No list of essential action flicks would be complete without a Jackie Chan movie, and it's his 1994 kung fu epic - Drunken Master II - that we've chosen for our list. Despite the title, this movie has nothing to with the original Drunken Master movie from the '70s, and should be viewed as a self-contained picture. Pretty much, this downright insane, meticulously choreographed martial arts masterpiece shows Jackie Chan at the top of his game - we could have picked any number of Chan movies from the '70s, '80s or 90s, but this one stands out. The plot is nonsense, of course, and exists as a means of bridging the gap between massive fights that pit Jackie against hordes of enemies, all of whom are dispatched in a variety of insanely inventive ways using whatever props are laying about. Indeed, if you've only ever been exposed to Chan's work in the west, you'll gain a newfound respect for the man as an artist, given that he co-directed and choreographed all of the fights on show here. And the 20 minute fight scene at the end of this flick is something else entirely; totally and utterly jaw-dropping stuff.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
