TAIPEI • Jimmy Wang Yu once slayed box-office opponents as the One-Armed Swordsman (1967) on screen.
The actor went on to introduce the martial arts genre of movies with The Chinese Boxer (1970).
For his ground-breaking efforts, Yu, now 76, will be honoured with a lifetime achievement prize on Nov 23 at the Golden Horse Awards – considered the Oscars of the Chinese movie world.
The focustaiwan portal quoted Lee Ang, who headed the event’s executive committee last year, as saying: “His self-starred and directed movie The Chinese Boxer started the genre of martial arts films even before Bruce Lee, inspiring many followers and even people around the world.”
Yu is no stranger at the Golden Horse event. After suffering a mild stroke in 2011, he resumed working and won acting nominations for his roles in Wu Xia (2011) and Soul (2013).
His lifetime achievement accolade will please one fan especially – Hollywood director Quentin Tarantino, who listed The Chinese Boxer as one of the movies that has influenced his style.
