Here is my take on Chinese music and movies. My tastes only, no apologies. If you're onto something that I've missed, please let me know.
KUNGFU AND CHINESE FILMS (with some Korean and Japanese films thrown in)
Starters:
**Any
Donnie Yen film. especially Bodyguards and Assassins,
Yip Man and Yip Man 2 (he manages to make Wing Chun look cool),
Sha Po Lang (SPL),
Hero (his brief appearance is one of the best fight scenes ever), Wang Feihong II, Iron Monkey, Ballistic Kiss. I think Donnie Yen is the best martial arts actor ever. Aside from being really, really fast and having the ability to show any style to its best, he is photogenic and has a natural acting style that make the non-fighting moments real. He has made some stinkers, of course, but keeps getting better and better (probably as he gains more control over the movies in which he participates).
Here is a complete filmography (thanks to the hkmdb): Drunken Tai Chi (1984), Mismatched Couples (1985), Tiger Cage (1988), The Last Conflict (1988), In the Line of Duty 4 (1989), Tiger Cage II (1990), The Holy Virgin Versus the Evil Dead (1991), Crystal Hunt (1991), Cheetah on Fire (1992), Dragon Inn (1992), Once Upon a Time in China II (1992), Heroes Among Heroes (1993), Butterfly Sword (1993), Iron Monkey (1993), Circus Kids (1994, Wing Chun (1994), Asian Cop - High Voltage (1995), The Saint of Gamblers (1995), Satan Returns (1996), Iron Monkey 2 (1996), Black Rose II (1997), Legend of the Wolf (1997), Shanghai Affairs (1998), Ballistic Kiss (1998), Black City (1999), Hero (2002), The Twins Effect II (2004), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Love On the Rocks (2004), SPL (2005), Seven Swords (2005), Dragon Tiger Gate (2006), Flash Point (2007), An Empress and the Warriors (2008), Painted Skin (2008), Ip Man (2008), All's Well Ends Well 2009 (2009), Bodyguards and Assassins (2009), The Founding of a Republic (2009), 14 Blades (2010), Ip Man 2 (2010), Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen (2010), The Lost Bladesman (2011), Swordsmen (2011), Vanguard (2011), All's Well Ends Well 2011 (2011), The Monkey King (2012)
Jet Li's films, especially the Shaolin films, the Wang Feihong films, the Fong Saiyuk films, **
Fist of Legend, The One, The Tai Chi Master, Hero,
Fearless.
Here is a complete filmography (thanks to the hkmdb): Shaolin Temple (1982), This Is Kung Fu (1983), Kids from Shaolin (1984), Martial Arts of Shaolin (1986), Born to Defence (1988), Dragon Fight (1989), Once Upon a Time in China (1991), Lucky Way (1992), Once Upon a Time in China II (1992), The Master (1992), Swordsman 2 (1992), Fong Sai Yuk II (1993), The Tai-Chi Master (1993), Last Hero in China (1993), Once Upon a Time in China III (1993), Kung Fu Cult Master (1993), Fong Sai Yuk (1993), Fist of Legend (1994), The Bodyguard from Beijing (1994), The New Legend of Shaolin (1994), High Risk (1995), My Father Is a Hero (1995), Black Mask (1996), The Scripture with No Words (1996), Once Upon a Time in China and America (1997), Hitman (1998), Hero (2002), Fearless (2006), The Warlords (2007), The Forbidden Kingdom (2008), The Founding of a Republic (2009), Ocean Paradise (2010), The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (2011), The Sorcerer And The White Snake (2011), Tai Chi (2011).
Wu Jing's movies (Legendary Assassin,
SPL,
Invisible Target, Fatal Move (but just for the last fight), Tai Chi (really old),
New Shaolin
. (He really enjoys being evil.)
Here is a complete filmography (thanks to the hkmdb): Tai Chi II (1996), The Legend of Zu (2001), Drunken Monkey (2003), SPL (2005), Fatal Contact (2006), Twins Mission (2007), Invisible Target (2007), Kung Fu Dunk (2008), Fatal Move (2008), Legendary Assassin (2008), L for Love L for Lies (2008), Howling Arrow (2009), Metallic Attraction: Kungfu Cyborg (2009), City Under Siege (2010), Love Tactics (2010), Wind Blast (2010), Tieqiao San (2010), Just Another Pandora's Box (2010), New Shaolin (2011). (I have to admit I haven't seen a lot of these)
The Shaw brothers' digital re-release in Mandarin with English subtitiles of the classics with Ti Long, Fu Sheng, Chen Kuan-tai, David Chiang, Gordon Liu and others, such as T
he 36th Chamber of Shaolin,
Return to the 36th Chamber, Disciples of the 36th Chamber, The Blood Brothers,
Shaolin Temple, Shaolin Intruders, Heroes Two, Clans of Intrigue, Shaolin Mantis, Na Cha the Great, Have Sword Will Travel, The Heroic Ones, Killer Clans, The Magic Blade, The Teahouse, Big Brother Cheng, Executioners from Shaolin, Eight Diagrams Pole Fighter, Water Margin, One Armed Swordsman, Iron Bodyguard. These are in their original Mandarin, so are much more classy than before.
Any Kurosawa samurai film.
More sword or fighting movies:
*** New Shaolin (Andy Lau, Nicholas Tse, Wu Jing, Jackie Chan, 2010)
* Red Cliff and Red Cliff 2 (made as one long movie, is not a movie and a followup. Tony Leung plus a huge cast of everyone who is anybody.)
*Ong Bak and Tom-Yum Goong (ok, not Chinese, but amazing choreography. Not Ong Bak 2 or 3.)
* The Warrior (Musa in Korean), Korean and Chinese mix.
* Versus, a Japanese samurai zombie comedy gun film. An absolute must see.
Mismatched Couples, break dancing with Donnie Yen and Kenny Perez. No, really.
Shaolin soccer
Samurai Fiction, very stylish.
Taboo (Japanese)
The Skyhawk, classic series of films.
Swordsmen in Double Flag Town. A classic.
The Blade (Tsui Hark's remake of One Armed Swordsman)
Tripping (has swords and zombies, but is basically a chick flick)
Stylish gun, action, or cop/triad movies:
* Johnny To films:
PTU, Vengence, Mad Detective, Election, Throw Down, Breaking News, Exiled, Triangle, The Sparrow. PTU has more movies, produced by Johnny To but not directed by him. They are Tactical Unit: The Code (2008), Tactical Unit: Partners (2008), and Tactical Unit: Comrades in Arms (practically a comedy, 2009)
* Infernal Affairs, Infernal Affairs II, Infernal Affairs III. Still hasn't been beaten as the ultimate cop /triad film.
* Invisible Target (Wu Jing, Nicholas Tse, the rest all good)
Jiang Hu,
Mad Detective,
Time and Tide,
Black Ransom
Detective Dee (spontaneous combustion, need I say more?) Andy Lau in the Tang dynasty.
John Woo gun films such as: Red Cliff, The Killer, Hardboiled, A Better Tomorrow 1, 2, and 3, (Bullet in the Head, but only if you're a fan).
Kung Fu Dunk, basketball, kungfu and Jay Zhou.
People's Hero (Ti Lung and a very young Tony Leung).
Fatal Move
Tokyo Raiders. Japan and China, fun.
Running out of time. Hong Kong, buddy film with a bit of a twist. #2 is ok, but not as good.
Expect the Unexpected (also a cop buddy film with a twist)
The Returner, Japan, science fiction and guns with a heart
House of Flying Daggers (I can't list this way high, but the cinematography is beautiful)
Jay Chou in
The Green Hornet. Not an Asian film, but using an Asian superstar deserves an honourable mention. A lot of fun.
More Asian films, loosely defining guns or action:
The Ring and Ring 2. Japan, spooky films (quote from my little brother: AAAAAGHHGHGHGGHGNGNGNGHGHH)
any
Tony Leung film, Hong Kong (Chinese Midnight Express, Infernal Affairs, Confession of Pain)
*Fireworks, *Sonatine, Zatoichi, Brother, Battle Royale. Japan. (Beat Takeshi is brilliant. Twisted, but brilliant.)
The foreign duck, the native duck, and God in a coin locker (yes, that is the title).
Star Runner, HK. Very cheesy but I think worth it for the last fight scene.
TV series available in DVD format
*
Jingwumen. Donnie Yen, very young and very good. Hours of viewing pleasure. WARNING: addictive.
Shuihuchuan. Knows as 'The Heroes of the Marshes," "Water Margin," "The 108 Heroes". Hours and hours of wicked fighting interspersed with high drama (but don't doze off in the drama). Very high production values. I heard it is available in dubbed in English, but I've never seen that.
Ghengis Khan. Horses, wide sky, what more could you want? The costumes are fabulous, the acting is good, and although it is confusing with a huge cast and long names, it is really good. I don't know how authentic it all is.
Huo Yuanjia. An old series.
So totally 'B' that they are worth watching:
The Holy Virgin Versus the Evil Dead. Donnie Yen had to start somewhere.
Story of Ricky
The Streetfighter, there are 3 that I know of, so bad you have to watch all three.
Don't go out of your way to find, but not too bad:
The Treasure Hunter, A disappointing film.
A Man called Hero, interesting anime look.
Gen X Cops, light, ok if you're into young guys with interesting hair.
Fulltime Killer, lacks a certain something, but alright.
Warriors of Heaven and Earth.
Seven Swords (not quite up to the hype).
Playboy Cops
Don't need to bother with:
Kungfu in Japan,
Born to Defense,
Dr. Wai and the Scriptures with No Words. After a great start in the business Jet Li had to go down before going up.
Roaring Tiger Bluffing Dragon, boring
Gen Y Cops, slightly different mix of young guys with interesting hair just doesn't cut it this time out.
Running on Karma, I just can't get past the costume.
Unleashed, Jet Li isn't really much of an actor, good as he is at the action.
Bulletproof Monk, Chow Yunfat sleepwalks his way through this one.
War. How can you miss with both Jason Statham and Jet Li?
The Moss (very violent without much point).
Tactical Unit: No Way Out (exceeded my tolerance for violence, 2008)
Must avoid:
Black Mask 1 and 2. Sorry, I just don't get it,
Cradle 2 the Grave,
Matrix Reloaded (its not Asian or kungfu, but is so bad I think a warning is needed)
Kung Fu Master is My Grandma! (there is one scene when granny is in bed and the camera shoots up her nose for an eternity, and that is not the worst of it)
Korean movies. They're just not like Chinese movies, so I've started a separate list. These are all excellent films.
The Man from Nowhere (2010 top box office in Korea)
City of Violence (or The Violent City)
The Warrior (Musa in Korean), Korean and Chinese mix.
Attack the Gas Station!
Bittersweet Life (gets better at each viewing).
Friend
Guns and Talks
Old Boy
A Dirty Carnival
Public Enemy
Champion
Maljik High School, 1978
Crying Fist
Spin Kick (how they can make martial arts films into chick flicks is amazing)
Dalma
Volcano High (just watched this again on a big screen, one of the best ever)
My Wife is a Gangster
My Sassy Girl (ok, this isn't an action movie, but it is really funny)
Antique (not an action movie, but fun)
Phone (same really scary feel as Ring, but not a copy. Really creeped my out)
Typhoon. very intense
Welcome to Dongmakgol
No Mercy for the Rude
Big Bang
Soo (pretty intense, but is so much of a blood bath that you end up just laughing)
Good non-action films, Chinese society (a far from comprehensive list)
* Missing Gun
* On the Beat
* Beijing Bicycle
* Postman in the mountain
* In the Heart of the Sun
The Parking Lot Attendant
And the Spring Comes
Sailfish
Secret
Days of Being Little Kings
Little Red Flowers
The Little Chinese Seamstress
Lan Yu
Comrades Almost a Love Story
East Palace, West Palace
Shower
Public Toilet
Green Tea
Cala, My Dog
Not One Less
Pretty Big Feet
The Blue Kite
To Live!
Devils on the Doorstep
Artisan Pickpocket (Xiao Wu), Platform, The World (director Jia Zhangke is an acquired taste)
Yellow River (quite old, but still relevant)
Crazy Stone
God Man Dog (Taiwan)
*Wang Kar Wai films, you'll be intrigued or you'll hate them, but you won't be bored - Chung King Express, Fallen Angels, Ashes of Time, Happy Together, In the Mood for Love, 2046. These can be confusing at times since he makes up his films on the spot. Hong Kong, not China.
A couple of Vietnamese movies that are really good are Scent of Green Papaya, and Cyclo.
Websites
Hong Kong Movie Data Base is a fun not-for-profit site all about Asian movies. It is a data base with all kinds of information and commentaries supplied by the readership.
a site with a lot of links to Donnie Yen fansites. In Japanese but with enough English for you to find fun things.
some stories about Donnie Yen when he was young in Beijing. some nostalgic photos of the old Beijing Sports College.
Cinespot is a website about Hong Kong cinema, so you don't have to take my word for it on any of these films.
CHINESE MUSIC In alphabetic order.
A4 (electronic) I haven't heard enough to really say.
A-do (ok Mandopop)
Alilang 'arirang' (modern meets traditional from the outskirts of China)
Ami luoluo (Mongolian tradition meet modern music)
Chen Lin (woman, big Mandopop star)
Chyi Chin (kind of Mandopopish rock)
* CMCB (hiphop, quite good)
The compass (alternative)
Cui Jian (the original rock and roll star, wears well)
* Dao Lang (from the NW of China, brilliant mix of modern and traditional)
* Dou Wei (some heavy rock, some trance, the good stuff is very hypnotic)
The Flowers (like the old English pop/punk bands)
Ha gou bang (slighty crazed mix of hip hop, Nirvana, and disco. The good stuff is worth suffering through the bad.)
***
Hanggai (Beijing band from the steppes of Mongolia, cool and traditional at the same time)
Hei Bao 'black panther' (before last year's flavour, rock and roll)
Hu Chenbin (doesn't really know what he is yet, but some tunes not so bad)
IPIS (alternative look, not really)
Tony Leung (he's a great actor, so I get into his singing, but you've got to like him or like Mandopop)
Li Shaolong (hiphop, fun)
Ling dian (rock and roll)
Luo Shiqun (hiphop, pretty catchy)
Mu Ma (heavy rock)
Qingwa 'frogs' (kind of dated rock, with some good rifs)
Shaun ( I got this because it looked like a woman with attitude. He is a guy.)
S.H.E. (please save me from women's disco groups, but this one grows on you)
Shuimu nianhua (alternative wannabe, but not bad)
Tang Chao (basic rock and roll, pretty boring)
Teng Ge're (Mongolian meets pop, very good)
Tian Zhen (a woman with a good voice, too bad she hasn't found a good vehicle for it yet)
Thin Man (Beijing rock with attitude)
Alex To (pure sweet Mandopop, a guilty pleasure. NOT the early stuff, but later is quite good)
Tomahawk (heavy metal)
Tong An'ge (Mandopop, depends on your mood, some are good)
* Wu Bai and China Blue (funky blues. Catch the movie "Time and Tide" to see Wu Bai act and hear some cool music)
Wu Sikai (soft, but thinks he isn't)
Xiao Gang (has his moments)
Nicholas Xie (Mandopop, one of the better pop stars who has gone into acting)
Xue Cun (live show, kind of humorous)
Ya Dong (Tibetan mix of modern hiphop with traditional rifs, and some bad disco)
Chris Yu (this guy is all about heartbreak, can wear a little thin)
Yu & Quan (kind of progressive rock verging on Mandopop)
Zhang Chu (some good, some lame)
Zhang Zhenyue (has a refreshing attitude, but can get a bit annoying)
Zheng Jun (uses some traditional riffs)
**
Zhou Jielun, aka Jay Chou (very popular, has a wide range, considers himself hiphop, very good) His website is www.jaychou.com. He also does some acting, and rocks in The Green Hornet, 2010.
Zhou Chuan (has some very good tunes, a bit uneven, but at least different)
Zhou Huajian (have to be in the mood for Mandopop)
Zhou Zhiping (the ultimate in Madopop, very smooth)