Kung Fu Film Nights
We’re celebrating the greatest hits (pun intended!) of Hong Kong martial arts films from the 1970s until today with a series of outdoor movie nights!
Featuring groundbreaking performances by superstars Bruce Lee, Jet Li, and Jackie Chan; iconic fight scenes by choreographers including Yuen Woo-Ping; and direction by Hong Kong masters Tsui Hark and Wong Kar-Wai, these are crowd-pleasing blockbusters of the highest caliber.
Bring your own lawn chairs, blankets, and snacks to enjoy the show!
Enjoy complimentary refreshments (with proof of ID) from Asahi Beer. Additional food, drinks, and snacks will be available for sale at each screening.
Friday, April 8, 2022: Enter the Dragon
1973, 102 minutes
Director: Robert Clouse | Starring: Bruce Lee, Jim Kelly, John Saxon, Angela Mao Ying | Language: Cantonese and English with English subtitles
Bruce Lee explodes onto the screen in the film that rocketed him to international superstardom. Recruited by an intelligence agency, martial arts student Lee participates in a brutal tournament at a remote island fortress in an attempt to gather enough evidence to convict the international drug-trafficker responsible for the murder of Lee’s sister (Angela Mao Ying). In the now classic fight-to-the-death finish, two men enter a mirrored maze, but only one will exit...
Friday, May 13, 2022: The Grandmaster
2013, 108 minutes
Director: Wong Kar-Wai | Starring: Tony Leung, Zhang Ziyi, Zhang Jin, Chang Chen | Language: In Mandarin and Cantonese with English subtitles
Director Wong Kar-Wai crafts a heart-stopping action epic inspired by the life and times of the legendary kung fu master, Ip Man (Tony Leung). The story spans the tumultuous Republican era that followed the fall of China’s last dynasty: a time of chaos, divided loyalties, and war, but also the golden age of Chinese martial arts. Filmed in a range of stunning locations that include the snow-swept landscapes of Northeast China and the country’s subtropical South, The Grandmaster features exquisitely staged action by Yuen Woo-Ping and virtuosic performances by Leung and a spellbinding Zhang Ziyi as the fictional Gong Er, Ip’s friend and fellow martial artist.
Friday, May 27, 2022: Once Upon a Time in China
1991, 134 minutes
Director: Tsui Hark | Starring: Jet Li, Yuen Biao, Jacky Cheung Hok Yau, Rosamund Kwan | Language: In Cantonese with English subtitles
4K Digital Restoration
Writer-producer-director Tsui Hark’s sprawling vision of a changing nineteenth-century China begins with this riotously entertaining epic, a blockbuster hit that cemented Jet Li’s status as the greatest martial-arts superstar of his generation. Li displays his stunning, fast-and-fluid fighting style as the legendary martial-arts teacher and doctor Wong Fei-hung, who, with a band of disciples, battles a host of nefarious forces—foreign and local—who are threatening Chinese sovereignty as British and American imperialists encroach upon the Mainland. Once Upon a Time in China’s breathtaking blend of kung fu, comedy, romance, and melodrama climaxes in a whirlwind guns-vs.-fists finale that is also a thrilling affirmation of Chinese cultural identity.
Friday, June 17, 2022: Police Story
1985, 100 minutes
Director: Jackie Chan | Starring: Jackie Chan, Brigitte Lin, Maggie Cheung | Language: In Cantonese with English subtitles
4K Digital Restoration
The jaw-dropping set pieces fly fast and furious in Jackie Chan’s breathtakingly inventive martial-arts comedy, a smash hit that made him a worldwide icon of daredevil action spectacle. The director/star/one-man stunt machine plays Ka-Kui, a Hong Kong police inspector who goes rogue to bring down a drug kingpin and protect the case’s star witness (Chinese cinema legend Brigitte Lin) from retribution. Packed wall-to-wall with charmingly goofball slapstick and astoundingly acrobatic fight choreography—including an epic shopping-mall melee of flying fists and shattered glass—Police Story set a new standard for rock-’em-sock-’em mayhem that would influence a generation of filmmakers from Hong Kong to Hollywood.
Performing Arts and Culture programs at Asia Society Texas are presented by Syamal and Susmita Poddar. Major support comes from Nancy C. Allen, Chinhui Juhn and Eddie Allen, the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance, Houston Endowment, and The Brown Foundation Inc. Generous funding also provided by AARP, The Anchorage Foundation of Texas, The Clayton Fund, and Miller Theatre Advisory Board. Additional support provided by the Wortham Foundation, Texas Commission on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, United Airlines, and through contributions from the Friends of Asia Society, a dedicated group of individuals and organizations committed to bringing exceptional programming and exhibitions to Asia Society Texas Center.
Performing Arts and Culture Presenting Sponsors
Syamal and Susmita Poddar
Official Airline Sponsor
Performing Arts and Culture Program Sponsors
Program Sponsor
About Asia Society Texas
Asia Society Texas believes in the strength and beauty of diverse perspectives and people. As an educational institution, we advance cultural exchange by celebrating the vibrant diversity of Asia, inspiring empathy, and fostering a better understanding of our interconnected world. Spanning the fields of arts, business, culture, education, and policy, our programming is rooted in the educational and cultural development of our community — trusting in the power of art, dialogue, and ideas to combat bias and build a more inclusive society.