Hong Kong Martial Arts Discuss And Compare The Ge

Films screened in class in entirety:

Fist of Fury (Dir. Lo Wei, starring Bruce Lee, 1972)

Supercop (Dir. Stanley Tong, starring Jackie Chan and Michelle Yeoh, 1992)

A Better Tomorrow (Dir. John Woo, starring Chow Yun-fat, 1986)

Infernal Affairs (Dir. Andrew Lau and Alan Mak, starring Andy Lau and Tony Leung Chiu-wai, 2002)

Note: DVDs of some films are on reserve in Shields Library. They are available for 2-hour loan. You can watch them in the library.

Additional list (film clips shown in class):

Dragon Gate Inn (Dir. King Hu, 1967)

One-Armed Swordsman (Dir. Chang Cheh, 1967)

Enter the Dragon (Dir. Robert Clouse, starring Bruce Lee, 1972)

Drunken Master (Dir. Yuen Woo-ping, starring Jackie Chan, 1978)

Once upon a Time in China (Dir. Tsui Hark, starring Jet Li, 1991)

Rumble in the Bronx (Dir. Stanley Tong, starring Jackie Chan, 1995)

Wing Chun (Dir. Yuen Woo-ping, starring Michelle Yeoh, 1994)

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Dir. Ang Lee, starring Chow Yun-fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, 2001)

Ip Man (Dir. Wilson Yip, starring Donnie Yen, 2008)

The Killer (Dir. John Woo, starring Chow Yun-fat, 1989)

Hard-Boiled (Dir. John Woo, starring Chow Yun-fat, 1992)

Choose and focus on three films from the above lists.

Discuss and compare the generic characteristics and historical evolution of Hong Kong martial arts films andaction films in terms of theme, plot, and/or style. The minimum length of the paper should be 5 full pages, double-space, font size 12 (preferred script: Times New Roman). If you wish to choose any film from outside the above lists, please let me know first. You should not write about the films of one particular star or director only.

Avoid simple generalization. Please refer to specific elements and details of the films. You might wish to consider such formal and stylistic features: characters, scenes, cinematography, editing, lighting, sound, music, and pacing (rhythm). You may consult assigned reading materials, or do some additional research outside the class. Please always acknowledge your sources. Do not use the words and ideas of a publication or online source without appropriate citations.

The course partially fulfills your writing requirement. Your writing is expected to reflect college-level competence in form and content. Both what you write and how you write will be evaluated. Relevant aspects of writing will be looked at as usual: coherence, organization, argument, elegance, grammar, spelling, punctuation, and so on.

At the end of the paper, you should indicate the manner, source, time, and place of viewing the films that you have chosen to discuss. Failure to do so means that you did not watch the films and merely copied information from other sources. That would be regarded as academic dishonesty.

Notes on Format

• For citation and documentation, we prefer the MLA style

• Double-space throughout the paper

• We prefer Times New Roman, font size 12

• One-inch margin on all sides

• Minimum length, 5 full pages

• Write a title for your paper

• Indicate page number on each page

• Italicize all film titles and book titles