For a long time, martial arts cinema was primarily associated with Bruce Lee and later defined by Jackie Chan. However, since his breakthrough in Hollywood (including with ‘Rush Hour’) and the international success of Ang Lee’s ‘Tiger & Dragon’, martial arts have received much more recognition in the film world – which is also reflected in the fact that long-time greats from the Klopper films like Donnie Yen and Michelle Yeoh have long been sought after action stars in Hollywood.
There was great joy when ‘Wing Chun’, a cult classic starring Yen and Yeoh, celebrated its Blu-ray premiere a few months ago. Even better is that distributor TG Vision now regularly examines cult films from the Far East in order to finally bring them to Germany in appropriate quality. Now comes the next highlight: Of “Knockabout – Two bonebreakers settle scoresA martial arts classic will celebrate its HD premiere on Blu-ray on May 17, 2024, which even many genre fans may not know yet, but must now catch up at the latest.
Anyone who has only seen a Chan film here and there but is unfamiliar with the genre will not be particularly surprised to have never heard of the film. Because yes, “Knockabout” is a real insider tip that is hardly known. This is evident from the fact that we didn’t even have the film in our FILMSTARTS database until now.
However, it would be a mistake to conclude from this that the quality of the spectacular action comedy is worth seeing. Expert genre connoisseurs will likely perk up their ears when it comes to the cast both in front of and behind the camera…
“Knockabout”: Meeting of martial arts legends
“Knockabout” tells the story of two con artists who one day foolishly choose a kung fu master as their next victim – and ultimately have to realize that if they want to be good criminals, they must first learn how to properly let their fists fly. . So they ask the old man for help, whom they wanted to capture like a Christmas goose.
The story of “Knockabout” is classic 70s martial arts cinema, the kind that was released at the time. But In terms of action, ‘Knockabout’ 1979 was way ahead of its time – and therefore does not have to hide from the Jackie Chan classics of the time (e.g. “The serpent in the shadow of the eagle” or “They called him bonebreaker”).
The reason for this is obvious – or rather, the reasons. Because there are two names in particular that never became a globally known brand, but more than deserved it. Thanks to movies like “Knockabout”. Sammo Hung And Yuen Biao are the two best known companions of Jackie Chan, who studied Beijing Opera as a child with the ‘Rush Hour’ star and who have appeared side by side in front of the camera countless times over the course of their film careers – and with their unique chemistry, their extraordinary martial arts talent and their incomparable sense of physical comedy was responsible for classics like “Action Hunter”.
‘Knockabout’ also thrives on exactly these strengths less brutal martial arts board and more playful, dancey kung fu fireworks is – which is still incredibly fun even over 40 years later. Anyway, after all, it is not without reason that Yuen Biao has always been ranked physically above Jackie Chan by many genre fans – and neither did Sammo Hung, who not only appeared in front of the camera for “Knockabout”, but also took over the direction. It’s also not without reason that he has established himself as a directing legend of martial arts cinema, later directing such Jackie Chan classics as ‘Winners & Sinners’ and ‘The Superfighter’.