劉家良經典功夫電影

劉家良導演在邵氏公司期間, 製作了不少經典作品，其中以《少林三十六房》最為著名，亦是一九七八年香港十大賣座電影，而同年更獲亞洲影展最佳動作片獎。劉家良導演堅持提倡李小龍電影精神發揮真實搏擊風格，再加入傳統武術的紮實功夫，強烈表現出華南武術文化傳統。其後的《武館》、《五郎八卦棍》、《長輩》等代表作，不僅穩固其導演地位，更成一眾武術指導爭相仿效的對象。

Lau Kar Leung Kung Fu Classics

During his years in Shaw Brothers, Master Lau Kar Leung produced a number of classics, among which the most famous is THE 36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN. It was one of the ten most popular films in Hong Kong cinema in 1978 and the 24th Asian Film Festival's Best Martial Arts award winner. While Master Lau was known for bringing a realistic fighting style to the big screen, a style upheld by Bruce Lee, he also added practical kung fu elements rooted in traditional martial arts to his films, thus highlighting the heritage of South Chinese kung fu. His subsequent masterpieces, MARTIAL CLUB, THE EIGHT DIAGRAM POLE FIGHTER and MY YOUNG AUNTIE not only shored up his position as a professional director, but also made him an inspiration for arrays of action directors.

片名：《陸阿采與黃飛鴻》
上映年份 ：1976年

《陸阿采與黃飛鴻》是劉家良導演最早執導、兼任武術指導的作品之一。全片圍繞傳奇功夫大師黃飛鴻，劉家良承自父親劉湛的虎鶴雙形拳正是由黃飛鴻所創立。

此片取材自民間故事，相傳黃飛鴻跟從武術大師陸阿采習武，在電影中劉家良塑造出一個全新的黃飛鴻：年輕，勇猛，英俊，完全推翻了關德興演繹的成熟形象。
劉家良繼執導首部作品《神打》(1975)大獲好評，一年後拍成《陸阿采與黃飛鴻》。此片涵蓋所有劉氏電影的經典元素，除了開場帶來豐富的視覺享受、場景及道具布置精細且別具風格外，故事情節乃取材自洪拳民間傳說，高潮迭起，當然還少不了精心設計、極具欣賞價值的武打場面，完美地揉合藝術與功夫。劉家良與徒弟劉家輝決鬥的場面更展示出前者身為武術指導及功夫演員的過人才華，堪稱功夫電影界最經典片段之一。

Challenge of the Masters (1976)

Challenge of the Masters is among the earliest films Lau Kar Leung directed and fight-choreographed. The subject matter is the coming of age of legendary kung fu grandmaster, Wong Fei Hung, who created the “Tiger and Crane style” of Lingnan Hung Kuen.

Inspired by a story that Wong Fei Hung learnt martial arts directly from the legendary master Luk Ah Choy, in this film Lau created a brand new image of Wong Fei Hung, young, bold and handsome, completely overturning Kwan TakHing’s earlier, more mature, representation. Riding on Lau Kar Leung’s debut directorial success with Spiritual Boxer (1975) a year earlier, Challenge of the Masters has all the elements of a classic Lau Kar Leung film, with a visually engaging opening, intricate and stylized stage sets, a dramatic story drawn from Hung Kuen’s rich oral lore and, of course, artistically crafted fight scenes that are the perfect fusion of art and kung fu. Lau Kar Leung’s fight scene with his protégé Gordon Liu showcases his talent as fight choreographer and kung fu actor at his best, and is arguably one of the most memorable scenes in kung fu cinema.

片名：《少林三十六房》
上映年份：1978年

《少林三十六房》也許是已故名導劉家良眾多作品之中最廣為人知的。此片能夠歷久不衰，不無原因，例如是電影中經典的練武片段、劉家輝將三德和尚勇武的形象表現得淋漓盡致，以及劉家良超卓的導演及武術指導才華。

電影中武術修練的進程一半源自真實武打經驗，另一半出於劉導演的想像，深深啟發了一個時代的武術家，遍及本地、海外。在開場一連串豐富的動作場面中，劉家輝練習各種功法和兵器，此段也為全片定下基調，名副其實地體現中國功夫之身體文化。

劉導演同一時期其他作品中的武打動作均出自他對傳統武術深刻的認知，特別是洪拳，令片中的武術編排格外具體、真實。從武術的角度看，大部分動作直接採用嶺南洪拳，尤以拳、刀兩房最為明顯，其他練武場面——例如棍房——則展現出劉導演在設計武術動作方面的豐富想像力。

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978)

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, also known as The Master Killer and Shaolin Master Killer, was perhaps the most widely known of Director Lau Kar Leung’s many films. Its enduring popularity owes to a number of factors including the film’s iconic training scenes, Gordon Liu’s roaring success as the Shaolin warrior monk Sande, as well as Lau Kar Leung’s genius as director and fight choreographer.

The training sequences, informed in equal measure by real martial arts training and Lau’s imagination, inspired a whole generation of practitioners. The wonderful action-packed opening credits, which see Gordon Liu going through various types of training and weapon practice, set the stage for the rest of the film, which is a veritable celebration of the physical culture of Chinese martial arts. As with Lau’s other films from this period, the kung fu action is founded upon his profound knowledge of Hung Kuen. From a martial arts point of view, plenty of the action is taken directly from the rich repertoire of Lingnan Hung Kuen, with the fist and sabre chambers being particularly illustrative, while other training scenes such as the pole chamber show Lau’s abundant imaginative ability as choreographer.

片名：《武館》
上映年份：1981年

《武館》是劉家良其中一部傑作。此片和他眾多作品一樣，最令人讚嘆之處是揉合了真實、懷舊和幻想三種元素。故事設定在廣州、已然逝去的清末年代。此片重塑出南派武術的黃金時代——當時廣州是商業中心，南北各派武功雲集當地，並且頻繁交流，衍生出許多今天為人熟知的嶺南功夫。

電影開始時有一段編排精細的獅舞，直觀地反映出廣州歷史。電影初段的舞獅表演更展示最著名的「疊羅漢」，可視作劉導演以電影手法重塑傳奇的疊羅漢動作，這段表演自此成為舞獅技藝展現的最高峰。最後一幕劉家輝與王龍威在窄巷內決鬥，這段長約七分鐘的打戲被奉為劉家良編排過最出色的武打片段之一，可以說，他把功夫元素提煉昇華至藝術的境界。該幕經典片段至今依然為後人提供恆常參考以及源源不絕的靈感。

Martial Club (1981)

Martial Club is one of Lau Kar Leung’s masterpieces. As with so many of his films, its compelling nature derives from a seamless combination of realism, nostalgia and make-believe. Set in the by-gone days of late Qing Guangzhou, Martial Club evokes a golden era when intense, febrile interactions between northern and southern martial arts in the bustling commercial hub of Guangzhou city gave birth to many of the Lingnan kung fu styles we know today.

The elaborate lion dance scene in the beginning of the film is directly taken out of a chapter from Guangzhou’s history, and refers to the famed stacked-pyramid lion dance performance, which was regarded as the peak – unsurpassed since – of lion dance.The finale, a seven-minute boxing duel between Gordon Liu and Johnny Wang (Wang Lung Wei) in a narrow alley, is often hailed as the greatest fight scene choreographed by Lau Kar Leung, who truly elevated kung fu movements into a rarefied art form. This scene continues to be a constant source of reference and inspiration.

片名：《五郎八卦棍》
上映年份：1983年

劉家良導演憑此片獲1985年香港電影節最佳動作設計提名。此片在劉家良的作品中屬罕見悲壯風格。故事改編自民間傳說，講述宋代楊家將慘遭大將軍潘美滅門，惟五郎、六郎成功逃出。

八卦棍既為南派武術中最精湛的棍種之一，同時亦象徵佛家的和平主義。片中有一段精彩的練功片段，就是要求僧人拔去木狼的牙，此舉是為了突顯即使對方是敵人也不得殺生的道理，也預示了最後一場打戲——此幕雖以兇殘著稱，但當中功夫技巧高超，動作如芭蕾舞步般美妙，設計得相當精巧。劉家良本身是一位洪家拳大師，在戲中表現也令人難忘。他在其中一幕飾演獵人，與劉家輝飾演的楊五郎一起戰鬥，最終更為他犧牲。

The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter (1983)

Lau Kar Leung was nominated for Best Action Choreography at the 1985 Hong Kong Film Awards for his work on this film, which was also released as The Invincible Pole Fighter outside of Hong Kong.This unusually dark film is based on a legend of a Song dynasty-era massacre of the Yang family by General Pan Mei, from which only two of the family's males (the fifth and sixth brothers) managed to escape.

The Eight Trigram pole-fighting techniques are a famous pole-fighting form in Hung Kuen, and are demonstrated throughout in magnificently choreographed scenes. The pole-staff, a one of the best-known martial arts weapons, is deployed as a symbol of Buddhist pacifist values. In one key training sequence a wooden wolf is “de-fanged” by the monks to demonstrate the importance of not killing one’s enemies, a lesson which foreshadows the film’s infamous final fight scene. Lau Kar Leung (a world-class Hung Gar master himself) makes a memorable appearance as a hunter in one scene, fighting against and alongside - and finally sacrificing himself for - Gordon Liu’s character.