Awesome Martial Arts

Mondo Books and authors Grady Hendrix and Chris Poggiali offer up a fantastic retrospective of 1970s kung fu movies. This encyclopedic 432-page book recounts the history of these martial arts classics, accompanied by hundreds of movie posters, ads, and archival images. A must-own for any serious martial arts buff.

Ke Huy Quan stars in this action comedy from the producers of Nobody and Atomic Blonde. The beloved actor plays a seemingly mild-manor realtor who suddenly finds himself pulled back into his former life battling hitmen, henchmen, and an underworld crime boss. Expect plenty of fight scenes between the comedic quips. Drops 2.7.25.

With enough practice, you can learn to break bricks with your hand. But this martial arts master doesn’t stop at a brick or two. We watched in awe as he demolished over 110 bricks back-to-back with his bare hand. If you look closely, you’ll see broken bricks ahead of where he is, so he must have tried this more than once.

Talented taekwondo artist minsungimdang shows off his power and precision as he jumps into the air and breaks four ceramic tiles with his feet while performing a backflip. He got a boost from his teammates, but that doesn’t make the feat any less impressive.

This talented and athletic performer shows off her leg strength and balancing skills by lying on her back and spinning objects with her feet. She starts out by spinning a flower pot, then ups the challenge to something a bit less symmetrical – a table. She can spin things in circles too.

This animated short film follows a legendary craftsman who lost his arm and uses who uses a prosthetic arm to take down his enemies. The fight choreography is amazing, and we love the use of sawdust in place of blood. Go behind-the-scenes here, then support their Kickstarter for a feature-length film. (Thanks, Rob!)

After Cobra Kai Season 4’s surprising conclusion, the good guys are on the ropes. Sensei Terry is making his evil dojo bigger and badder; Johnny Lawrence has turned his back on karate, and Miyagi-Do is about to shutter. Can Daniel LaRusso and his frenemy Chozen help rally the troops to defeat Cobra Kai once and for all?

Budo Brothers makes cool apparel for martial artists and martial arts fans. Their Hood-Gi combines the wrapped, asymmetrical look of a Gi with a hoodie. Magnets ensure the fold stays put, while a CoolDry liner keeps you comfortable. It’s got a hidden pockets for your smartphone and Bo-Shuriken.

The guys from China’s Remake Team specialize in replicating scenes from martial arts movies and anime. In this clip, they take on a classic fight sequence from Jet Li’s Fist of Legend. There’s also a split-screen version of the video up on Reddit.

The Blu-ray reissue of the 1979 martial arts film Monkey Kung Fu is a Hong Kong cult classic from the Shaw Brothers. Weirdly wonderful, it involves gangs, a one-eyed criminal, mysticism, non-stop action – everything except actual monkeys as kung fu masters. The Blu-Ray of Shaolin Mantis is another amusing action gem.

In this short video from the World Taekwondo Federation, one of their highly-skilled martial artists shows off an epic 720° spinning kick that takes out four individual wood boards, each held by a different partner. The height he gets at the top of the kick is insane.

Vulpes Training handcrafts training tools for martial artists. Each of their weapons is made from heavy-duty 3/4″ polymer, providing weight and substance, along with a textured handle for grip. They come in tomahawk, machete, karambit, dagger, saber, scimitar, and various other designs. They’d be great for cosplay too.

Dave Ardito makes short videos inspired by anime. There are lots of fun and energetic clips on his TikTok feed, but this is one of the best examples, a real-life version of Speed-o’Sound Sonic from One Punch Man zooming and ricocheting around a room thanks to some slick editing and VFX.

Remix master Eclectic Method chopped up pieces of classic martial arts action to create this entertaining music video. Watch closely, and you’ll see that every punch, kick, swoosh, and shout is part of the rhythm. For some reason we’re reminded of Parappa the Rapper.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe introduces us to the first new hero of Phase Four. Meet Shang-Chi; a young man schooled in the ways of martial arts and capable of defeating superhuman opponents thanks to his incredible instincts and masterful Kung Fu skills. In theaters 9.3.2021.

Jackie Chan has been wowing movie audiences with his martial arts mastery for more than 50 years. Among his many talents is the ability to hurdle over objects like walls and fences like they were nothing. The Solomon Society rounded up a few of these classic jumps in this fun compilation reel.