The best Jet Li movies are made up of some of the best action-martial movies released, mostly at the turn of the 21st century. Additionally, although uncommon, Lee has had dramatic roles in his career. Along with other Hong Kong martial arts stars such as Jackie Chan and Michelle Yeoh, Jet Li is known as one of the best martial artists and actors of this genre of oriental cinema. Jet Li’s filmography of English-language films alone is very significant, but these films do not show all his talent and acting capacity. When we look at his entire filmography, it becomes clear that Jet Li’s films have earned their place in the history of cinema, and perhaps less than any other martial arts film – except for some films by Bruce Lee and other martial artists mentioned above. We mentioned – they can compete with these movies in the kung fu genre.
Although it seems a little strange to today’s audience, Jet Li did not enter the field of martial arts until the age of 8, an age that many martial arts instructors consider too late, and to understand this, you need to know that Jackie Chan at the age of 6. He turned to martial arts and kung fu. Born in 1963, Jet Li began training in martial arts in 1971 after attending wushu classes irregularly. At the age of 9, he became a successful wushu practitioner and won several awards, and in 1974 he traveled to the United States to meet with President Nixon for his achievements, and in 1979 he competed in professional wushu as a Championship sport retired. It was in 1982 that after the release of Jet Li’s first film, The Shaolin Temple, the film’s Filipino distributors decided that his name was difficult to pronounce for non-Chinese. This is how Li Lianjie got his modern stage name, Jet Li. Since then, Jet Li has played a role in many of the best and most iconic films of the action and martial arts genre, and in the following article, we will introduce you to 15 of the best of them.
15- Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)
Lethal Weapon 4 was the movie that made Jet Li famous in Hollywood, and it is undoubtedly one of his best movies. In the negative role of Wa Sing Koo, Jet Li shocked Western audiences with his terrifying portrayal of a Chinese mafia member, a character who goes hand-in-hand with Murtagh and Riggs in the final part of the film. The film’s final battle sequence is stunning and brutal, with Lee beating the two main characters at the same time until he dies a gruesome death, even though he’s fighting the whole time. Since then, Jet Li has become the star of many Hollywood films, while also continuing to act in Hong Kong and Chinese films.
14- Unleashed (2005)
Unleashed tells the story of a Chinese man who is kidnapped and separated from his mother as a child. He continues his martial arts training and learns to be as loyal as a dog. Played by Morgan Freeman, in this movie Danny Sege (Jet Li) finds freedom and peace after a while and does not want to return to his previous violent life. But the handlers who have turned him into a loyal and fierce dog don’t let Danny live a peaceful life. By the time of this film’s release, Jet Li had acted in several other Hollywood films, but this film was very different from Lee’s previous films, as he played almost his first significant dramatic role, making Unleashed one of the best. One of Jet Li’s best movies.
13- Shaolin Temple (1982)
Jet Li’s first film was made in 1982 with the name Shaolin Temple, a film whose story takes place in medieval China during the Sui and Tang dynasties. This film had a great impact on Chinese martial arts films and became a record breaking film and a turning point in this field by selling more than 300 million at the box office of Chinese cinema. Also, Shaolin Temple was the first movie to be filmed in the actual Shaolin Temple, and it added even more to the charm and importance of this temple as a tourist attraction. Adjusted for inflation, the film grossed around $250 million, a record for 1982, a film that rivals some of Jet Li’s highest-grossing films today.
12- Last Hero In China (1993)
In the movie Last Hero In China, Jet Li plays the role of a famous Chinese hero named Wong Fei Hong, who has been played many times by Jet Li and Jackie Chan, and is a famous Chinese historical figure. In this film, Wong Fei Hong creates as many comic moments as punches, where he sets up his own martial arts school next to a brothel and then incurs the wrath of a general who refuses to set up this school and He is not satisfied with teaching the students. What makes Last Hero In China one of Jet Li’s best films is that it is a successful satirical critique of Once Upon A Time In China, the film that inspired this film. but it has been given a comedic twist.
11- The Legend II (1993)
After starring in The Legend, Jet Li appeared in its sequel, The Legend II, in which Fong Sai-yuk joins a secret organization called the Red Rose, which plans to oust the Manchurian Emperor from China. Being a famous martial artist at this point in the story, he has a hard time coping with what he does. This sequel has kept the comedy and martial elements of the original film, which were its strengths, while at the same time developing the original scenario and giving a satisfying twist to the fate of Fong Sai Yuk’s character. Although The Legend II is considered one of Jet Li’s best films, it is inferior to the original film in terms of quality and appeal, which we will mention at a higher rank in this list.
10- The Warlords (2007)
The Warlords is one of the movies that proved that Jet Li is not only a fast and flexible martial artist but also a talented and complete actor. The story of the film is told in the 1860s, a time when internal rebellions were very common in China during the Qing Dynasty. This movie tells the story of three sworn brothers, played by Jet Li, Andy Lau and Takeshi Kanshiro, whose brotherhood and friendship do not go well because they have different opinions on various issues, which causes many deaths. The film, which is on every list of Jet Li’s best movies, won a total of 8 awards at the Hong Kong Film Awards, including Best Actor for Jet Li.
9- Swordsman 2 (1992)
Swordsman 2 was a wuxia action film based on the book The Smiling, Proud Wanderer by Lewis Cha. In this film, Jet Li plays the role of Ling Chong, a martial artist who, along with other members of the Monte Hua Martial Academy, is about to retire. But Chong’s retirement is delayed when a martial master from the Sunflower Instruction School named Dongfang Bubai plans to overthrow the Ming Dynasty with the help of Japanese ronin. The movie Swordsman 2 was able to win the best costume design and make-up award at the 12th Hong Kong Cinema Awards. However, this film was also nominated for this award in seven categories, including best editing, best direction and best action sequence. Although less known, Swordsman 2 is one of Jet Li’s best films.
8- The Legend (1993)
The Legend tells the story of an unlucky and ambitious young boy named Fong Sai Yuk, who is an outstanding martial artist but is not doing well in his studies. The film combines comedy with a large amount of high-quality kung fu sequences, and of course, a special series of wire-assisted martial arts moves that later became an icon of Chinese martial arts cinema. Amidst Fong Sai-yuk’s martial arts and romantic entanglements, The Legend reveals a complex political narrative. This film, which is mainly included in the list of Jet Li’s best films, won the best action sequence award at the Hong Kong Film Awards and the Golden Horse Awards in 1993, and a sequel was made the same year.
7- Tai Chi Master (1993)
In martial arts, training is not complete without achieving mastery in both internal and external martial arts. The movie Tai Chi Master tells the story of two boys named Junbao played by Jet Li and Tinbo played by Chin Siew Ho who grow up in the Shaolin Temple under the training of a master. After a fight with one of the priests of the temple, these two leave there and each of them takes a completely different path in his life. Although it did not win any major awards and is generally less known, Tai Chi Master, which also stars Michelle Yeoh, is considered one of Jet Li’s best films.
6- Fist Of Legend (1994)
Fist Of Legend is a remake of the 1972 movie Fist of Fury starring Bruce Lee. This movie, which was made in 1994, tells the story of a young martial artist named Chen Zhen who returns to Shanghai from Japan but finds that his master has been killed and his martial arts training school is being persecuted by the Japanese. take About two decades after the original film, Fist of Legend deals with the problem of extreme nationalism in Asian countries. Apart from being a lovely homage to Bruce Lee’s films, it is also one of Jet Li’s best films due to its brave handling of the modern world’s racist dilemmas and fight sequences designed by the legendary Yeon Yue Ping. Takes.
5- The Bodyguard From Beijing/The Defender (1994)
One of Jet Li’s best films that has fallen off the radar of action movie fans in years, The Bodyguard From Beijing was released in the US as The Defender. In the film, Jet Li plays the role of Alan, a seasoned bodyguard who prevents the assassination of prominent politicians. Alan is hired by a famous Hong Kong businessman to stop his fiancee, Michelle, who witnessed a murder. As always, Alan does his job wonderfully and flawlessly, but Michelle and Alan become interested in each other. The Bodyguard From Beijing depicts Jet Li in a beautiful, modern romance that features some of the best hand-to-hand combat sequences of his career.
4- Once Upon A Time In China 2 (1992)
At the 12th Hong Kong Film Awards, Yeon Woo-ping won the award for Best Action Sequence Design for Once Upon A Time In China 2, but that’s not the only reason why the film ranks among Jet Li’s best films. The second film in the most emotional and action-packed film of this franchise is a story about politics, fans and patriotism. Once Upon A Time In China 2 is a Chinese patriotic film starring Donnie Yen as its main villain. Donnie Yen, who plays General Nap Lan, fights Lee’s character Wong Fei Hong in a battle between two prominent martial arts actors trained under the tutelage of a master.
3- Ocean Heaven (2010)
As one of Jet Li’s few leading dramatic roles, Ocean Heaven explores the love between a father and son and the difficulties faced by people with autism. This film tells the story of a man who has an incurable disease and has an autistic son, so he tries to give his son the necessary training for survival before his disease destroys him. . Although the film was largely overlooked, it is considered one of Jet Li’s best films, especially for Jet Li’s emotional and moving performances and Wen Zhang, who plays his son, Dafoe.
2- Hero (2002)
Any list of Jet Li’s best films would be incomplete without mentioning Zhang Yimou’s epic masterpiece Hero. Known for his color theory of attraction, Yimo tells real and fictional stories about the unnamed hero played by Hat Li, an assassin whose skills endear him to the emperor. . But this nameless man and the emperor have surprises for each other. In terms of cinematography, combat scenes, narrative style and the performances of its actors, the movie Hero is considered the best movie in the history of cinema in the Wuxia genre. Zhang Yimou won the Alfred Bauer Award at the Berlin International Film Festival and won seven different awards at the Hong Kong Cinema Awards.
1- Fearless (2006)
Fearless was such a tense action epic that it made Jet Li promise himself never to act in another action film, which tops his list of greatest films. Fearless is about the life of a famous martial artist named Hu Yuanjia who was the founder of Jingwu Sports Foundation. In order to restore honor and credit to the Chinese people after being occupied by foreign countries, he calls other martial artists around the world to fight with him. For his performance as Hu Yuanjia in Fearless, Jet Li won the Hong Kong Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and the film itself received numerous other awards.
