The science of fight choreography in martial arts films has countless different variations, off-shoots, and hybrid approaches. The approach taken to the final showdown between hero and villain is fundamentally different between a fight scene involving the protagonist fighting off a large group of adversaries.
The same goes for fight scenes involving weapons, fight scenes in tight corridors, fight scenes involving superpowers or wire-fu, and so on and so forth. Under the vast umbrella of different types of martial arts movie fights also lies another very specific variation, that being the two-on-one fight scene.
The concept itself is pretty self-explanatory, with one character fighting against two determined opponents, often as the thunderous finale to a martial arts flick. A two-on-one fight scene can either pit the hero or heroine against two villains, or two protagonists against one especially formidable evildoer, but in both cases, the action of two-on-one fight scenes is naturally ramped up to the highest degree possible.
And, of course, with a lead-in like that, that means it’s time for another KFK top 10 list, dear readers. So, ready yourself for a tornado of two-on-one action – as here, in descending order, are the Top 10 Two-on-One Martial Arts Movie Fight Scenes!
10. Jackie Chan & Mars vs. Hwang Ing-shik – Dragon Lord
Jackie Chan movies from the ‘80s are some of his most energetic, fast-paced, and stunt-laden, along with having some of his best fight scenes, and the finale of 1982’s “Dragon Lord” is all of the above in a tornado of a two-on-one showdown.
Jackie and Mars take on legendary Hapkido master Hwang Ing-shik in a 9-minute smackdown in which the villain completely dominates for the bulk of the fight, with Jackie and Mars repeatedly being tossed from the second floor to the bottom despite their best efforts to win.
As if that wasn’t enough to make the final showdown of “Dragon Lord” even more of a two-on-one great, it also has even more historical significance thanks to its influence on Gareth Evans’ “The Raid: Redemption”, with Evans basing the movie’s two-on-one showdown on that of “Dragon Lord” – meaning the world technically has “Dragon Lord” to thank for not just one but two of the best two-on-one fight sequences ever!
9. John Wick vs. Two Shinobi Enemies – John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum
The Baba Yaga’s third big-screen tale throws enemies his way from every direction right from the start, and two of the standout antagonists of “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” just happen to be veterans of “The Raid” movies, namely Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman.
Portraying a nameless pair of students of the movie’s Shinobi villain Zero (Mark Dacascos), Yayan and Cecep bring their Silat skills and a pair of kerambit blades to take down John Wick in one of the move’s highlight fight scenes, the duo cheerfully proclaiming their fandom and admiration of John Wick even as they are out to destroy him.
With Yayan and Cecep having helped make “The Raid” movies modern action classics as each movie’s respective final boss, the “John Wick” franchise can thankfully include them in its roster of its best fight scenes.
8. Rama vs. Baseball Bat Man & Hammer Girl – The Raid 2
“The Raid 2” is an exercise in escalation on every level from its classic predecessor, right down to having larger-than-life antagonists like Baseball Bat Man (Very Tri Yulisman) and Hammer Girl (Julie Estelle) for Iko Uwais’ Rama to tango with.
Rama finally does go head-to-head with the sibling assassin duo in the penultimate fight of “The Raid 2”, with the danger of bodily harm for our hero higher than ever as he faces the two unarmed while they wield their eponymous melee weapons.
Two-on-one fight scenes seldom carry the distinction of throwing Silat in a blender with tools normally for sports and construction work, which only makes Rama’s duel with Baseball Bat Man and Hammer Girl that much more of an all-timer.
7. Tony Jaa & Iko Uwais vs. Scott Adkins – Triple Threat
“Triple Threat” is the kind of martial arts flick action movie lovers dream of for years and that once in a while (and thankfully with much greater frequency these days) finally comes along, an assembly of action stars for 95 minutes of butt-kicking.
Tony Jaa, Iko Uwais, and Scott Adkins are just three of the martial arts movie titans on-hand for Jesse Johnson’s “Triple Threat”, and the movie does not disappoint in Scott’s two-on-one rodeo against Tony and Iko, just one of the many long-awaited fight scene combos of action movie regency in “Triple Threat”.
The battle of kicks, knees, and elbows on display is just a blast to take in, and with the great Tim Man in the fight choreographer’s seat, Tony Jaa and Iko Uwais taking on Scott Adkins is a feast entirely on its own with plenty more where it came from in “Triple Threat”.
6. Yuda vs. Luc & Ratger – Merantau
Three years before breaking out with “The Raid”, Iko Uwais and Gareth Evans already flexed their muscles with their cinematic debut “Merantau”, which casts Iko as a young man venturing to Jakarta and finding himself battling a human trafficking ring.
Iko’s Yuda battles one opponent after another in his efforts to save a group of kidnapped women, and his quest eventually brings him up against the trafficking ring’s sinister leaders Luc (Mads Koudal) and Ratger (Lohan Buson), who are both just as skilled in martial arts as Yuda.
For being a first-time actor and leading man in one fell swoop, Iko makes a fantastic debut as an underdog hero facing impossible odds, and the final smackdown of “Merantau” is a masterful two-on-one final fight that set the stage for Silat exploding in cinematic popularity.
The very emotional ending of “Merantau” also adds to the power of the movie’s finale, making it an unforgettable battle of two villains being opposed by one selfless hero.
5. The Rooftop Showdown – Who Am I?
An amnesiac Jackie Chan must hold his own against two formidable enemies in the rooftop finale of “Jackie Chan’s Who Am I?”, with one of his opponents being Dutch kicking machine Ron Smoorenburg in his movie debut.
As a pure fight scene, the finale of “Who Am I?” is still one of the best sequences of pure, grounded martial arts combat in Jackie’s career, with the sequence even having three distinct phases of Jackie’s first opponent Kwan Yung primarily attacking with fists, the second with feet, before the duo team-up in round three.
Ron’s fluid and swift kicks are absolutely phenomenal in the final fight of “Who Am I?”, and are an essential component of why the fight sequence and the movie itself remain so timeless.
Fans of Hong Kong action movies will also forever hold “Who Am I?” with great reverence due to the movie being co-directed by Jackie and the late great Benny Chan – one of the greatest action filmmakers in Hong Kong history – while the late Jackie Chan Stunt Team alumni Brad Allan also briefly doubles Ron in one section of the fight, as well.
4. Liu Jian vs. The Twins – Kiss of the Dragon
Jet Li wanted to dial back on the wire-fu seen in his 2000 Hollywood leading man debut “Romeo Must Die” with his next Western movie, which led to the more “Fist of Legend”-esque action of 2001’s electrifying “Kiss of the Dragon”.
Even better, the Parisian-set “Kiss of the Dragon” caps off its amazing action scenes, overseen by Jet Li’s close collaborator Corey Yuen, with a two-on-one showdown of Li’s cop protagonist Liu Jian against two high-kicking twins, played by Cyril Raffaelli and Dider Azouli.
Cyril later went on to bring his martial arts and parkour skills in equal measure to the “District 13” movies, and his phenomenal kicks and agility are every bit on the level of Jet Li’s legendary Wushu skills.
It’s also fun to see Liu Jian use the environment of the police office to take his opponent’s kicks out of the equation, with Liu’s thinking cap also on in his methodology to defeat the much larger of the two twins, as well.
3. Chatchai & Chi-kit vs. Ko Chun – SPL 2: A Time for Consequences
The finale of Cheang Poi-soung’s “SPL 2: A Time for Consequences” is about as wild and enthralling as a final showdown can get – it’s so good, in fact, that it ends with two heroes taking down the villains instead of one, with the big boss at the top being more than prepared to hold his own.
“SPL 2” kicks off its finale with Tony Jaa’s Chatchai and Wu Jing’s Chi-kit storming the villains’ fortress and battling an entire legion of henchmen before their battle royale with the icily merciless Ko Chun (Max Zhang).
Even up against two opponents with such determination, Max Zhang embodies an almost casual level of villainous physicality in Ko Chun, sailing from tornado kicking one enemy to another and his face never betraying any emotion other than mild annoyance that he has to deal with two heroes.
It’s only fitting, then, that Tony Jaa and Wu Jing, should be the exact opposite, fierce and undaunted as they coordinate their Muay Thai-Wushu tandem assault with the power that only enemies-turned-allies can bring.
The finale of “SPL 2” is simply what fans of Hong Kong and Thai martial arts films alike live for, and the movie’s two-on-one showdown of Tony Jaa, Wu Jing, and Max Zhang is easily among the best to come out of either territory in the 21st century.
2. Boyka vs. The Ozarov Brothers – Boyka: Undisputed
Fighting opponents with different strengths and fighting skills is all in a day’s work for The Most Complete Fighter in the World, and Yuri Boyka faces two enemies who bring plenty of both in the two-on-one fight of “Boyka: Undisputed”.
Facing the formidable Ozarov brothers (played by the movie’s fight choreographer Tim Man and Jackie Chan Stunt Team member Andy Long Nguyen), Boyka’s fighting for far more than an MMA title this time, but for the literal freedom of Alma (Teodora Duhovnikova) after Boyka inadvertently killed her husband in an earlier fight.
Boyka’s newfound selflessness adds a new level of heroism to his ring fights in “Boyka: Undisputed”, while his two-on-one showdown with the Ozarov brothers brings all the flashy MMA power fans have come to expect from the “Undisputed” franchise.
Boyka’s an expectedly regular presence on most Top 10 lists relating to martial arts films, so it’s only to be expected that he’s on one for two-on-one fights, as well.
…And in at number 1 is…
Rama & Andi vs. Mad Dog – The Raid: Redemption
Gareth Evans has long since proven himself one of the greatest action filmmakers of the 21st century, and if this list is proof of anything regarding his talent in that arena, it’s that Mr. Evans loves a good two-on-one martial arts fight scene.
This is a point he emphasized with impeccable clarity in the finale of his 2012 modern classic “The Raid: Redemption” with the final showdown of Iko Uwais’ Rama and Donny Alamsayah’s Andi against the unstoppably ruthless Mad Dog.
The finale of “The Raid” is visual storytelling at its finest – two estranged brothers reunited by chance, still worlds apart with one a cop and the other a criminal, but who must finally set aside their differences to defeat an enemy determined to destroy them.
With that as its foundation, the finale “The Raid” is a two-on-one fight sequence done to absolute perfection.
The aforementioned influence of the final fight of “Dragon Lord” is palpable in how much Yayan Ruhian’s Mad Dog completely dominates his two determined opponents, and “The Raid” nails its point home that even Rama and Andi’s combined skills are just barely enough to grab the narrowest of victories over Mad Dog.
For all the praise “The Raid” has rightly received as one of the greatest martial arts films ever made, its finale deserves every bit the individualized adulation as the Greatest Two-on-One Martial Arts Movie Fight Scene…ever!
