It was a comedy, reimagining the Cantonese folk hero Wong Fei-hung as a young layabout who manages to turn booze into a winning blow when face to face with any opponent.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Drunken Master turned Jackie Chan into a global brand
1978 was the year "Drunken Master” was released, coming out in October of that year, to start Jackie Chan’s rise to the top of the Martial Arts food chain.
The drunken master
"Drunken Master" was directed by a young Yuen Woo-ping, when he was also a nobody, so it was not only a breakthrough movie for Jackie Chan.
Before this movie, Chan was a former Bruce Lee stunt double who was slowly making his name in Hong Kong and abroad.
It was a funny movie
Pulse
ADVERTISEMENT
"Drunken Master" changed everything, quickening Chan’s rise and reinventing Wong Fei-hung, the drunken master, for a new generation.
The movie did so well that many have argued that if there was no "Drunken Master," there would be no "Police Story." And so, Chan would never have reached the phenomenal heights he has reached today courtesy of both movies.
Chan’s early career
When Chan entered started out in the movie industry, Bruce Lee was the main man on the silver screen. He was an absolute legend who managed to conquer the world of film with a mixture of sheer charisma and excellent fight choreography.
Chan was one of Lee's many stunt doubles, playing small roles in “Fists of Fury” and in Lee’s biggest movie to date, "Enter the Dragon."
ADVERTISEMENT
After Lee died, director Lo Wei wanted Chan to be Lee’s successor.
Bruce Lee
Pulse
Lo is credited for discovering both stars, Lee and Chan. However, Lo Wei’s insistence on Chan being a Bruce Lee clone did not sit well with Chan.
"I had a different style to Bruce, my own style, so that wasn't working, and I was looking to make a change,” Chan revealed.
Chan got his break in this direction when Lo Wei loaned him to the production company Seasonal Films. It was there that he met Yuen Woo-ping.
ADVERTISEMENT
Unlike Lo Wei, Yuen had other plans for Chan suggesting a more comedic path for him.
Yuen's directorial debut, "Snake in the Eagle's Shadow”, was stab in this direction.
So High, the teacher
Pulse
While "Drunken Master" was positioned as a spiritual sequel to "Snake in the Eagle's Shadow," it held up well in its own right and somewhat took a whole different direction.
After it became a big hit, roles started falling on Chan’s lap.
ADVERTISEMENT
To date, Chan has over 126 movies under his belt and that’s largely because he stepped out of Bruce Lee’s long shadow and into shadow of the Drunken Master.
ADVERTISEMENT
Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:
Email: news@pulselive.co.ke