Martical Arts Films Affect on Culture

How has Kung Fu movies affected the American audience? Furthermore, are Kung Fu movies an accurate depiction of what Asian culture is really like? The Bruce Lee Kung Fu phenomenon resonated with middleclass Americans during a time of racial prodigious and the turmoil of the Vietnam War. The movies portrayed a strong racial minority who shows super human abilities and to demonstrate that anything is possible through personal will power. So these movies did capture the middleclass audiences of the U.S. for these reasons because it provided hope in a dark time.

Some would argue that the films have not accurately depicted Asian culture correctly simple because the type of justice did not happen in the real China. The films paint a dull picture of the governments and social life in Asia. In fact, it makes it as if what happens in Kung Fu films is all that happens in China, which is completely a false way of viewing a culture. But Bruce Lee films did show that Hong Kong was discontent of British rule. Ultimately, early Kung Fu movies portrayed a strong nationalistic and racial pride which was a captivating feature to many Americans during the 1960’s and 1970’s.

Jackie Chan ushered in a more comedic form of Kung Fu movies, which had a different affect on culture than Bruce Lee movies. Chan’s hybrid fight comedy films exploited the differences between Asian and American cultures to portray characters that were not only funny but also personal. He painted Kung Fu as a realistic fight between enemies that could potential be humorous and enjoyable. This kind of film making exploded in America and now we see so widely sold today.

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