Revenge movies are among the most popular entries in the martial arts genre. Martial arts films often involve many different themes, from personal growth and romance to comedy and crime, interweaving each in their stories, whether it’s in an ancient or modern setting. However, one of the themes most closely linked to martial arts films is revenge, which is arguably the most common motivator for a main character in the genre.
Martial arts heroes often embark on missions of vengeance after the killing of a family member, romantic interest, or their own martial arts mentor. While some of the best martial arts movies like Enter the Dragon have revenge as an element of the plot, others make it the epicenter of the story. This allows the movie to build up to an epic showdown between the hero and the one who wronged them.
10 The Chinese Boxer (1970)
The title of the “first true martial arts film” has long been bestowed to the 1970 Hong Kong movie The Chinese Boxer, in which Jimmy Wang Yu plays Lei Ming, who seeks retribution for the destruction of his school. The Chinese Boxer was the first Hong Kong movie to move the action away from swords and focus instead on hand-to-hand combat. In setting the template for so many Shaw Brothers and Hong Kong martial arts films that followed, The Chinese Boxer is a kung fu revenge classic that has stood the test of time.
9 Five Fingers of Death (1972)
Also known by the title of King Boxer, 1972’s Five Fingers of Death sees Lo Lieh portraying kung fu master Chao Chih-Hao, who fights for the honor of his school against a rival teacher from another school and his hired henchmen. Lo Lieh’s Chih-Lao wields a deadly secret in battle against his enemy, namely the secret technique known as the Iron Fist, with his glowing hands becoming weapons of kung fu war. Obviously, comparisons to Marvel’s kung fu superhero Iron Fist are bound to emerge from any viewing of Five Fingers of Death, which just adds to the fun of the movie’s early ’70s kung fu glory.
8 Clan Of The White Lotus (1980)
Directed by kung fu filmmaker extraordinaire Lau Kar-leung, Clan of the White Lotus brings Lo Lieh and Gordon Liu together as Priest White Lotus and Man Ting Hung in the movie’s tale of Man seeking vengeance upon White Lotus. Clan of the White Lotus is pure Shaw Brothers gold with kung fu training montages and dynamic fight scenes, including an enthralling final showdown between Liu and Lieh with acupuncture needles becoming an unexpected weapon. With other Shaw Brothers luminaries like Kara Hui, Wang Lung-wei, and Hsiao Ho, Clan of the White Lotus is Shaw Brothers kung fu magic of the highest order.
7 Kill Bill (2003/2004)
Quentin Tarantino’s martial arts epic Kill Bill is technically one movie split into two parts – or, rather, Volumes – with both following the vendetta of a mysterious female assassin known as “The Bride“, who seeks revenge on her old teammates and leader Bill (David Carradine) for massacring her wedding day and leaving her nearly dead. The legendary Yuen Woo-ping crafts some of the most cartoonishly bloody carnage of his and Tarantino’s careers, most notably in the Bride’s katana showdown in a Tokyo nightclub. Kill Bill Vol. 2 adds more layers to the Bride’s revenge story against Bill, with Gordon Liu also appearing as the Bride’s kung fu mentor Pai Mei.
6 Kickboxer (1989)
Jean-Claude Van Damme’s second big movie as leading man took him to Thailand for a showdown of powerful kicking and ancient traditions in 1989’s Kickboxer. Van Damme plays Kurt Sloan, whose brother Eric (Dennis Alexio) is crippled in a fight with the ruthless Tong Po (Michel Qissi), leaving Kurt determined to avenge his brother in a Muay Thai match. Kickboxer‘s training montages are half of the fun as Kurt gradually acclimates himself to Muay Thai under the mentorship of Xian (Dennis Chow), while his and Tong Po’s final match – complete with gloves coated in broken glass – is still one of the best of Jean-Claude Van Damme’s many martial arts movies.
5 Revenger (2019)
Bruce Khan leads the South Korean Netflix martial arts film Revenger as a man of few words and all action, and hits equally hard with both. Khan plays former cop Yul, who is sent to a prison island and embarks on a quest of vengeance against Kun (Park Hee-soon), the imprisoned crime boss who murdered his family. Revenger is all meat and potatoes with Khan a whirlwind of kicks and punishment in every fight. Khan’s near-total silence throughout Revenger simply makes him a more captivating screen presence and the movie’s revenge story that much more focused, with the film’s martial arts fights fully equaling those of The Raid films.
4 Best of the Best 2 (1993)
Best of the Best 2 jolts the energy of its 1989 predecessor into overdrive, with Tommy Lee (Phillip Rhee) and Alex Grady (Eric Roberts) entering an underworld arena known as the Colosseum to defeat Brakus (Ralf Moeller) after the latter kills their friend. Best of the Best 2 is an action-packed blast and easily the Best of the Best franchise’s greatest movie, with Phillip Rhee’s fight scenes flashy and powerful at every turn. Best of the Best 2 can even be retroactively viewed as a cinematic forerunner of sorts to modern MMA, while Tommy’s final duel with Brakus delivers everything that a battle against a giant demands.
3 Ninja II: Shadow of a Tear (2013)
Scott Adkins returns as American ninja Casey Bowman, who embarks on a revenge mission into Burma after the murder of his pregnant wife Namiko (Mika Hiji). Director Isaac Florentine and Scott Adkins hyperactively surpass their first Ninja movie with a darker, more aggressive Casey in Shadow of a Tear. Tim Man’s fight choreography is the perfect blend of brutality and finesse for a ninja movie, with Man even snagging one of the movie’s fight highlights against Adkins. Ninja II: Shadow of a Tear‘s final smackdown between Casey and Kane Kosugi’s Nakabara cements the movie as an all-time ninja movie classic and solidifies Florentine as a titan of straight-to-video action filmmakers.
2 Fist of Legend (1994)
It’s a daunting challenge to remake a classic, but 1994’s Fist of Legend not only does exactly that with Bruce Lee’s Fist of Fury, but completely stands tall as a classic in its own right. Fist of Legend follows the same setup as Fist of Fury, with Jet Li portraying Chen Zhen on his mission to avenge his teacher’s killing, but Li fully makes the character into his own. Yuen Woo-ping’s fight choreography also crafts some of the best and harshest fights of Li’s career, including his blindfolded battle with Yasuaki Kurata and his epic final match with Billy Chow’s General Fujita.
1 Fist of Fury (1972)
If 1971’s The Big Boss was Bruce Lee’s big break in Hong Kong, 1972’s Fist of Fury made him an overnight sensation with Lee’s portrayal of his most important character Chen Zhen, a student of the Jingwumen kung fu school seeking revenge for the killing of his sifu, Huo Yuanjia. Fist of Fury brings everything that made Bruce Lee a legend and then some, while Lee’s fight scenes are some of his most iconic. These include Lee’s one-man battle against a Japanese karate school and his final duel with his teacher’s killers. In excelling on virtually every level, Fist of Fury is the greatest martial arts revenge movie.
