Drunken boxing is always a crowd pleaser. I still have yet to see anyone use it, though.

A relatively unknown martial art is the Russian style of Systema (Wikipedia), which, unfortunately, may sometimes just be referred to as “Russian Martial Art”. This style is most notably employed by some Spetsnaz units (Russian special forces). The style is reported to date back to the 10th century, with the first practitioners being Stalin’s bodyguards; however, only since the fall of Communism in Russia has the art started getting greater exposure, which may explain why it’s relatively unknown in the West. Schools for Systema can be found in Various places in the UK, Canada, and the US.

Mikhail Ryabko is shown demonstrating the style in the video above. The movements are quite reminiscent of Aikido, in terms of redirecting force and dealing with an opponent. While the demonstrations show that this may be a “soft” art, some quick short jabs, weapons, and ground fighting are shown in the demonstration video as well.

Of course, the style is not without its detractors, mostly centering around the psychic or internal parts of some schools. You be the judge:

It also doesn’t help that there are few clips of the highly skilled practitioners, and a lot of clips of the lesser skilled ones, for such a relatively unknown art. From the video I’ve seen, it looks like it incorporates many of the same techniques that are used to good effect in Aikido, Aikijutsu, Judo, and Jujutsu. Is this art good, and if so, how does one determine a good school? Such questions hold true for any style.

Here’s a fun idea: if you wanted to see a martial arts style, what movie would you watch? Sadly, in most cases, the movie will give a horrible, almost insulting representation of the art. (Hence, this list is going to have a lot of groaners for actual practitioners of the art.) Plus, you can’t learn martial arts well from a video — you have to actually train in it in person. But, all that aside, what movies come to mind for different styles?

• Capoeira: Mark Dacascos’s performance in Only the Strong is the definitive showcase piece for this art on film. Covering a bit of the background and some of the training styles, it combines some rather unlikely and goofy plotlines with fun choreography. The only other movie with Capoeira that comes to mind is Tom Yum Goong, which has a fight between a Muay Thai fighter (Tony Jaa) and Capoiera fighter (Lateef Crowder).
• Okinawan Karate: Sadly, the most known film introduction to this style is The Karate Kid and its sequel The Karate Kid Part II. What’s funny about it is that Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita didn’t actually know Karate before doing this movie. Shortening the complexity of the style to a few moves and cutting out the actual rigorous training found in Okinawan Karate appealed to Western audiences while hiding the depth of the art.
• Tae Kwon Do: If you haven’t seen Best Of the Best, go out and rent it now. Martial arts movies (especially Western martial arts movies) are known for their over the top cheese factor, but BOtB takes it to an all new high. If you don’t find yourself snickering at some of Eric Roberts’s lines, you must cry while watching daytime soaps. I mean, the random inclusion of Christopher Penn and James Earl Jones? It’s a whole new level of dairy product to enjoy. Bonus: getting to see a lot of different “hardcore” training styles of the Koreans, and Phillip Rhee’s skills.
• Muay Thai: Only one film really stood out for me on this art: Ong Bak. Tony Jaa kicks some serious butt in this film; just ignore the storyline. (The exclusion of Kickboxer from this category is not accidental.)
• Drunken Boxing: Jackie Chan introduced the concept of Drunken Boxing to the mainstream with the Western release of Legend Of the Drunken Master (released as Drunken Master II in Hong Kong). However, to really get at the raw style underneath, you have to turn to the older, original Drunken Master, also starring Chan. Jackie Chan made up the moves, it’s true; however, it’s still the most recognized example of Drunken Boxing in cinema today.
• American Boxing: One word: Rocky Like there could be any other? With an emphasis on the difficulty of training and the grittiness of the ring, Sylvester Stallone delivers a, um, knockout performance.
• Wing Chun: There’s a film called Wing Chun with Michelle Yeoh, which roughly includes some elements of Wing Chun history. However, the actual fighting is a bit stylized, so it’s not the best example of the art. For that, you have to check out The Prodigal Son and Warriors Two. Both of those use Wing Chun in all choreography, as well as include some background on the training. Yuen Biao nicely portrays a young impetuous Leung Jan under the tutelage of Leung Yee Tai and Wong Wah Bo in Prodigal Son, then comes back as Money Changer Wah in Warriors Two. Sammo Hung provides extra martial arts prowess and comedy in both films. Just try not to snicker too much at the Praying Mantis fight at the end of Warriors Two.
• Shaolin Kung Fu: For this, you have to turn to the Gordon Liu classic:Thirty-Sixth Chamber of Shaolin. With background on the different chambers and rigorous training styles, this movie set the tone for the kung fu movie genre to come. Gordon Liu again brings Shaolin flavor to the scene in Shaolin Vs. Wu Tang.
• Wu Tang Sword: Ziyi Zhang set the screen on fire with her graceful performance in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, which brought critical acclaim to films coming out of the East. Another good example is Shaolin Vs. Wu Tang, with Hoi San Lee showcasing the art.
• Hung Gar Kung Fu: The Once Upon a Time In China series defined Hung Gar’s presentation in Hong Kong cinema, with Jet Li’s explosive performance telling the story of folk hero Wong Fei Hong. (Interestingly enough, Jackie Chan plays a younger Wong Fei Hong in the Drunken Master series.)
• Savate: Remember Vorstedt (Derrick O’Connor) kicking the crap out of Riggs at the end of Lethal Weapon 2? This is the only example of Savate in film that I know of off hand.
• Aikido: Steven Seagal actually knows Aikido! I know, shocking. His style is a rather hard one known as Yoshinkai Aikido, and you get to see a bit of it in Above the Law.
• American Kenpo: I haven’t seen this film (yet), but I hear Jeff Speakman did a good showcase of American Kenpo in The Perfect Weapon.
• Tai Chi Chuan: David Carradine’s role as Kwai Chang Caine in the TV series Kung Fu is probably the best recognized example. Of course, bonus points go to Kung Fu Hustle for its portrayal with the Landlord (Yuen Wah). The Tai Chi Master may also give a nice representation, but I haven’t seen that yet.
• Kenjutsu / Iajutsu: It’s easy to just lump all Japanese sword fighting together, and say this includes Kendo and Iado. It’s also easy to just give this a blanket statement of “Samurai” — but that wouldn’t be quite right. I think in terms of application, I’d have to give the nod to The Seven Samurai, the amazing Akira Kirosawa flick that inspired The Magnificent Seven.

Well, that taps out my mind, though I know I’m missing a bunch. What other styles am I missing?

In Return Of the Dragon, Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee have a climatic fight in the Colliseum. This is that fight. Enjoy!

A new statue of Bruce Lee in Bosnia! The BBC reports that “Lee was chosen by organisers as a symbol of the fight against ethnic divisions.” Certainly, no one has been more instrumental in terms of breaking down the barriers to entry for Asian actors (outside of kitchy stereotypical roles) than Bruce. Apparently Hong Kong also unveiled a statue on Sunday. It’s nice to see that even 32 years after his death, his impact is still felt in the world.

When it comes to Wing Chun, there are two movies that really come to mind: The Prodigal Son, and Warriors Two. These two movies were Sammo Hung’s directorial tributes to the art of Wing Chun. (Yes, there’s also Wing Chun, but I think of these two first.)

If you’re a martial arts movie buff, then you have to see both of these movies. Stop, go out to the video store, and get these. Now. I’ll wait. Okay, got them? Good.

While certainly not as polished as more recent offerings, they do highlight the Wing Chun style, while presenting the more gritty side of martial arts movies. They also feature some of the (at times apocryphal) history of Wing Chun itself.

The Prodigal Son stars Yuen Bao as the legendary Leung Jan, a well known character in Wing Chun history. Centering on the time of Jan’s apprenticeship with the Red Junk Opera, the story begins with Jan in the village of Foshan, where his father pays people around time to lose fights to Jan, to protect his son. An encounter with another famous Wing Chun figure, Leung Yee Tai, demonstrates how incredibly poor his skills are, and he follows Yee Tai around, hoping to learn from him. His training eventually includes tutelage under Wong Wah Bo, played rather amusingly by Sammo himself.

The plot of this movie, sadly enough, leaves something to be desired. Much as I’d like to appreciate a historical look into this period of time, the plot doesn’t really come together in any cohesive way — it comes across as just a bunch of stuff that happens, which is a bit unsatisfying. The traditional you-killed-my-master-so-I-will-defeat-you theme is there, but not as any overarching conflict to drive the movie. This movie is more of a historical hypothesis, though one wonders how much is real, and how much is fantasy. It’s true that Leung Jan worked on the Red Junk Opera, and received training under Leung Yee Tai and Wong Wah Bo. How much beyond that is true is left to speculation.

Of course, the real reason to see this movie is the fighting and training. Like any good martial arts trainer flick, the hero begins as an uneducated beginner, trains through the movie, leading up to a final battle. From the Wing Chun perspective, this movie has a lot to offer. When Wong Wah Bo trains with his daughter, I see a nice fook sao-jut sao-punch drill that seems quite familiar. Play this scene in slow motion, and you’ll see that Wong Wah Bo’s moves are just a little more practiced and speedy than his daughter’s. The fight coreography in this movie is quite good, and really showcases a lot of moves from Wing Chun.

Overall, if you’re a fan of Wing Chun (or even just well coreographed fight scenes), this is a must see movie. If, on the other hand, you’re looking for flowery plots and character development, you’re going to be disappointed. It doesn’t have the broadband appeal of more popular martial arts flicks, but is well worth a look.