10 Action-Packed Jackie Chan Movies You've Likely Never Seen
You know the name, you've seen some of his movies, but not all of the best.
Jackie Chan is most synonymous in the West with familiar Hollywood franchises like Rush Hour, and Kung Fu Panda, as well as both Shanghai Noon and Knights. Though some of these movies are light-hearted fun and have wowed audiences with Chan's energetic choreography, they barely begin to scratch the surface of his extraordinary talents, or what he had already achieved on film up to that point.
Before his successful excursions into Hollywood (and the one that wasn't so successful) Jackie Chan was making a name for himself in some of the most riveting movies your eyes will ever feast on. In fact, most of his best work came before he even set foot in the land of opportunity.
They were movies where Chan and his stunt cohort would literally put their bodies on the line in the name of entertainment. They performed death-defying stunts and mind-blowing fight scenes, without CGI, that inspired generations of stunt performers and directors.
Without them, the likes of John Wick wouldn't exist.
Salivating for your next slice of action? Then just dip your toes into one of these tremendous Jackie Chan movies that you've probably never seen.
10. Drunken Master
To the casual fan, it can be far too easy to dismiss a movie that looks old, is set in a bygone era, and is in a completely different language. It's the kind of ignorance that simply robs you of the viewing pleasure of bonafide classic movies. With that in mind, one of the most essential and well regarded amongst Jackie Chan's illustrious career to date is the seminal 1978 masterpiece, Drunken Master.
In it, Chan plays Wong Fei-Hung, a young cheeky chap who is constantly getting into trouble. One minute he's fighting with an instructor, the other he's unknowingly hitting on a visiting cousin. Tired of his games and juvenile behaviour, his father sends him off to be trained under the notoriously strict Beggar So (Siu-Tin Yeun). Despite his efforts to avoid the rigorous training, he's left with no choice but to learn the art of Drunken Fighting so that he can save his father from a contract killer.
Drunken Master was so good it spawned a number of imitations that riffed on the movie's title and style in the aftermath of its release. It's also firmly implanted into popular culture, with characters in video games who mimic the drunken fight style present in the movie. It's also one of the first movies in the kung fu comedy subgenre, inspiring countless others after it.