Donnie Yen falls into the same category. If you want somebody to play a hard-ass cop who isn't above going beyond the rule book to take down criminals and using some incredible martial arts skills in order to do it, Donnie's your man. From movies like "In The Line of Duty 4", to the "Tiger Cage" movies, up to and including "SPL", Donnie has the pugnacious, angry, intense, physical, and rebellious cop role down pat.

"Flash Point" isn't so much a movie about two cops taking down a trio of brothers who are up to their necks in crime and violence, it's a giant setup for the last 20 minutes of this movie so we can watch Donnie strut his stuff. When Donnie's eyes get wide and his mouth screws up like he's about to spit something out, watch out, it means he's about to lay some serious hurt on someone. Case in point: in the middle of the film, he's chased the bad guy to an outdoor eating area when the bad guy grabs a kid and tells Donnie to drop his gun or he'll kill the kid. Donnie complies, at which point the bad guy throws the kid aside, letting the kid land on her head and is either dead, or in a coma. Donnie looks at the kid, his face contorts, the camera zooms out, and Donnie proceeds to work the bad guy over.

That scene was just a taste for what happens near the end when he goes toe-to-toe with Collin Chou. This fight scene hurts just to watch it. In this movie and in "SPL," Donnie has stated that he wants to bring Mixed Martial Arts to the screen so as to make martial arts movies look more realistic and at the same time, more exciting. He feels that CGI and wire-fu have had their day and that it's time to get back to basics. It looks like he's succeeded. Like Spencer Tracy, what Donnie Yen does, he does well. I hope he keeps on doing it.

The plots for these books was,with some variation, pretty much the same: mad scientist/evil genius would get a hold of one hero and con him into fighting another hero. The heroes would fight and then, realizing it was all a misunderstanding, would team up and go after the real bad guy.

Chen Kuan Tai and Alexander Fu Sheng star in this cinematic version of a Marvel comic book. The plot is pretty much like I described those team-up books. Chen plays a Shaolin man who escapes being killed during the burning of the Shaolin temple and is on the run from the Manchus. In to this picture stumbles Fu Sheng, another Shaolin man and totally clueless as to what has happened. The Manchus convince Fu Sheng that Chen is an evil robber and that he should go capture him-which he does. Later on, realizing his mistake, he goes after Chen to free him and team up with him to stop the Manchus.

As I said, this plot reminds me of those old comics. But they were fun to read, and this was fun to watch. This movie is supposed to have set a precedent by showing more realistic fighting onscreen utilizing more authentic styles. It does that, and does it well. I've stated that this movie is like a comic book. It isn't humorous or over the top like a comic. It's deadly serious. Nothing funny or goofy about this movie. It's bloody, violent and has an engaging story.

As always Fu Sheng is a pleasure to watch with his easygoing manner, and Chen Kuan Tai is a treat with his ferocious mannerisms and savage fighting skills. Get this movie for your collection, you'll be glad you did.

What makes this movie stand out is David Chiang--actually, David Chiang's smile. Whenever he flashes "The Smile", he reminds you of a mischievous little brother about to get himself into trouble. He knows he can get into trouble, but he knows he'll have fun while he's doing it.

It's easy to see why he became such a big star at Shaw Bros. He has the easy charm and grace of Douglas Fairbanks in "Mark of Zorro" or Errol Flynn in "The Adventures of Robin Hood." Those were actors who played characters who were confident about themselves and who could afford to be a little reckless because they were so incredibly skilled. They also carried about them a sort of joy of living. They truly enjoyed living and what they did.

Chiang carries himself the same way as those two acting legends. Sure, he's a good martial artist and acrobat, but it's his personality that really cinches things. Check out early on when he baits two thieves in a tavern about their plans for a robbery that night. He knows about the robbery, but they don't know him or know that he knows. Also, the scene where he tries his luck at a gambling den. His look of injured innocence was probably the same kind he gave his mom when he was a little kid when he got busted for some mischief he was committing. You just want to laugh and shake your head at the guy for the sheer impudence he displays. He just comes across that way.

I didn't give this a full 5 stars because the kung fu just didn't do it that much for me. But watch it anyway and enjoy it just for the experience of basking in the charm of David Chiang--and "The Smile".

"Fighting Fist": A mediocre early 90s film that Chiba directed. He also has a total of about 6 minutes of screen time. Not a film I would put in this collection, but oh well. What kind of saves this film is that the action from the lead is pretty good, and that the blood flows fast and free. Basically, it's about an agent with a past who kills the relatives of a Hong Kong crimelord to bring him out into the open. Problem is, when the bad guy does come out, he has people killed who are very close to the agent. While okay as a standard HK action flick, it doesn't really do anything to make it stand out.

"Soul of Bruce Lee": This is the reason for the 3 stars. Let me state right off the bat that this is a Brucesploitation movie. It has "Bruce" fighting Bolo (yes, Bolo is in this movie). It has "Bruce" copying all of Bruce's moves (when he got injured at one point, I was waiting for him to lick his blood and then scream and go ape shit). The nice thing is, it isn't Sonny imitating Bruce Lee, it's some other guy. The story is about how Sonny goes after the man who killed his master and is now head of the Thai drug cartel. You get some very good fights, including one where Sonny takes on four guys fighting in the Monkey Style. Sue Shiomi also stars in flashback sequences where she nurses Sonny back to health and teaches him martial arts (yep, you read right). It's also a weird film in that Sonny occasionally hooks himself up to an electrical discharge machine that sends charges through his body. One scene has him in a pair of mesh bikini briefs and a mesh muscle shirt with wires strapped to his body while he practices karate while getting zapped. If you ever wanted to see what Sonny would look like in a bondage getup, here's your chance. Sonny also snorts coke out of a bag to help his internal injuries. He comes off as a pretty weird human being in this one. This film has the cheap look and feel of his other film "The Bodyguard." But, unlike that snoozer, this one actually keeps one awake.

As I stated earlier, Sonny made some good films, but a lot of lousy ones as well. If you like Sonny, forget the first one and watch the second one. Not so bad, but not so great either. You've been warned.