You’ve watched the beginner picks. Now you want martial arts movies that still deliver on choreography, but also give you stronger characters, better drama, and stories that hit harder. This is the “level up” list for cinephiles who don’t want fights pasted on top of a weak plot.
Last Updated: 2025-12-28
Best for: Viewers who want martial arts films with real narrative weight and action that’s still clear and satisfying
Common cinephile pain points this list solves: Great fights, weak story / Overlong runtimes / Repetitive tournament plots / Action that doesn’t change the character
Related Lists: Martial Arts Movies for Beginners: The Best First Watches / Must-Watch Martial Arts Classics That Built the Genre / Underrated Martial Arts Gems with Insane Choreography / For Pros: Martial Arts Films with Elite Staging, Rhythm, and Camera Work
How to “level up” martial arts viewing
At this stage, look for fight scenes that reveal character: fear, pride, patience, rage, control. When the choreography tells you who someone is, the movie stops being “just fights” and becomes cinema.
10 martial arts movies with better story and better fights
1. The Raid 2 (2014) 🇮🇩
Director/Creator: Gareth Evans
Plot: An undercover cop enters a powerful crime family, and his mission pulls him into a brutal underworld war where loyalty is always a setup.
IMDb Rating: 7.9/10
Where to Watch: Netflix (Availability varies) / Prime Video (Rent/Buy)
Why it’s the next step: Bigger story, bigger world, and fights staged with insane variety. It’s martial arts action with crime-epic ambition—and the pacing still doesn’t let go.
2. Hero (2002) 🇨🇳
Director/Creator: Zhang Yimou
Plot: A warrior tells the story of defeating assassins, but each retelling changes the truth—turning the film into a shifting puzzle about power, unity, and sacrifice.
IMDb Rating: 7.9/10
Where to Watch: Prime Video (Rent/Buy) / Apple TV (Rent/Buy) (Availability varies by region)
Why it’s the next step: It’s action as storytelling. The fights aren’t just fights—they’re different “versions” of emotion and meaning, told through color, rhythm, and mythic scale.
3. A Better Tomorrow (1986) 🇭🇰
Director/Creator: John Woo
Plot: Two brothers are split by crime and duty, and loyalty becomes impossible when the past comes crashing into the present with guns drawn.
IMDb Rating: 7.4/10
Where to Watch: Criterion Channel (Availability varies) / Prime Video (Rent/Buy)
Why it’s the next step: This is where “heroic bloodshed” becomes emotional. The action hits because it’s tied to brotherhood, guilt, and honor—not just spectacle.
4. The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978) 🇭🇰
Director/Creator: Lau Kar-leung
Plot: A young man trains at Shaolin to gain the skills to fight oppression, discovering discipline through a legendary series of training challenges.
IMDb Rating: 7.6/10
Where to Watch: Prime Video (Rent/Buy) / Apple TV (Rent/Buy) (Availability varies by region)
Why it’s the next step: It’s the gold standard for training arcs—clear progression, real technique, and payoff that feels earned instead of rushed.
5. Drunken Master II (1994) 🇭🇰
Director/Creator: Lau Kar-leung
Plot: A fighter caught between family expectations and national treasure theft is forced into escalating battles that test skill, control, and identity.
IMDb Rating: 7.5/10
Where to Watch: Prime Video (Rent/Buy) / Apple TV (Rent/Buy)
Why it’s the next step: The choreography is top-tier, but what really sells it is how the fights grow in difficulty and stakes—each one feels like a level you survived, not a routine you watched.
6. Warrior (2011) 🇺🇸
Director/Creator: Gavin O’Connor
Plot: Two estranged brothers enter an MMA tournament for different reasons, and the fights become the only language they have left to speak.
IMDb Rating: 8.1/10
Where to Watch: Max (Availability varies) / Prime Video (Rent/Buy)
Why it’s the next step: Even if you don’t usually watch sports dramas, the emotional build makes every fight feel personal. It’s not about who wins—it’s about what winning costs.
7. The Night Comes for Us (2018) 🇮🇩
Director/Creator: Timo Tjahjanto
Plot: An enforcer spares a girl during a massacre and becomes a target, triggering a relentless city-wide hunt through gangs and assassins.
IMDb Rating: 7.0/10
Where to Watch: Netflix
Why it’s the next step: This is extreme cinema—brutal, fast, and committed. It’s for when you want choreography with consequences and violence that feels like it has weight.
8. The Grandmaster (2013) 🇭🇰🇨🇳
Director/Creator: Wong Kar-wai
Plot: A martial arts master’s life intersects with rivals and lost loves as history reshapes the world around them, turning skill into memory and regret.
IMDb Rating: 6.5/10
Where to Watch: Prime Video (Rent/Buy) / Apple TV (Rent/Buy) (Availability varies by region)
Why it’s the next step: It’s martial arts filmed like romance and poetry. The fights are beautiful, but the real hit is the mood—like watching history move through bodies and time.
9. Shaolin Soccer (2001) 🇭🇰
Director/Creator: Stephen Chow
Plot: A washed-up player teams up with kung fu brothers to bring martial arts into soccer, turning matches into wild, heartfelt chaos.
IMDb Rating: 7.3/10
Where to Watch: Prime Video (Rent/Buy) / Apple TV (Rent/Buy)
Why it’s the next step: It’s comedy with real craft behind it. The pacing, setups, and visual payoffs are so tight that it works even if you’re not a “kung fu comedy” person.
10. Fist of Legend (1994) 🇭🇰
Director/Creator: Gordon Chan
Plot: A martial artist returns to his school and finds it shattered by violence and politics, leading to a fight for honor against rivals and oppressors.
IMDb Rating: 7.2/10
Where to Watch: Prime Video (Rent/Buy) / Apple TV (Rent/Buy) (Availability varies by region)
Why it’s the next step: The fights are clean, fast, and beautifully readable—exactly the kind of choreography that converts people into lifelong martial arts fans.
What to watch next
If you want the foundational films that shaped everything, go to: Must-Watch Martial Arts Classics That Built the Genre. If you want deep cuts, go to: Underrated Martial Arts Gems with Insane Choreography.