The best kung fu movies of the 70s start with Enter the Dragon (1973), the Bruce Lee film that carried the genre around the world. Right behind it are The 36th Chamber of Shaolin and Drunken Master, both from 1978. The rest of the top ten splits between Lee’s Hong Kong films, the Shaw Brothers studio and early Jackie Chan.
Published October 11, 2026.
I have been watching these movies for a long time, first in rough dubbed prints and later in the restored versions. After enough of them, a few things stand out. The training scenes stay with you longer than the final fights. The crash zoom shows up in nearly every Shaw Brothers picture. And the films that last are the ones where you can follow every move. The camera stays wide and lets the fighters work.
70s kung fu movies at a glance
| Rank | Film | Year | Director | Star | Rotten Tomatoes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Enter the Dragon | 1973 | Robert Clouse | Bruce Lee | 88% (77 reviews) |
| 2 | The 36th Chamber of Shaolin | 1978 | Lau Kar-leung | Gordon Liu | 83% (6 reviews) |
| 3 | Drunken Master | 1978 | Yuen Woo-ping | Jackie Chan | 81% (21 reviews) |
| 4 | The Way of the Dragon | 1972 | Bruce Lee | Bruce Lee | 88% (16 reviews) |
| 5 | Five Deadly Venoms | 1979 (RT) | Chang Cheh | The Venom Mob | 80% (5 reviews) |
| 6 | Fist of Fury | 1972 | Lo Wei | Bruce Lee | Too few reviews |
| 7 | King Boxer | 1972 | Jeong Chang-hwa | Shaw Brothers cast | Too few reviews |
| 8 | Master of the Flying Guillotine | 1975 (RT) | Jimmy Wang Yu | Jimmy Wang Yu | 90% (21 reviews) |
| 9 | Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow | 1978 | Yuen Woo-ping | Jackie Chan | 80% (5 reviews) |
| 10 | The Big Boss | 1971 | Lo Wei | Bruce Lee | Too few reviews |
1. Enter the Dragon (1973)
Robert Clouse directed it for Warner Bros., with John Saxon and Jim Kelly beside Lee, according to Rotten Tomatoes. The site scores it 88% from 77 critics. Its consensus calls it “the ultimate kung-fu movie.” The Criterion Collection notes it was released just days after Lee’s death and became his greatest international success. The Library of Congress added it to the National Film Registry in 2004.
It ranks first because it was built for the whole world. The tournament setup gives you a parade of fighters. The hall of mirrors finale is the image most people carry away from it.
2. The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978)
Lau Kar-leung directed this Shaw Brothers production, and Gordon Liu plays San Te. Rotten Tomatoes credits the pair under the names Chia-Liang Liu and Chia-Hui Liu. It shows 83% from six critic reviews and 89% from more than 1,000 audience ratings.
Most of the running time is training, and that is the point. Each chamber teaches one skill, so you watch a student get better a step at a time. No other film of the decade makes practice this watchable.
3. Drunken Master (1978)
Yuen Woo-ping directed Jackie Chan as the young Wong Fei-hung. Rotten Tomatoes rates it 81% from 21 critics, with an 85% audience score from more than 25,000 ratings.
This is where Chan’s comedy and his fighting finally fit together. The drunken boxing style lets him stumble, fall and recover inside a single move. Its final fight runs long without going slack.
4. The Way of the Dragon (1972)
The Criterion Collection says Lee was given the chance to write, produce and direct this one. It describes the climax as a gladiatorial death match with Chuck Norris in the Colosseum. Rotten Tomatoes lists it under its US title, Return of the Dragon, at 88% from 16 reviews.
The restaurant plot in Rome is thin. The Colosseum fight is the reason to watch. Two fighters, no music for long stretches, and Lee changing his style mid-fight while you watch.
5. Five Deadly Venoms
Chang Cheh directed it for Shaw Brothers. Rotten Tomatoes lists the film under 1979 with an 80% score from five reviews. Arrow Video’s Shawscope notes credit Chang with introducing the Venom Mob, the group of performers who carried a run of later Shaw films.
Each of the five students learned a different animal style. The film plays like a mystery about which of them can be trusted. Its costumes and masks make it the most comic-book picture on the list.
6. Fist of Fury (1972)
Lo Wei directed Lee’s second Hong Kong lead role. The Criterion Collection says it turned out to be an even greater success than The Big Boss. Lee plays Chen Zhen, a student in 1910s Shanghai who goes after the rival school behind his master’s death.
The dojo scene, where Lee takes on a full room alone, is the first time his speed really fills the frame. It ranks below The Way of the Dragon only because the story drags between fights.
7. King Boxer, also called Five Fingers of Death
Jeong Chang-hwa directed this 1972 Shaw Brothers film. Arrow Video’s Shawscope announcement says it reached American cinemas as Five Fingers of Death. That release, Arrow says, established kung fu as an international box office powerhouse.
In other words, the US craze started here, a year before Enter the Dragon. The fights look stiff next to the late-decade films. The iron palm scenes still land.
8. Master of the Flying Guillotine
Jimmy Wang Yu directed and starred. Rotten Tomatoes dates its release to May 24, 1975. It gives the film 90% from 21 critics, the highest score on this list.
A one-armed boxer is hunted by a blind assassin with a bladed hat on a chain. A tournament fills the middle. The film is ridiculous on purpose, and it ranks eighth because the fights matter less than the weapon.
9. Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow (1978)
Yuen Woo-ping directed Jackie Chan in this one too, the same year as Drunken Master. Rotten Tomatoes shows 80% from five critic reviews and 82% from more than 5,000 audience ratings.
Watch it back to back with Drunken Master. The cast and crew are close to the same. You can see the formula being worked out: a bullied student, an old master, and a new style built in the final act.
10. The Big Boss (1971)
Lo Wei directed Lee’s first Hong Kong lead role. The Criterion Collection calls his return to Hong Kong film after a decade in America his big breakthrough. Lee plays a worker at a Thai ice factory who has sworn off fighting.
It is rougher than the films that followed, and Lee holds back his fighting for a long stretch. That restraint makes the payoff hit harder. It still belongs in the top ten.
Bruce Lee movies in order
The Criterion Collection’s Bruce Lee: His Greatest Hits set gathers the five films most people mean by Bruce Lee movies:
- The Big Boss (1971)
- Fist of Fury (1972)
- The Way of the Dragon (1972)
- Enter the Dragon (1973)
- Game of Death (1978), which Criterion notes was released five years after his death
Criterion also notes Lee died at 32. All four films he finished as a lead came out within about three years. For more fighters from this era and after, see our ranking of karate action movie stars. The wider list of top action movie stars picks up where this one ends.
Kung fu movies of the 70s
What is the best kung fu movie of the 70s?
Enter the Dragon (1973) is the usual answer, and the record backs it. Rotten Tomatoes scores it 88% from 77 critics. The Criterion Collection calls it Bruce Lee’s greatest international success, and the Library of Congress added it to the National Film Registry in 2004. Next come The 36th Chamber of Shaolin and Drunken Master.
How many movies did Bruce Lee make as a star?
Criterion’s set of his martial arts films has five titles: The Big Boss (1971), Fist of Fury (1972), The Way of the Dragon (1972), Enter the Dragon (1973) and Game of Death (1978). Game of Death came out five years after he died. Enter the Dragon director Robert Clouse shot the new footage that finished it.
Which kung fu movie started the craze in America?
King Boxer, released in the US as Five Fingers of Death, came first. Arrow Video’s notes on its Shawscope set say this 1972 Shaw Brothers film established kung fu as an international box office powerhouse when it reached American cinemas. Enter the Dragon followed in 1973 and became the bigger hit.
What is the best Jackie Chan movie from the 70s?
Drunken Master (1978) edges out Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow from the same year. Yuen Woo-ping directed both. Rotten Tomatoes gives Drunken Master 81% from 21 critics, against 80% from five for the other film. Drunken Master also has the stronger final fight.