Check out this funny video from Wong Fu Productions. It deals with kung fu movies, psychological and physical posturing, stereotypes and the distortions created by popular media images — in a humorous way. Watch it to the end.
From a martial arts perspective, this satire expresses a modern fighter’s skepticism on the practicality of stylized techniques. Despite the supremacy of flowery kung fu moves in chop socky films, the realism is not evident in MMA competitions, the testing ground from the popular sporting view of martial arts. Are flowery techniques found in kung fu, karate, tae kwon do bullshit?
Yes, if one is not initiated to the secrets of form. The traditional purist method that teaches the literal expression of stylized movements for street fighting without adapting them for modern application is outdated. Besides being inefficient, it’s dangerous.
At TanDao we are proponents of real fighting and we also preserve forms. A contradiction? To the initiated, forms are physical books of knowledge that imparts martial science. All real fighting strategies, tactics and biomechanical efficiency are encoded in the stylized movement. Evolving Martial Artists seek the hidden language behind stylized moves to enhance real fighting.
Props to our twitter buddy, Paul Ricketts, for showing us the video. You can follow Paul on twitter @sifu33 and, for more funny videos, visit Wong Fu Productions. Enjoy!
If you want to learn realistic Shaolin animal techniques for street defense, check out our Tandao Tiger Combat book and Tiger Claw DVD and video download.
Keep practicing and exploring,
Lawrence Tan
Tags: comedy, kung fu, lawrence tan, Martial Arts, pual ricketts, tandao, wong fu productions
