Bamboo

There are two sides to any great fight and when the dust settles, the winner is only as good as the opponent he defeated. In honor of the villains who helped elevate their film’s hero, we here at Bamboo decided to take a look at some of the most bad-ass martial arts movie villains ever to grace the silver screen.

 

10. Dae Han — Best of the Best

Without the eye-patch Dae Han probably doesn’t quite squeak his way onto the list. But, since eye-patches are incredibly hardcore, we’ll ignore his redemptive ending and the fact that he actually fights alongside the good guys in BOTB2 and award him the number ten slot.

 

9. Dude with Mutton Chops (Atilla) — Lionheart

When you see this mutton-chopped monstrosity it isn’t hard to understand why the underground fight promoter and even Van Damme’s own “friend” would bet against him. Sure, it turns out to be the “wrong bet.” But you kind of get the feeling that this hulking beast of a man could crush the muscles from Brussels without even breaking a sweat.

 

8. Dolph Lundgren — Universal Soldier

The only villain accessory more hardcore than an eye-patch is a necklace made out of human ears. And although Dolph relies heavily on artillery throughout the movie, he does more than his fair share of unassisted ass kicking.

 

7. Terry Silver and Mike Barnes — Karate Kid III

Probably the corniest of the villains on this list, but still noteworthy for their complete commitment to not just beating Daniel into physical submission, but emotionally destroying him as well. Between millionaire Terry Silver and the “Bad Boy of Karate” Mike Barnes, Daniel’s life is pretty much non-stop torment through the entirety of the film. They might not be the biggest bad-asses on the list, but they’re easily the biggest pricks.

 

6. Hwang In Shik — The Young Master and Dragon Lord

A genuine Grandmaster of Hapkido, Hwang In Shik faced off against Jackie Chan in two climactic battles. But Dragon Lord is probably the more memorable of the two, with his glowing white eye offering a nice contrast to Dae Han’s eye-patch from earlier in the list.

 

5. Tong Po — Kickboxer (1 and 2)

How much of a bad-ass is Tong Po? He paralyzes Van Damme’s brother, rapes Van Damme’s token love interest, and then apparently goes on to shoot and kill Van Damme at some point between parts one and two. As an encore, he spends the whole second film picking on the guy that played Cody in Step by Step. That’s more than enough to legitimize his villainy in our book.

 

4. Sho’nuff — The Last Dragon

“Kiss my Converse” might be one of the best ’80s movie lines ever delivered. And Sho’nuff is most certainly the master. Even if it is a self-proclaimed title.

 

3. Ken Lo — Drunken Master 2

Probably one of the best fight scenes ever put on film, Ken Lo’s showdown with Jackie Chan took four months to film. After the actor who was supposed to be in the scene suffered repeated injuries, Chan’s bodyguard Ken Lo stepped into the role and underwent a grueling training schedule so he would be enough of a bad-ass just to keep up.

 

2. Chuck Norris — Way of the Dragon

Before you rattle off about twenty Chuck Norris facts without even batting an eye, remember that he was Colt in Way of the Dragon. Watching him in this role is like watching an alien burst forth from its host’s stomach, let out a triumphant screech, and then skitter off to unleash havoc on all who dare cross its path. Also, later in Norris’ career he decides to go around telling children they have AIDS (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdsTUcuD7YA&feature=related), so you can add that to the mix.

 

1. Bolo Yeung — Everything. Ever.

Even though he’s now seventy-years-old, you get the impression Bolo Yeung could pretty much destroy you. His bad-ass villainy sustained itself for over 30 years, and from Enter the Dragon to Bloodsport you could never really wrap your head around how he’d ever actually lose a fight.

 

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