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When it comes to making features like this one, i love the idea of coming up with my own personal “100 Great Kung Fu Movies” of all time. It is tough choosing just 100 because you know there are many more great Kung Fu movies that are not on the list.

I have decided that to make the list, a movie must have a few hand to hand moments during fight scenes in the movies chosen. If for example its mainly sword play with one fight scene hand to hand it won’t make the list. Its old school “style” Kung Fu movies, not modern day settings.

I understand everyone will have their own personal favorites and some may not agree with my list and that’s fine because it’s nice to have different opinions on this genre which keeps it fresh and alive when having good debates.

Anyway, thank you...

What we lack more and more these days are epic fight scenes in the final part of kung Fu/Martial Art movies. We have seen less and less one on one fight scenes in the final battle over the past 15-20 years, which is a shame but we have seen recently a few flicks bringing that winning formula back.

I want to name a few of my favorite end fight scenes and please feel free to comment below, your favorite fight scenes and maybe they will be added to the future features. I only add fight scenes which i can find the clips for on youtube, so some classics might not be added to the lists.

1.Drunken Master 2 (1994)

Cast:Jackie Chan, Lau Kar Leung, Ti Lung, Anita Mui, Ken Lo, Andy Lau, Mark Houghton

Fight Choreographer: Lau Kar Leung, Jackie Chan

2.Ong Bak 2 (2008)

Cast:Tony Jaa, Nirut Sirichanya, Sorapong Chatree,...

Dimension Films has acquired Daniel Stamm's Angry Little God psychological thriller, an English-language remake of 13: Game of Death. Im Global is set to produce as well as finance the project which Stamm (The Last Exorcism) will helm. Jason Blum of Blumhouse is serving as executive producer alongside Somsak Techaratanaprasert who produced the original Thai film. The 2006 film originally titled 14 game sayawng starred Krissada Sukosol, Achita Sikamana, Sarunyoo Wongkrachang and Nathapong Arunnetra. The story tells of a social services worker who has lost his job and is in a hefty amount of debt, but desperate to marry his girl. He has a shot at a better life when a mysterious call comes in, learning he's in a hidden game show...

Dimension Films has acquired Daniel Stamm's Angry Little God psychological thriller, an English-language remake of 13: Game of Death. Im Global is set to produce as well as finance the project which Stamm (The Last Exorcism) will helm. Jason Blum of Blumhouse is serving as executive producer alongside Somsak Techaratanaprasert who produced the original Thai film. The 2006 film originally titled 14 game sayawng starred Krissada Sukosol, Achita Sikamana, Sarunyoo Wongkrachang and Nathapong Arunnetra. The story tells of a social services worker who has lost his job and is in a hefty amount of debt, but desperate to marry his girl. He has a shot at a better life when a mysterious call comes in, learning he's in a hidden game show...

From Albania to Vietnam, 63 countries are hoping that their film entry will get picked to fill one of the five slots for Best Foreign Language Film for the 84th Annual Academy Awards.

Five slots, 63 countries, the competition is fierce! Is your country of choice one of the 63 hopefuls?

I'm happy that my home country, the Philippines, has an entry, the dramedy "The Woman in the Septic Tank" from director Marlon N. Rivera. Released in the Philippines on August 3rd, the film became the highest grossing independent movie in my country's cinema history. So keeping my fingers crossed for this movie!

The shortlist will be released in January and then it will be whittled down to five contenders when the nominations are announced on Tuesday, January 24, 2012. The winner will be announced on Oscar night on Sunday, February 26, 2012.

Take a look at the complete list of Best Foreign Language hopefuls:

Albania, "Amnesty,...

Yesterday the Academy finally released the full list of 2012 Foreign Language Oscar contenders adding four films I did not have on my previous list from the Dominican Republic, Indonesia, United Kingdom and a mysterious title I can't find anything about from Kazakhstan and now that the short list has been announced and everyone has posted the Academy's press release it's like searching for a needle in a haystack if you go looking for more information on it. That said, if anyone has a link to any information on Egor Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky's Returning to the 'A' I would love to share it as I have links and information for all other 62 films submitted for consideration. As I said in my last post addressing the category, I haven't seen any of these films, a rarity for me, but based on buzz the top contenders would seem to include Zhang Yimou's The War of Flowers,...

Nuri Bilge Ceylan's Once Upon a Time in Anatolia Oscar 2012: New Zealand/First Samoan Feature Among Best Foreign Language Film Contenders Albania, Amnesty, Bujar Alimani, director; Argentina, Aballay, Fernando Spiner, director; Austria, Breathing, Karl Markovics, director; Belgium, Bullhead, Michael R. Roskam, director; Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belvedere, Ahmed Imamovic, director; Brazil, Elite Squad: The Enemy Within, José Padilha, director; Bulgaria, Tilt, Viktor Chouchkov, Jr., director; Canada, Monsieur Lazhar, Philippe Falardeau, director; Chile, Violeta Went to Heaven, Andrés Wood, director; China, The Flowers of War, Zhang Yimou, director; Colombia, The Colors of the Mountain, Carlos César Arbeláez, director; Croatia, 72 Days, Danilo Serbedzija, director; Cuba, Havanastation, Ian Padrón, director; Czech Republic, Alois Nebel, Tomás Lunák, director; Denmark, Superclásico, Ole Christian Madsen, director; Dominican Republic, Love Child, Leticia Tonos, director; Egypt, Lust, Khaled el Hagar, director; Estonia, Letters to Angel, Sulev Keedus, director; Finland, Le Havre, Aki Kaurismäki, director; France, Declaration of War,...

We gave you an update a few weeks ago, but The Academy now has its final list of the 63 films competing for Best Foreign Film Oscar. This list will get cut down as films screen and the committee decides on a final five when the nominations get announced late January. The notable films include Iran’s A Separation, which we adored and China’s massive budget The Flowers of War starring Christian Bale (which isn’t even complete to my knowledge).

Mexico’s Miss Bala (read our Cannes and Vancouver reviews) and Finland’s Le Havre (our Cannes and Toronto reviews) are also contenders. Lebanon’s Where Do We Go Now? is also in the mix, a drama that won the top prize at Toronto. There are many others we’ve seen at festivals, so follow that coverage here as we head into Oscar season. Check out the press release below.

Press Release:

Beverly Hills, CA - Sixty-three countries, including first-time entrant New Zealand, have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 84th Academy Awards®.

The 2011 submissions are:

Albania, “Amnesty,” Bujar Alimani, director;

Argentina, “Aballay,” Fernando Spiner, director;

Austria, “Breathing,” Karl Markovics, director;

Belgium, “Bullhead,” Michael R. Roskam, director;

Bosnia and Herzegovina,”Belvedere,” Ahmed Imamovic, director;

Brazil, “Elite Squad: The Enemy Within,” José Padilha, director;

Bulgaria, “Tilt,” Viktor Chouchkov, Jr., director;

Canada, “Monsieur Lazhar,” Philippe Falardeau, director;

Chile, “Violeta Went to Heaven,” Andrés Wood, director;

China, “The Flowers of War,” Zhang Yimou, director;

Colombia, “The Colors of the Mountain,” Carlos César Arbeláez, director;

Croatia, “72 Days,” Danilo Serbedzija, director;

Cuba, “Havanastation,” Ian Padrón, director;

Czech Republic,”Alois Nebel,” Tomás Lunák, director;

Denmark, “Superclásico,” Ole Christian Madsen, director;

Dominican Republic,”Love Child,” Leticia Tonos, director;

Egypt, “Lust,” Khaled el Hagar, director;

Estonia, “Letters to Angel,” Sulev Keedus, director;

Finland,...

Update: The total is now 60 films as Steve Pond at The Wrap informs us the Domenican Republic's submission La hija natural has been accepted. He also says we should expect four or five more films to be added to the list by the time things are said and done. My original post follows...

The deadline for countries to submit films for consideration at this year's Oscars was Monday, October 3 and this year's list is a little lighter than last (so far) as 60 countries have offered up submissions compared to 66 last year and 67 the year before that. Looking over the complete list, which I have included directly below and can always be viewed in my "The Contenders" section right here, there are a few that stand out based on what I've heard, but then again, this is the first year I can ever remember where I haven't seen a single one of the entries.

Chicago – In our latest martial arts edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 30 admit-two passes up for grabs to the Chicago screening of the new martial arts film “Ong bak 2” starring martial arts master Tony Jaa.

“Ong bak 2” is co-directed by Tony Jaa and writer Panna Rittikrai. The film features Tony Jaa, Sorapong Chatree, Sarunyu Wongkrachang, Nirut Sirichanya, Santisuk Promsiri, Primorata Dejudom, Natdanai Kongthong, Patthama Panthong and Petchtai Wongkamlao.

To win your free pass to the advance Chicago screening of “Ong bak 2” courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, all you need to do is answer our question below. That’s it! This screening will be held on Monday, Oct. 12, 2009 at 7 p.m. in Chicago. Directions to enter this Hookup and immediately win can be found beneath the graphic below.

The “Ong bak 2” movie poster starring Tony Jaa.

Image credit: The Weinstein Company

Here is the “Ong bak 2...

You want plot? How’s this for plot: Tony Jaa plays an orphan who gets involved with some martial arts masters who teaches him everything he knows and then Tony Jaa goes around beating the living beJesus out of everyone and anyone. How’s that for plot? Check out some ass-kicking clips form the movie below. “Ong Bak 2: The Beginning” will be released by Magnolia in select cities October 23rd. Click here for theaters and showtimes. Martial arts superstar Tony Jaa stars in and directs this epic tale of revenge set hundreds of years in the past. Featuring a huge cast and hordes of elephants, this prequel takes Jaa’s skills to the next level, showcasing him as a master of a wide range of martial arts styles – while proving him to be a promising director as well. Starring Tony Jaa, Sorapong Chatree, Sarunyu Wongkrachang, Nirut Sirichanya, Santisuk Promsiri,...

Here we have today the first clip from Tony Jaa’s “Ong Bak 2” and the second International trailer for the movie. Check them out below.

“Ong Bak 2” has no actual connection with the first “Ong Bak” besides Tony Jaa’s involvement. The movie is directed by Thai martial artist Tony Jaa himself as his first feature film.

The script was written by stunt coordinator and filmmaker Panna Rittikrai who previously wrote the screenplay for “Ong Bak” and “Born to Fight”.

A young man in the Ayutthaya period grows up among villagers who preserve the legacy of the traditional khon masked dance. He becomes an outcast when he finds that his firm limbs weren’t made to pursue the specialty of his ancestors, but with the advice of a mysterious guru he’s able to develop a new style of fighting which mixes the strength of martial arts with...

What's the time? It's time to get ill! That's right, the 6 films playing at the SXSW midnight lineup courtesy of Fantastic Fest have been announced, and we've reported on quite a few of these, especially The Horseman which we loved. Check em out:

Ong Bak 2 (Thailand)

Director: Tony Jaa. Writer: Panna Rittikrai

Martial-arts superstar Tony Jaa is back in an epic prequel to the 2003 action smash Ong Bak. Cast: Tony Jaa, Sorapong Chatree, Sarunyu Wongkrachang, Nirut Sirichanya, Santisuk Promsiri, Primorata Dejudom (International Film Festival Premiere)

Black (France)

Director: Pierre Laffargue. Writer: Pierre Laffargue, Lucio Mad and Gábor Rassov

A nouveau-blacksploitation adventure awash in black magic, African Mysticism, mutant arms dealers, gargantuan machete-wielding mercenary armies and a truckload of knuckle-sandwiches. Cast: Mc Jean Gab'1, Carole Karemera, François Levantal, Anton Yakovlev (World Premiere)

The Haunting in Connecticut (U.S.)

Director: Peter Cornwell. Writer: Adam Simon and Tim Metcalfe

In the tradition...

Austin, Texas – February 17, 2008 – The South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Conference and Festival announced the official titles for their new program “SXSW Presents Fantastic Fest at Midnight,” kicking off with the International Film Festival Premiere of Ong Bak 2, the most anticipated new action film of the year. Six films from six countries comprise the lineup, featuring four international premieres, one North American premiere and one U.S. Premiere. From horror to action, to comedy and suspense, these six films collectively represent the spectrum of genre films featured in Austin’s annual Fantastic Fest. All films will play at midnight at the SXSW Film Festival at the Alamo South Lamar, in addition to the traditional SXSW Midnighters section, which will take place at the Alamo Ritz. The program will feature:

Ong Bak 2 (Thailand)

Director: Tony Jaa. Writer: Panna Rittikrai

Martial-arts superstar Tony Jaa is back in an epic prequel to the 2003 action smash Ong Bak.