John Saxon, Jim Kelly, Ahna Capri
Votes: 112,937 | Gross: $25.00M
3. Drunken Master (1978)
PG-13 | 111 min | Action, Comedy
Wong Fei-Hung is a mischievous yet righteous young man, but after a series of incidents his frustrated father has him disciplined by a master of drunken martial arts.
Director: Woo-Ping Yuen | Stars: Jackie Chan, Siu-Tin Yuen, Jeong-lee Hwang, Dean Shek
Votes: 43,817
4. Snake in the Eagle's Shadow (1978)
PG | 90 min | Action, Comedy
An orphan who has been raised at a kung fu school, where he is treated as little more than a dogsbody and practice target for the students, has a life-changing experience after helping an old peripatetic beggar.
Director: Woo-Ping Yuen | Stars: Jackie Chan, Siu-Tin Yuen, Jeong-lee Hwang, Dean Shek
Votes: 12,871
5. Winners & Sinners (1983)
PG-13 | 108 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
Fresh from prison, five friends try to stay crime free but inadvertently find themselves caught in a Triad war.
Director: Sammo Kam-Bo Hung | Stars: Sammo Kam-Bo Hung, Jackie Chan, John Sham, Richard Ng
Votes: 5,645
6. Wheels on Meals (1984)
TV-14 | 100 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
Two Chinese friends, who operate a food truck in Barcelona, Spain, use their martial arts expertise to help their private investigator friend protect the pickpocket Sylvia, who's been targeted by a ruthless gang.
Director: Sammo Kam-Bo Hung | Stars: Jackie Chan, Biao Yuen, Sammo Kam-Bo Hung, Benny Urquidez
Votes: 15,163
7. City on Fire (1987)
R | 101 min | Action, Crime, Drama
An undercover cop infiltrates a gang of thieves who plan to rob a jewelry store.
Director: Ringo Lam | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Yueh Sun, Danny Lee, Carrie Ng
Votes: 7,258
8. Red Sorghum (1988)
Not Rated | 91 min | Drama, History, Romance
When a leprous winery owner in 1930s China dies a few days after his arranged marriage, his young widow is forced to run the winery to make a living while contending with bandits, her drunkard lover, and the invading Japanese army.
Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Gong Li, Wen Jiang, Rujun Teng, Ji Liu
Votes: 9,868
9. A Chinese Ghost Story (1987)
Unrated | 98 min | Action, Fantasy, Horror
After a string of bad luck, a debt collector has no other choice than to spend the night in a haunted temple, where he encounters a ravishing female ghost and later battles to save her soul from the control of a wicked tree demon.
Director: Siu-Tung Ching | Stars: Leslie Cheung, Joey Wang, Wu Ma, Wai Lam
Votes: 11,072
10. As Tears Go By (1988)
Not Rated | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
Mid-level gangster Wah falls in love with his beautiful cousin, but must also continue to protect his volatile partner-in-crime and friend, Fly.
Director: Kar-Wai Wong | Stars: Andy Lau, Maggie Cheung, Jacky Cheung, Alex Man
Votes: 12,480 | Gross: $0.01M
11. God of Gamblers (1989)
R | 126 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A master gambler loses his memory and is befriended by a street hustler who discovers his supernatural gambling abilities.
Director: Jing Wong | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Andy Lau, Joey Wang, Charles Heung
Votes: 6,365
12. The Killer (1989)
R | 111 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A disillusioned assassin accepts one last hit in hopes of using his earnings to restore vision to a singer he accidentally blinded.
Director: John Woo | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Danny Lee, Sally Yeh, Kong Chu
Votes: 51,062
13. Days of Being Wild (1990)
Not Rated | 94 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A man tries to find out who his real mother is after the woman who raised him tells him the truth.
Director: Kar-Wai Wong | Stars: Leslie Cheung, Maggie Cheung, Andy Lau, Carina Lau
Votes: 25,465 | Gross: $0.14M
14. Once Upon a Time in China (1991)
R | 134 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Legendary martial arts hero Wong Fei-Hung fights against foreign forces' plundering of China. When Aunt Yee arrives back from America, Wong Fei-Hung assumes the role of her protector.
Director: Hark Tsui | Stars: Jet Li, Rosamund Kwan, Biao Yuen, Jacky Cheung
Votes: 19,881
15. Full Contact (1992)
R | 99 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Two disreputable friends get tied in with a group of criminals who turn out to be excessively violent and deceptive.
Director: Ringo Lam | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Simon Yam, Ann Bridgewater, Anthony Chau-Sang Wong
Votes: 4,830
16. Hard Boiled (1992)
R | 128 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A tough-as-nails cop teams up with an undercover agent to shut down a sinister mobster and his crew.
Director: John Woo | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Teresa Mo, Philip Chan
Votes: 53,992
17. Dragon Inn (1992)
88 min | Action, Thriller
During the Ming Dynasty, Tsao Siu-yan, a power-crazed eunuch who rules his desert region of China as if he were the Emperor, ruthlessly thwarts plots against him and sets a trap for one of this enemies at the Dragon Gate Inn.
Directors: Raymond Lee, Siu-Tung Ching, Hark Tsui | Stars: Tony Ka Fai Leung, Brigitte Lin, Maggie Cheung, Donnie Yen
Votes: 4,832
18. Swordsman II (1992)
R | 112 min | Action, Fantasy
Ling Wu Chung decides to hide from the chaotic world. Before leaving, he visits his friends, a tribe of snake-wielding women warriors. However, he finds that the tribe have been attacked, and their leader Yam Ying Ying has been abducted.
Director: Siu-Tung Ching | Stars: Jet Li, Brigitte Lin, Michelle Reis, Waise Lee
Votes: 4,789
19. Once Upon a Time in China II (1992)
R | 113 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
Arriving by train in Guangzhou, 1895, the trio fight off White Lotus followers, who want to kill all foreigners and the cute, European dressed 13th Aunt. It's not kung fu master Dr. Wong's (Jet Li) last fight.
Director: Hark Tsui | Stars: Jet Li, Rosamund Kwan, Siu Chung Mok, David Chiang
Votes: 10,628
20. The Heroic Trio (1993)
R | 88 min | Action, Fantasy, Thriller
While one tough woman with an invisible robe has stolen 18 babies for her powerful master, two other tough women and the cops try to stop her.
Director: Johnnie To | Stars: Michelle Yeoh, Anita Mui, Maggie Cheung, Damian Lau
Votes: 4,354
21. Once Upon a Time in China III (1992)
R | 125 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
Master Wong and his disciples enroll in the 'Dancing Lion Competition' to stop an assassination plot and to battle an arrogant, deceitful opponent.
Director: Hark Tsui | Stars: Jet Li, Rosamund Kwan, Siu Chung Mok, Xin Xin Xiong
Votes: 7,667 | Gross: $3.56M
22. Once Upon a Time in China IV (1993)
Not Rated | 101 min | Action
Wong Fei Hung must deal with both foreign threats and the nationalist Red Lantern Society in this continuation of the popular kung fu series.
Director: Bun Yuen | Stars: Wenzhuo Zhao, Jean Wang, Siu Chung Mok, Xin Xin Xiong
Votes: 1,376
23. Once Upon a Time in China V (1994)
Not Rated | 101 min | Action, Drama
Brand new epic adventure set during a tumultuous time in China, when left without a leader, the cavalry is attacked by the powerful allies and pirate bands. A martial arts master, Wong ... See full summary »
Director: Hark Tsui | Stars: Wenzhuo Zhao, Rosamund Kwan, Siu Chung Mok, Kent Cheng
Votes: 1,221
24. Fist of Legend (1994)
R | 103 min | Action, Drama
In 1937, a Chinese martial artist returns to Shanghai to find his teacher dead and his school harassed by the Japanese.
Director: Gordon Chan | Stars: Jet Li, Shinobu Nakayama, Siu-Ho Chin, Billy Chow
Votes: 24,914
25. The Bodyguard from Beijing (1994)
R | 92 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A corrupt businessman commits a murder and the only witness is the girlfriend of another businessman with close connections to the Chinese government, so a bodyguard from Beijing is ... See full summary »
Director: Corey Yuen | Stars: Jet Li, Christy Chung, Kent Cheng, Collin Chou
Votes: 5,588
26. Fallen Angels (1995)
Not Rated | 99 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
This Hong Kong-set crime drama follows the lives of a hitman, hoping to get out of the business, and his elusive female partner.
Director: Kar-Wai Wong | Stars: Leon Lai, Michelle Reis, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Charlie Yeung
Votes: 50,763
27. Cyclo (1995)
123 min | Crime, Drama
When a poor bicycle-taxi driver has his cyclo stolen, he is forced into a life of crime. Meanwhile, his sister becomes a sex worker.
Director: Anh Hung Tran | Stars: Le Van Loc, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Nu Yên-Khê Tran, Quynh Nhu
Votes: 5,488 | Gross: $0.08M
28. The Replacement Killers (1998)
R | 87 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A troubled hitman seeks aid from a forger to help him get papers to China. However, the drug lord has hired replacements to finish the job, and kill the hitman.
Director: Antoine Fuqua | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Mira Sorvino, Michael Rooker, Kenneth Tsang
Votes: 30,514 | Gross: $18.97M
29. Battle Royale (2000)
Not Rated | 114 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill one another under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.
Director: Kinji Fukasaku | Stars: Tatsuya Fujiwara, Aki Maeda, Tarô Yamamoto, Chiaki Kuriyama
Votes: 194,344
30. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A young Chinese warrior steals a sword from a famed swordsman and then escapes into a world of romantic adventure with a mysterious man in the frontier of the nation.
Director: Ang Lee | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Ziyi Zhang, Chang Chen
Votes: 281,543 | Gross: $128.08M
31. So Close (2002)
R | 111 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A conflict of interest between two high-kicking assassin sisters is complicated as they're pursued by the criminals who hired them and an equally high-kicking female cop.
Director: Corey Yuen | Stars: Shu Qi, Wei Zhao, Karen Mok, Song Seung-heon
Votes: 8,033 | Gross: $0.08M
32. Hero (2002)
PG-13 | 120 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A defense officer, Nameless, was summoned by the King of Qin regarding his success of terminating three warriors.
Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Maggie Cheung, Ziyi Zhang
Votes: 187,596 | Gross: $53.71M
33. Oldboy (2003)
R | 120 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, Kim Byeong-Ok
Votes: 635,258 | Gross: $0.71M
34. Memories of Murder (2003)
Not Rated | 132 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
In a small Korean province in 1986, two detectives struggle with the case of multiple young women being found raped and murdered by an unknown culprit.
Director: Bong Joon Ho | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kim Sang-kyung, Kim Roe-ha, Song Jae-ho
Votes: 216,091 | Gross: $0.01M
35. House of Flying Daggers (2004)
PG-13 | 119 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A romantic police captain breaks a beautiful member of a rebel group out of prison to help her rejoin her fellows, but things are not what they seem.
Director: Yimou Zhang | Stars: Ziyi Zhang, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Andy Lau, Dandan Song
Votes: 116,236 | Gross: $11.05M
37. My Blueberry Nights (2007)
PG-13 | 95 min | Drama, Romance
A young lonely woman takes a soul-searching journey across America to resolve her questions about love while encountering a series of off-beat characters along the way.
Director: Kar-Wai Wong | Stars: Norah Jones, Jude Law, Natalie Portman, Chad R. Davis
Votes: 56,544 | Gross: $0.87M
38. Lust, Caution (2007)
NC-17 | 157 min | Drama, History, Romance
During World War II era, a young woman, Wang Jiazhi, gets swept up in a dangerous game of emotional intrigue with a powerful political figure, Mr. Yee.
Director: Ang Lee | Stars: Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Tang Wei, Joan Chen, Leehom Wang
Votes: 45,491 | Gross: $4.60M
39. Painted Skin (2008)
103 min | Action, Drama, Fantasy
An action-thriller centered on a vampire-like woman who eats the skins and hearts of her lovers.
Directors: Gordon Chan, Andy Wing-Keung Chin, Danny Ko | Stars: Donnie Yen, Xun Zhou, Kun Chen, Wei Zhao
Votes: 5,275
40. The Chaser (2008)
Not Rated | 125 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A disgraced ex-policeman who runs a small ring of prostitutes finds himself in a race against time when one of his women goes missing.
Director: Na Hong-jin | Stars: Kim Yoon-seok, Ha Jung-woo, Seo Yeong-hie, Kim Yoo-jung
Votes: 72,723
41. Thirst (2009)
R | 134 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Through a failed medical experiment, a priest is stricken with vampirism and is forced to abandon his ascetic ways.
Director: Park Chan-wook | Stars: Song Kang-ho, Kim Ok-bin, Choi Hee-jin, Seo Dong-soo
Votes: 51,385 | Gross: $0.30M
42. Detective Dee: The Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010)
PG-13 | 119 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
An exiled detective is recruited to solve a series of mysterious deaths that threaten to delay the inauguration of Empress Wu.
Director: Hark Tsui | Stars: Tony Ka Fai Leung, Chao Deng, Carina Lau, Bingbing Li
Votes: 11,879 | Gross: $0.46M
43. Let the Bullets Fly (2010)
Not Rated | 132 min | Action, Comedy, Drama
In 1920s China, a bandit arrives in a remote provincial town posing as its new mayor, where he faces off against a tyrannical local nobleman.
Director: Wen Jiang | Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Wen Jiang, You Ge, Carina Lau
Votes: 13,129 | Gross: $0.06M
44. The Man from Nowhere (2010)
R | 119 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A quiet pawnshop keeper with a violent past takes on a drug-and-organ trafficking ring in hope of saving the child who is his only friend.
Director: Lee Jeong-beom | Stars: Won Bin, Kim Sae-ron, Kim Tae-hoon, Kim Hee-won
Votes: 74,816 | Gross: $0.01M
45. War of the Arrows (2011)
R | 122 min | Action, Adventure
A skilled Korean archer goes up against the mighty force of Manchus with the sole purpose of rescuing his kidnapped sister.
Director: Han-min Kim | Stars: Park Hae-il, Ryu Seung-ryong, Kim Mu-yeol, Moon Chae-won
Votes: 12,798 | Gross: $0.25M
46. Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (2011)
R | 122 min | Action, Adventure
Set three years after Dragon Inn, innkeeper Jade has disappeared and a new inn has risen from the ashes - one that's staffed by marauders masquerading as law-abiding citizens, who hope to unearth the fabled lost city buried in the desert.
Director: Hark Tsui | Stars: Jet Li, Xun Zhou, Kun Chen, Gwei Lun-Mei
Votes: 8,592 | Gross: $0.17M
47. The Bullet Vanishes (2012)
Not Rated | 108 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Son Donglu, a newly promoted detective teams up with Guo Zhui, fastest gunman in Tiancheng and Xiaowu, a novice policeman to investigate the mystery deaths in a bullet factory.
Director: Chi-Leung Law | Stars: Nicholas Tse, Ching Wan Lau, Mi Yang, Boran Jing
Votes: 2,331
48. Blind Detective (2013)
130 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
A brilliant detective is forced into early retirement after losing eyesight. Making ends meet by solving cold cases for reward money, he teams up with a rookie lady inspector to solve a case from her personal past.
Director: Johnnie To | Stars: Andy Lau, Sammi Cheng, Tao Guo, Yuanyuan Gao
Votes: 3,649
49. Only God Forgives (2013)
R | 90 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Julian, a drug-smuggler thriving in Bangkok's criminal underworld, sees his life get even more complicated when his mother compels him to find and kill whoever is responsible for his brother's recent death.
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn | Stars: Ryan Gosling, Kristin Scott Thomas, Vithaya Pansringarm, Gordon Brown
Votes: 118,068 | Gross: $0.78M
50. The Assassin (2015)
Not Rated | 105 min | Action, Drama, History
A female assassin receives a dangerous mission to kill a political leader in eighth-century China.
Director: Hsiao-Hsien Hou | Stars: Shu Qi, Chang Chen, Yun Zhou, Satoshi Tsumabuki
Votes: 17,977 | Gross: $0.61M
51. Ghost in the Shell (2017)
PG-13 | 107 min | Action, Crime, Drama
In the near future, Major Mira Killian is the first of her kind: A human saved from a terrible crash, who is cyber-enhanced to be a perfect soldier devoted to stopping the world's most dangerous criminals.
Director: Rupert Sanders | Stars: Scarlett Johansson, Pilou Asbæk, Takeshi Kitano, Juliette Binoche
Votes: 227,794 | Gross: $40.56M
52. Chungking Express (1994)
PG-13 | 102 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
Two melancholic Hong Kong policemen fall in love: one with a mysterious female underworld figure, the other with a beautiful and ethereal waitress at a late-night restaurant he frequents.
Director: Kar-Wai Wong | Stars: Brigitte Lin, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Faye Wong
Votes: 95,667 | Gross: $0.60M
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