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A Touch of Zen poster

Movies that feel likeA Touch of Zen (1970)

Yang Hui-zhen, a mysterious princess on the run from corrupt government officials, is joined in her endeavors by skilled Buddhist monks and an unambitious painter named Gu Sheng-zhai.

If you loved A Touch of Zen, the closest films we have are Come Drink with Me (1966), A Chinese Ghost Story (1987) and Highlander (1986). All three share A Touch of Zen's kinetic feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is The Five Venoms (1978).

🍅 97% Rotten Tomatoes★ 7.5 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. King Hukineticepicdreamlike
11 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · HBO Max · Amazon Prime Video

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If A Touch of Zen hit the spot, these will too

Come Drink with Me poster
Come Drink with Me
1966 · dir. King Hu
🍅 100%★ 6.9action · adventure

The same hand behind both of them: King Hu

The difference: Takes it somewhere less dreamlike than A Touch of Zen does

Golden Sparrow is a fighter-for-hire who has been contracted by the local government to retrieve the governor's kidnapped son. Holding him is a group of rebels who are demanding that their leader be released from prison in return for the captured son. After a brief encounter with the gang at a local restaurant, Golden Sparrow is joined by an inebriated wanderer Drunken Cat who aids her in her mission.

A Chinese Ghost Story poster
A Chinese Ghost Story
1987 · dir. Tony Ching Siu-Tung
🍅 70%★ 7.3fantasy · actionPrime Video

Kinetic and dreamlike in the same breath

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

A naïve young tax collector for the imperial government winds up spending the night in a haunted temple. There he falls in love with a beautiful woman who, unfortunately, is dead. With the aid of a powerful Daoist Swordsman, he must defeat undead hordes, overcome a sinister Tree Demoness, and descend to the pits of hell, to fight for the spirit he loves.

Highlander poster
Highlander
1986 · dir. Russell Mulcahy
🍅 70%★ 7adventure · action · fantasyPrime VideoPeacock

Common ground: martial arts

He fought his first battle on the Scottish Highlands in 1536. He will fight his greatest battle on the streets of New York City in 1986. His name is Connor MacLeod. He is immortal.

Conan the Barbarian poster
Conan the Barbarian
1982 · dir. John Milius
🍅 68%★ 6.9adventure · fantasy · actionNetflix

Both lean on scale more than on action

A horde of rampaging warriors massacre the parents of young Conan and enslave the young child for years on The Wheel of Pain. As the sole survivor of the childhood massacre, Conan is released from slavery and taught the ancient arts of fighting. Transforming himself into a killing machine, Conan travels into the wilderness to seek vengeance on Thulsa Doom, the man responsible for killing his family. In the wilderness, Conan takes up with the thieves Valeria and Subotai. The group comes upon King Osric, who wants the trio of warriors to help rescue his daughter who has joined Doom in the hills.

A Writer's Odyssey poster
A Writer's Odyssey
2021 · dir. Lu Yang
🍅 93%★ 6.2fantasy · action · adventure

Adventure built on momentum, twice over

The difference: Sits closer to drama than A Touch of Zen does

Lu Kongwen is the author of a fantasy novel series following a heroic teenager, also named Kongwen, on a quest to end the tyrannical rule of Lord Redmane, under the guidance of a Black Armor. But through a strange twist of fate, the fantasy world of the novel begins to impact life in the real world, leading Guan Ning to accept a mission from Tu Ling to kill the author.

The Five Venoms poster
The Five Venoms
1978 · dir. Chang Cheh
🍅 80%★ 7action · drama · mystery

The same preoccupation in both: martial arts

The difference: Leans harder into drama than A Touch of Zen does

A dying master sends his last student to check up on five former pupils, who each know a special style of kung-fu.

Dragon Blade poster
Dragon Blade
2015 · dir. Daniel Lee
🍅 38%★ 5.9adventure · history · action

Epic fantasy in both cases

The difference: Made in the 2010s, in a different era of the craft

Huo An, the commander of the Protection Squad of the Western Regions, was framed by evil forces and becomes enslaved. On the other hand, a Roman general escapes to China after rescuing the Prince. The heroic duo meet in the Western Desert and a thrilling story unfolds.

Upon the Magic Roads poster
Upon the Magic Roads
2021 · dir. Oleg Pogodin
★ 5.7adventure · fantasy

Adventure with a pulse of dream logic, in both cases

Romantic John the Fool and his friend Foal set out on a series of unpredictable adventures in different magical worlds. The two buddies will have to outsmart an evil tyrant king, catch the firebird, and find John’s true love.

Reign of Fire poster
Reign of Fire
2002 · dir. Rob Bowman
🍅 42%★ 6.2adventure · action · fantasyPrime Video

Kinetic action, and it commits to that

In post-apocalyptic England, an American volunteer and a British survivor team up to fight off a brood of fire-breathing dragons seeking to return to global dominance after centuries of rest underground. The Brit—leading a clan of survivors to hunt down the King of the Dragons—has much at stake: his mother was killed by a dragon, but his love is still alive.

Mortal Kombat II poster
Mortal Kombat II
2026 · dir. Simon McQuoid
🍅 64%★ 6.3action · fantasy · adventureMax

Another one that scratches it

The fan favorite champions—now joined by Johnny Cage himself—are pitted against one another in the ultimate, no-holds barred, gory battle to defeat the dark rule of Shao Kahn that threatens the very existence of the Earthrealm and its defenders.

Green Snake poster
Green Snake
2021 · dir. Amp Wong
★ 6.8animation · fantasy · actionNetflix

Dreamlike action, and it commits to that

While trying to free her sister from Fahai's clutches, Xiao Qing winds up in a dystopian city and meets a mysterious man who can't recall his past life.

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin poster
The 36th Chamber of Shaolin
1978 · dir. Lau Kar-leung
🍅 83%★ 7.6action · adventurePrime Video

Adventure approached the same way

During the Qing Dynasty, a fishmonger is killed by the reigning Manchu government for supporting the anti-government movement; his son manages to escape to Shaolin Temple, where he plans to learn its secretive brand of martial arts to seek revenge.

In the mood for more kinetic?

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The best-reviewed films that share A Touch of Zen’s defining feeling.