Welcome to the end of summer on the stream! As per usual, I'm including as many movies as I can per each category as I scour Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Criterion Channel, HBO Max, Peacock, Fandor, Shudder, Arrow Video, Tubi, Midnight Pulp (a "+" will be included wherever subscription fees apply), VUDU’s free selections, The Roku Channel, Popcorn Flix, Crackle, Dark Matter TV, Night Flight, Shout Factory TV (though most of their titles can also be watched via Amazon Prime). This month I've also added Paramount+ and AMC+.
Again, be warned – all of the free apps have ad breaks (I know, it sucks) and the video quality is inconsistent from app to app. Sometimes it's genuine HD, other times, it's sub-VHS. I've also included links to my own reviews of some of these films. Additional Warning: Amazon Prime appears to have lost almost all of their Chinese/HK cult material since June 2021, so this section will be shorter than usual.
King Hu Movies
Dragon Inn (1967) – Criterion Channel
Touch of Zen (1971) – Criterion Channel
The Fate of Lee Khan (1973) – Criterion Channel, Amazon Prime (via imdbTV), Tubi, Pluto TV, and The Roku Channel
Raining in the Mountain (1979) – Criterion Channel
Liu Chia-Liang Movies
The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978) – Netflix
Breakout from Oppression (co-directed with Yang Fan , Gordon Liu Chia-Hui; 1978) – Tubi
Return to the 36th Chamber (1980) – Netflix
Legendary Weapons of China (1982) – Netflix
Disciples of the 36th Chamber (1985) – Netflix
Martial Arts of Shaolin (1986) – Netflix
Chang Cheh Movies
The Five Deadly Venoms (aka: The Five Venoms, 1978) – Pluto TV
Kid with the Golden Arm (1979) – Amazon Prime
Two Champions of Shaolin (1980) – Netflix
Five Element Ninjas (1982) – Netflix
Shanghai 13 (1984) – Tubi
Other Shaw Bros. Classics
There are so many of these available, so I’ve narrowed it down to personal favorites.
Princess Yang Kwei Fei (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1955) – Criterion (pre-Shaw Bros. Shaw & Sons)
Five Fingers of Death (Jeong Chang-hwa, 1972) – Amazon Prime
The One-Armed Boxer (Jimmy Wang Yu, 1972) – Midnight Pulp+
The Flying Guillotine (Ho Meng-Hua, 1975) – Pluto TV
Master of the Flying Guillotine (Jimmy Wang Yu, 1976) – VUDU Free and Pluto TV
Clan of the White Lotus (Lo Lieh, 1980) – Amazon Prime
Jackie Chan Movies (see more below)
The Cub Tiger from Kwang Tung (Gam Yam, Ngai Hoi-Fung, and Corey Yuen, 1973) – Roku Channel
New Fist of Fury (Lo Wei, 1976) – Tubi
Hand of Death (John Woo, 1976) – Amazon Prime (via imdbTV) and Midnight Pulp
Shaolin Wooden Men (Chen Chi-Hwa, 1976) – Pluto TV
The 36 Crazy Fists (Chen Chi-Hwa, 1977) – Tubi and Pluto TV
To Kill with Intrigue (Lo Wei & Kim Jin-tae, 1977) – Pluto TV
Magnificent Bodyguards (Lo Wei, 1978) – Tubi and Crackle
Half a Loaf of Kung Fu (Chen Chi-Hwa, 1978) – Criterion Channel
Spiritual Kung Fu (Lo Wei, 1978) – Criterion Channel
Fearless Hyena (Jackie Chan and Kenneth Tsang, 1979) – Criterion Channel, Pluto TV, and Roku Channel
The Big Brawl (Robert Clouse, 1980) – Tubi, Crackle, and Shout Factory TV
The Young Master (Jackie Chan, 1980) – Criterion Channel
Dragon Lord (Jackie Chan, 1982) – Paramount +
Fearless Hyena II (Lo Wei and Chuan Chen, 1983) – Criterion Channel and Pluto TV
Police Story (Jackie Chan, 1985) – Criterion Channel and HBO Max
The Protector (James Glickenhaus, 1985) – Roku Channel, Pluto TV, and Tubi
Project A: Part II (Jackie Chan, 1987) – Paramount +
Fantasy Mission Force (Kevin Chu, 1983) – Tubi
Police Story 2 (Jackie Chan, 1988) – Criterion Channel
Island of Fire (Chu Yen-ping, 1990) – Amazon Prime, VUDU Free, Pluto TV, and Tubi
Operation Condor (Jackie Chan, 1991) – Paramount + and Pluto TV (US cut)
City Hunter (Wong Jing, 1993) – Tubi, Pluto TV, and Shout Factory TV
Crime Story (Kirk Wong, 1993) – VUDU Free, Pluto TV, and Tubi
Rumble in the Bronx (Stanley Tong, 1995) – Roku Channel
Sammo Hung (directed) Movie
Knockabout (1979) – Midnight Pulp
The Victim (1980) – Tubi
Project A (co-directed with Jackie Chan, 1983) – Paramount +
Wheels on Meals (starring Jackie Chan, 1984) – Paramount +
Twinkle, Twinkle, Lucky Stars (starring Jackie Chan, 1985) – Paramount +
My Lucky Stars (starring Jackie Chan, 1985) – Criterion Channel
Dragons Forever (starring Jackie Chan, 1988) – Paramount +
Painted Faces (1988) – Netflix (drama based on the true childhood Peking Opera training of Hung, Chan, and Yuen Biao)
BONUS: Lucky Stars Go Places (third sequel in the Lucky Stars series, starring and produced by Hung, directed by Eric Tsang) – Midnight Pulp
Yuen Woo-ping Movies
The Bloody Fists (Ng See-Yuen director, Yuen choreographer, 1972) – Roku Channel
Born Invincible (Joseph Kuo director, Yuen choreographer, 1978) – Roku Channel and Tubi
Dance of the Drunk Mantis (1979) – VUDU Free and Tubi
Legend of a Fighter (1982) – Tubi
Shaolin Drunkard (1983) – Amazon Prime
Drunken Tai Chi (1984) – Pluto TV
In the Line of Duty 4 (1989) – Amazon Prime (via imdbTV)
Tai Chi Master (1993) – YouTube
Iron Monkey (1993) – Paramount + (US cut)
Wing Chun (1994) – YouTube
The Forbidden Kingdom (Rob Minkoff director, Yuen choreographer, 2008) – HULU
True Legend (2010) – Roku Channel, VUDU Free, Tubi, and Pluto TV
The Grandmaster (Wong Kar-wai director, Yuen choreographer, 2013) – Netflix, Amazon Prime (via imdbTV), VUDU Free, Tubi, and Pluto TV
Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (starring Michelle Yeoh, 2018) – Netflix
Michelle Yeoh Action Movies
Magnificent Warriors (David Chung, 1987) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp
The Heroic Trio (Johnnie To,1993) – YouTube
Tai Chi Master (Yuen Woo-ping, 1993) – YouTube
Wing Chun (Yuen Woo-ping, 1994) – YouTube
The Stunt Woman (Ann Hui, 1996) – Paramount +
Silver Hawk (Jingle Ma, 2004) – Popcorn Flix
Reign of Assassins (John Woo & Chao-Bin Su, 2010) – VUDU Free, Tubi, and Pluto TV
Tsui Hark Movies (directed, written, and/or produced)
Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind (1980) – YouTube
We're Going to Eat You (1980) – YouTube
Chinese Ghost Story (directed by Ching Siu-Tung, 1987) – YouTube
Green Snake (1993) – YouTube
Knock Off (1998) – Amazon Prime and Tubi
The Era of Vampires (aka: Tsui Hark's Vampire Hunters, 2003) – Amazon Prime (via imdbTV) and Tubi
Seven Swords (2005) – VUDU Free, Pluto TV, Roku Channel, Crackle, and Tubi
Triangle (co-directed with Johnnie To and Ringo Lam, 2007) – Amazon Prime, VUDU Free, and Tubi
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010) – Pluto TV, Shout Factory TV, and Tubi
Category III Movies
In 1988, Hong Kong introduced a rating system that included Category III. These were essentially X-rated softcore sex, nudity, graphic violence, and mention of real Triad gangs. There's a short sort of "Golden Era" of Cat III movies released between '88 and 1997, when the colony was absorbed by Mainland China. Other films were re-rated III.
Centipede Horror (Keith Lee, 1982) – YouTube
The Seventh Curse (Lam Nai-Choi, 1986) – Amazon Prime and Midnight Pulp
Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky (Lam Nai-Choi, 1991) – Fandor
The Untold Story (Danny Lee Sau-Yin and Herman Yau, 1993) – Shudder, AMC+, Tubi, and VUDU Free
Eternal Evil of Asia (Man Kei Chin, 1995) – YouTube
Ebola Syndrome (Herman Yau, 1996) – YouTube
Other Horror, Fantasy, and Cult Titles
Bruce Lee in New Guinea (Yang Chi-yao, 1978) – Tubi
Last Hurrah for Chivalry (John Woo, 1979) – Criterion Channel
The Boxer's Omen (Kuei Chih-Hung, 1983) – YouTube
Witch from Nepal (Ching Siu-Tung, 1986) – Midnight Pulp
Future Cops (aka: Super School Overlord; Wong Jing, 1993) – YouTube (MUST SEE action comedy satire of The Terminator featuring superstar actors as Street Fighter characters)
The Bride with the White Hair (Ronny Yu, 1993) – Amazon Prime (via imdbTV), Midnight Pulp, and Tubi
The Bride with the White Hair II (Davide Wu, 1993) – Amazon Prime (via imdbTV), Midnight Pulp, and Tubi
BONUS: Drive (Steve Wang, 1997) – VUDU Free and Tubi (underseen American/Taiwanese/Japanese co-production)
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