Lau Kar-leung
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- This is a Chinese name; the family name is Lau (劉).
Lau Kar-Leung (Chinese: 劉家良; Mandarin: Liu Jialiang, Liu Chia-Liang; born August 1936) is a famous Hong Kong Chinese martial arts film director, choreographer and actor.
Lau Kar Leung was born in August 1936, the third child of Lau Cham, a martial art master who studied under Lam Sai Wing, pupil of the legendary Wong Fei Hung[1]. Lau's wife is Mary Jean Reimer, a solicitor in Hong Kong, who was formally an actress known as Yung Ching Ching (Weng Jing Jing). He has two brothers who make a living in the film industry, actor-choreographer Lau Kar Wing, adopted brother Gordon Liu, aka Lau Kar Fai.His nephew Lau Kar Yung,son of his older sister,is also an actor,choreographer and director. Lau Kar-Leung is best known for his movies which he made during the 1970s and 1980s with the Shaw Brothers Studio. One of his most famous films is The 36th Chamber of Shaolin which starred his adopted brother, Lau Kar-Fai (Gordon Liu).
Before becoming famous, Lau worked as an extra and choreographer on the black & white Wong Fei Hung movies. He teamed up with fellow Wong Fei Hung choreographer Tong Gaai on the 1963 Hu Peng wuxia picture South Dragon, North Phoenix. Their collaboration would continue on until the mid-1970s.
In the 1960s he became one of Shaw Brothers' main choreographers and had a strong working relationship with director Chang Cheh, working on many of Chang's movies as a choreographer (often alongside Tong Gaai) including The One-Armed Swordsman, as well as other Shaw Bros. wuxia pictures, such as The Jade Bow. After a split with Chang on the set of Marco Polo, Lau evolved into a director during the sudden boom of kung-fu movies in the early 1970s. He occasionally did choreography work for non-Shaw movies as well, such as Master of the Flying Guillotine.
After Shaw Brothers collapsed in the 1980s, Lau moved on and continued directing and choreographing movies, among them Drunken Master II. However, the film's star Jackie Chan and director Lau clashed over the style of fighting, resulting in Lau leaving the set before the filming of the final fight scene, which was then taken over by Chan[2]. Most recently, Lau performed acting and choreography work for Tsui Hark's 2005 wuxia movie Seven Swords.
Recently, Lau ventured into opening a Hong Kong based Lau Family Hung Gar academy with his real-life kung fu student, Mark Houghton.
Contents |
[edit] Selected filmography
[edit] As director
- Spiritual Kung Fu (1975)
- Executioners From Shaolin (1976)
- Challenge of the Masters (1976)
- 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978)
- Shaolin Mantis (1978)
- Heroes of the East (1978)
- Mad Monkey Kung Fu (1979)
- Dirty Ho (1979)
- My Young Auntie (1980)
- Return to the 36th Chamber (1980)
- Legendary Weapons of China (1982) (also writer)
- Invincible Pole Fighter (1984) (also writer)
- Disciples of the 36th Chamber (1985) (also writer)
- Tiger On The Beat (1987)
- Drunken Master II (1994)
- Drunken Monkey (2002)
[edit] As martial arts choreographer
- The Jade Bow (1966)
- One-Armed Swordsman (1967)
- The Assassin (1967)
- Golden Swallow (1968)
- Return of the One-Armed Swordsman (1969)
- The Heroic Ones (1970)
- The New One-Armed Swordsman (1971)
- The Anonymous Heroes (1971)
- Boxer From Shantung (1972)
- The Water Margin (1972)
- The Blood Brothers (1973)
- Police Force (1973)
- Heroes Two (1974)
- Five Shaolin Masters (1974)
- Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974)
- Master of the Flying Guillotine (1975)
- Bloody Avengers (1975)
- Challenge of the Masters (1976)
- Executioners From Shaolin (1977)
- 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978)
- Shaolin Mantis (1978)
- Shaolin Challenges Ninja (1978)
- Mad Monkey Kung Fu (1979)
- Dirty Ho (1979)
- My Young Auntie (1980)
- Return to the 36th Chamber (1980)
- Clan of the White Lotus (1980)
- Legendary Weapons of China (1982)
- Invincible Pole Fighter (1984)
- Disciples of the 36th Chamber (1985)
- Operation Scorpio (1992)
- Drunken Master II (1994)
- Drunken Monkey (2002)
- Seven Swords (2005)
[edit] As actor
- Temple of the Red Lotus (1965)
- Challenge of the Masters (1976)
- Shaolin Challenges Ninja (1979)
- Mad Monkey Kung Fu (1979)
- My Young Auntie (1981)
- Legendary Weapons of China (1982)
- Invincible Pole Fighter (1984)
- Disciples of the 36th Chamber (1985)
- Pedicab Driver (1989)
- The Banquet (1991)
- The Twin Dragons (1992)
- Operation Scorpio (1992)
- Drunken Master II (1994)
- Drunken Monkey (2002)
- Seven Swords (2005)
