Nora Miao Movies

Lin Yuen directs Nora Miao, Hwai Zi Yuen, and Lin Yuen in the Hong Kong action film The Last Duel. The film opens with marital artist Luk Siu-Fung taking a beating from his rival Sze Mun. Luk soon stumbles across an evil plan to assassinate all the martial artists. He must team up with Sze Mun in order to foil the plan. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Jackie Chan stars in this uncharacteristically somber early work helmed by the legendary martial arts director Lo Wei. When kung-fu master San-thye is killed by the nefarious Chung Chien-kuen (Yam Sai-kwoon) of the Patience family, his student Tang How-yuen (Chan) takes San-thye's widow and his daughter (Nora Miao Ker-hsiu) with him on his quest for vengeance. Once Tang tracks down Chung, he reluctantly agrees to give his master's killer three days time to prepare. When he returns, Tang learns that Chung sawed off his own leg rather than fight the strapping lad. Though deeply disappointed, Tang has other things to worry about. The villainous Wei clan has poisoned San-thye's widow and holds the only known antidote. Eventually, the family convinces Tang to help them fight the Patience clan. Yet when their activities grow ever more devious and dishonest, Tang finds himself caught between the two warring clans. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

Jackie Chan stars in this straight-ahead kung fu saga directed Chen Chi-hua. The film opens with eight Shaolin masters developing a new, powerful martial-arts technique and writing the form down into a tome called "The Eight Steps of the Snake and Crane." Soon thereafter, the eight masters and the book vanish. Years later, young street punk Hsu Ying Fung (Chan) winds up with the book and has mastered the entire form. Hungry for its secrets, members from a sundry of clans try to seize the book. As it turns out, this is all a plan by the original eight's sole survivor and Hsu's master to suss out who killed his colleagues. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

Sometime in the lengthy pre-modern history of China, a man (Ti Lung) finds himself framed for poisoning some important local leaders, as he is the only one in his neighborhood known to possess the skills to make the poison, known as "Sacred Water." He eludes capture while he searches for clues about the real villain. Eventually he is captured by an evil, lesbian monarch, and the real battle begins. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

New Fist of Fury stars Jackie Chan as A Lung, a kung fu master who is hired to help protect the Ching Wu Martial Arts School when it comes under attack from Japanese totalitarians. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Bruce Lee's pre-Enter the Dragon outing is a surprising change of pace from his usual hard-hitting action fare because it favors humor as much as it does kung-fu. It's also notable because it represents Lee's only venture as a director. For the most part, Return of the Dragon works thanks to its charismatic star. Lee shows great comic timing in the humorous set pieces in addition to the usual physical prowess he displays during the action scenes. He also manages to utilize both skills at once on occasion, the best example being a scene where he squares off with a group of mobster goons at a restaurant. It also benefits from its picturesque Italian setting (a novel location for a kung-fu film) and an impressive fight finale between Lee and Chuck Norris (making his film debut). On the down side, the film's low-budget shows and the other performers all pretty much pale in comparison to Lee. However, the real flaw with Return of the Dragon lies in its ending, which features a last-minute twist that doesn't work because it is too unexpectedly tragic for a film that had previously been so lighthearted. Despite this misstep, it remains a likeable blend of kung-fu and comedy that is likely to bring a smile to the face of Bruce Lee fans. ~ Donald Guarisco, Rovi

Martial arts master Bruce Lee solidifies his standing as one of the great action stars in Fists of Fury, the story of a Chinese country boy (Lee) sent to live in Thailand with his uncle and cousins. Around his neck is a charm representing his promise to his mother not to fight, a promise which is repeatedly tested when he goes to work in the local icehouse for an abusive overseer and prejudiced natives. When some of his cousins are killed after discovering the icehouse is actually a front for a heroin-smuggling operation, Lee sets out to exact revenge and eventually has a showdown with the Japanese crimelord behind the entire scheme (Han Ying Chieh). Lee's physical gifts are undeniable; the blinding speed of his fists and feet must be seen to be believed. The film was originally released in Asia as The Big Boss. Bad guys beware when that charm comes off! ~ Jeremy Beday, Rovi