Talk:Gun fu

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Feng Shui

Feng shui is a role playing game that has it, its sort of a action movie roleplaying game and I think this article should make reference to it as it is the only place I have actually seen the expression Gun fu used. Lol buffyverse, how lame.

Akimbo

In computer games, these moves are known as Akimbo.

I removed this statement because it is simply not true. In gaming and action movie parlance, "akimbo" is only used to describe two identical weapons, one wielded in each hand. It may be a component of "gun fu", but it is itself only one "technique", not a set of them. TaintedMustard 18:37, 29 January 2006 (UTC)

'''Gun Fu Fighting Style'''

In the Pacific Northwest, Master Isidro Archibeque is a figure larger than life. He has been actively teaching in Western Washington for as long as anyone can remember, and today, though in his 60's, he remains a figure larger than life. "Archie", as he prefers to be called is best know for his mastery of the Iron Hand. His feats have included driving nails through boards, breaking countless bricks, carrying a refrigerator up three flights of steps, penetrating sealed plastic soda bottles with his fingers, breaking rocks, bricks, boulders,...you get the picture! Once, to commemorate one of my promotions, he brought a 12"x12" piece of plywood, 1" inch thick (that's 9 layers of veneer!). It took two hits for him to do the break. I have never seen anyone else even attempt this.

If that were not enough, "Archie" is equally well known for his mastery of pressure points, joint locks, and fighting strategy. His art is a philosophy, requiring that each student return to nature, and develop a personal understanding and awareness of his or her integral package of instincts. His teaching is modeled on the psychology, behavior, and movement of animals...a return to the original inspirations for Martial Arts, as he would say. The name he has given to this philosophy is Gun-Fu, Animal Fighting Styles.

"Archie's" greatest fame came as a teacher to "teachers." Starting in the late 1970's, ranking Black Belts, and senior students from other styles began to seek "Archie" out, many choosing to stay and undergo an apprenticeship with this force of nature. Some of those persons are now recognized masters in their own styles, and freely acknowledge their debt to Master Archibeque. Whether you've heard of him, and want to learn more, or if you're simply curious and would like to take a peek at the pinnacle, relax for a moment and browse through these articles.

For More information on the Gun Fu Fighting Style, Visit http://www.gmagunfu.com http://www.ironcrane.com

Okay, but that obviously isn't what this article is for, so write a disambiguation page. Unless you're trying to tell us that 'animal fighting styles' incorporate firearms; I know that's exactly the style I'd pick to fight animals... Poinete, ede ede; tachu tachu! (talk) 23:33, 21 June 2008 (UTC)

Archibeque's Gun Fu existed well before Hollywood and movie goers bastardized the name. It is a full on self defense system that is named Gun Fu, and it isn't silver screen dramatized flourishes of pistols in a fictional world. ThorGunFu (talk) 16:49, 23 December 2019 (UTC)

mind over matter! Do you belive? 2601:603:5100:4B90:95AB:8E41:38E5:C1EA (talk) 16:25, 6 April 2023 (UTC)

Original Research

I haven't seen much asserting that this actually exists as a distinct, unified style separate from the broader HKBO or just the general action movie stereotypes, and the characterizations of typical activities seem like they're written from personal experience rather than secondary sources, which is classic OR. This article needs sources of some critics who have actually done research that we can cite. Night Gyr 12:32, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

Surely the point of Gun Fu is that it isn't a martial art, but rather a style of cinematic fight choreography that causes gunfighting to resemble a martial art. I agree with the above poster that this seems very subjective and not fact-based.

Regarding Kurt Wimmer and Gun Kata: it is no more a formal martial art than the Jedi are a formal religion; it is simply gun-fu given a more codified and fleshed-out background within a story, without having either any basis in actual real-life fact or any real-world practitioners, past or present, which would be necessary for it to be a formal martial art. It may be that Wimmer will in future use the Gun Kata as a directorial motif much as John Woo has with twin pistols and doves.

Also of note are the factual errors. While I'd consider myself fairly well-versed in both eastern and western action films and in action games, I can't think of any instances of dual-pistol reloading via the sleeves outside of the film Equilibrium, probably because it's impossible from a technical standpoint; clips are not generally heavy enough to fully load into a gun under their own weight, which is why people frequently slap them home once they've placed them most of the way into the gun. It only works in Equilibrium because of the mechanical brackets holding the clips. I'm sure it wasn't a part of Max Payne either. Also, Max Payne had no Uzis, the only SMGs in the game were Ingram M10s.

Josh Quillan 27.05.06

Pushing for a merger (2006) Gun Kata

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section. A summary of the conclusions reached follows.

merged (2009)

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Gun Kata was AfD-merged here in 2009

I suggest mergin this article's content with Gun Kata and reword anything necessary. Gun kata is definitely a more legitimate definition for this than Gun Fu, wich is simple worded to sound like Kung Fu. Gun Fu sounds more like if its chinese art, while Gun kata sounds more like a japanese when there is no difference.

I'm behind you. Merge away. 66.41.66.213 04:35, 13 October 2006 (UTC)

Agree that much of this page should be merged with Gun Kata, the Gun Fu-Animal Fighting Styles pages. Senseibear 16:17, 16 October 2006 (UTC)

Gun-Kata is made up nonsense from Kurt Wimmer, whereas usage of Gun-Fu is more wide-spread and pre-dates it. If anything, Gun-Kata should be merged with Gun-Fu. User:67.70.207.5

Agree with above, Gun Fu has existed since 1986, with dozens and dozens of films using the style. Gun Kata is a fictional term invented in the film Equilibrium (2002), and used once more in Ultraviolet. Its not really notable enough for a page of its own, maybe a line or two in the Gun Fu article. 86.27.129.210 09:52, 7 May 2007 (UTC)

Agree to merge. AxaZon 18:13, 7 May 2007 (UTC)

A merge is sensible but considering the difference in origins more than 'a line or two' on gun-kata would be appropriate. I'd start by copying the whole lot, then trimming down the excess --Nate 09:59, 8 May 2007 (UTC)

Both entries have their problems and while a merge won't fix them trimming gun kata down and inserting it in here (it is after all a formalised form of gun fu) would be a good start. So I supposert merging gun kata -> gun fu. It will then give us a good basis to start addressing the entty's issues. (Emperor 18:31, 8 May 2007 (UTC))

I don't much care for either term and I think that both articles are longer than they should be even post-combination. If someone can come up with a name for this that's neither cutesy nor clumsy (I can't), we should go with that. - Richfife 17:36, 12 May 2007 (UTC)

support merge, Chris 00:27, 2 September 2007 (UTC)

Disagree.

Although Gun-Kata is Gun-Fu, the idea and the term itself was belong to Kurt Wimmer and first developed by the stunt coordinator, Jim Vicker. Gun fu was the term used by the fan and critics and never used by the coreographer themselves while Gun Kata was coined by Kurt Wimmer before Equilibrium production. If Gun-Kata article should be merged, it should be merged into different articles: Kurt Wimmer, Jim Vickers, Equilibrium, Gun fu, and Equilibrium. The only non-Wimmer Gun fu similar to Gun Kata I ever watched was the final fight in Tsui Hark's movie, Time and Tide. Kunderemp 03:58, 16 June 2007 (UTC)

I have to agree with the assessment that the Gun Kata while perhaps an example of Gun Fu, these are not interchangable terms. On the other hand, it does seem possible that the Gun Kata was never really worthy of a distinct entry and it could be completely assimilated into the related articles. There probably is a point where making a new entry for every construct in every work of fiction becomes cumbersome. 70.141.126.66 05:41, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Definitely not interchangeable. Gun Kata refers to a distinct fictional style of martial art. Gun fu is just a broad term that encompasses just about anything fancy with a gun. MikeMurdock 09:56, 17 July 2007 (UTC)

I would say merge gun kata into gun fu. why? because kung fu is an art used to imobilize or disable an enemies martial arts capability. kata is nothing, at all.

rogersmithbigo 01:35, 14 August 2007 (UTC)

• Support merge, Gun Kata is simply one person's (Wimmer's) interpretation of Gun Fu and is not very [[1]] on its own. Plus the Gun Kata article is simply atrocious and is full of [[2]]. --JD79 16:34, 6 September 2007 (UTC)

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The above discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section.

Conspiracy X

02.09.2007 First noted a reference to "Gun Fu" as a fighting style in this RPG, third edition, which came out in 1999. The style was close-quarters fighting, the gun being used as an bludgeon as well as for its usual purpose.

See http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/reviews/rev_1370.html

Early examples

Does anyone know (and would like to add) the earliest examples of gun fu in both games and movies? I believe the first example in games was Marathon 2, where both the shotgun and the pistols were used akimbo. The shotguns were reloaded with that same twirling motion as mentioned in the article but the pistols were just loaded normally.

There are plenty of B&W westerns that feature characters firing two six-shooters "akimbo." Poinete, ede ede; tachu tachu! 22:27, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Gun Bunnies

I would seem to that the Gun Bunny Genre of anime would fit in this article with great examples such as Cowboy Bebop, and Noir. Nvader Geez 04:10, 25 April 2007 (UTC)

quotes around gun fu

hi, the quotes around "gun fu" are there to make clear its not actually an accepted term used to refer to the style of gunplay, its only sometimes used from time and time (a quick google search will show there are no reliable sources calling it gun fu), and its being called that in the article just as a convenient shortcut for "Close-quarters stylized gunplay in film". So i think the quotes should be there. Or alternatively rename the article to Close-quarters stylized gunplay in film! 82.12.241.113 19:41, 7 May 2007 (UTC)

• The article itself is named Gun-fu. Again I see no reason for the quotation marks... that's like closing the door after the horses left. AxaZon 20:09, 7 May 2007 (UTC)
  • the article itself can easily be renamed... 82.9.28.255 20:46, 7 May 2007 (UTC)
  • No quotes. Scare quotes are used by authors to communicate a lack of respect for the subject, which is bad style in Wikipedia. - Richfife 16:44, 12 May 2007 (UTC)
    • There are many uses for quotation marks, only one of which is "scare quotes". Quotation marks do not "communicate a lack of respect". Uncle G 10:01, 13 May 2007 (UTC)

Here's the simple answer to the more lengthy version of the above that was posted at Wikipedia:Village pump (policy), based upon our Wikipedia:Verifiability and Wikipedia:No original research policies: Find reliable sources for this subject and see what they call it. Use that name. We aren't supposed to be adding stuff that isn't supported by sources, or synthesizing what sources say in novel ways. If the rest of the world isn't calling it "gun fu", then Wikipedia should not be doing so either.

Here's a source to start you off: ISBN 074861799X breaks Hollywood's appropriation of Hong Kong action cinema down into three subgenres: "the high-octane gunplay of John Woo and Chow Yun-fat", "the stunt-fulled action-comedy of Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung", and "the 'wire fu' of Tsui Hark, Yuen Wo-Ping, and Jet Li". Uncle G 10:01, 13 May 2007 (UTC)

I don't object to showing "Gun fu" without quote marks. However, I don't yet see a strong enough case for using Gun fu as the title of an article. The requirements of WP:NEO still need to be met. Otherwise you could re-title it "Stylized gunplay in John Woo films" or some such. Within an article with the more verbose name, defining and then using the term "Gun fu" as an abbreviation I think would be acceptable, provided you cite at least one reliable source who uses that term to refer to John-Woo-style gunplay. I don't know the exact requirements for what can be used as a redirect, but having the phrase 'Gun fu' redirect to 'Stylized gunplay in John Woo films' seems harmless. EdJohnston 16:43, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

Gun Fu Vs. Akimbo

I found this article very confusing. It sounds at first like Gun Fu is a term for using firearms as an extention of one's own body while performing martial arts, or modifying martial arts fourms to incorperate firearms. However, there are several places in the article where it seems using weapons akimbo is sufficient to qualify as gun fu, or a scene where gunplay and martial arts are used, but not in conjunction. If it is sufficient to use weapons akimbo, as is claimed for Marathon and Max Payne, as I point out in the "earliest example" discussion, this has been featured in films since the days of black and white weasterns where characters often sport a pair of ivory-handled colts, which are fired one in either hand at the same time. Which I gather is the deffinition of akimbo, two identical weapons fired simultaniously, or have I got that wrong? And the Matrix lobby scene is cited as the first western example of gun fu, but in this scene (I just re-watched it to verify) martial arts are only used when the caracter has no gun in-hand. The guns are not incorperated into the martial arts, the martial arts are a back-up for when the guns are out of ammo. This confusion should be cleared up.Poinete, ede ede; tachu tachu! 22:55, 14 May 2007 (UTC)

Real Gun Fu

Dr. Hatsumi, according to the BBC series "Mind body and kick-ass moves" teaches Ninjitsu with incorporated firearm techniques. Though they are not as flashy as those seen in Equilibrium, they are applicable to real-life tactical situations and seem to be focused on disarming opponents, and carrying out traditional martial arts maneuvers and holds while carrying firearms.Poinete, ede ede; tachu tachu! 00:24, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

On this one I'd only comment that 'real-life' & ninja training seems to be a contradiction, if you want to discuss real life & fire arms I'd ask a soldier. --Nate 08:34, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

Nate, thank you for your service, and I agree that in an open field firefight I'd prefer an m-16 to ninjitsu training, and if you want to call the BBC fact checkers liars I don't have any evidence to contradict you. However, they do say in the series that Dr. Hatsumi's school is frequented by intelligence services and private security firms from around the world. Poinete, ede ede; tachu tachu! 08:50, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

I'm not calling anyone a liar, but I'd question how effective their checking was, or if any occurred. Was this an in house production? as far as I was aware it was externally produced & bought in. --Nate1481( ^t/_c) 12:11, 17 July 2007 (UTC)

I do not believe that they should be merged as Gun Kata with-in the movies do not use hand-to-hand combat... it utilizes only the gun 67.168.132.134 07:36, 14 August 2007 (UTC)

Redefining the definition

it seems to me that the definition of gun fu doesnt exactly cover what gun fu is. first let me say what gun fu isnt. gun fu isnt stocking or pistol whipping, those are thier own things. gun fu is basically the "art" of disarming/disabling/dismantling/discarding an opponents firearm. gun fu is also the "art" of maintaining your own firearm. by maintaining i mean thwarting disarms, or holstering said weapon. gun fu also applies to keeping track of and aquiring other firearms within your immidiate area. the art of gun fu is practiced in the mod "the specialists" for half-life, as well as in hong kong box office movies and gun bunny animes. maybe this isnt it, but someone needs to write a more clear definition of the priciples that make up gun fu. i would say that gun fu is a component of the action man, just like kung fu, and parkour, and professional soldier skills.

rogersmithbigo 01:51, 14 August 2007 (UTC)

Reliable sourcing

I realized that this article sounds authoritative and informative while being quite poorly sourced. Of the three web pages referenced, only one contains the words "gun fu," and it is referring to the comic book of the same title. Similarly I've searched Google for "gun fu" and "john woo gun fu" and related searches, and found nothing authoritative or seemingly reputable in the way of sourcing (I did find it on the urban dictionary though). I am beginning to suspect that this term is a neologism, and that most of this article comprises original research. Since my search for reliable sourcing turned up nothing of note, and I would rather not see it get deleted, I ask that other Wikipedians search for second-party sources using the term "gun fu." It would be great to find a solid definition, or really anything that looks authoritative. I'm going to wait for a week or two to see what turns up, otherwise I will nominate this article for deletion on the above grounds. -FrankTobia (talk) 04:26, 19 January 2008 (UTC)

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Roots in Paper and Pencil Gaming

Gun Fu is actually a fighting style in the game Cyberpunk 2020.

http://cyberpunk2020.wordpress.com/2007/08/13/master-martial-arts-list-for-cyberpunk-2020/

The description is:

"GUN FU - Completely geared around mastery of the handgun, this form makes a firearm truly an extension of the user. Students are only taught the basics of surviving a gunfight - stay constantly moving, fire till your opponent is dead, (preferably from as close a distance as possible) count your shots, when your out don’t hesitate to find another weapon instead of taking the time to reload yours (the dead guy on the floor won’t be needing his anymore right) if your hit don’t think about it till your dead or your enemies are, never panic, and above all keep your opponent on the defensive. Once a student has learned the basics the only way for him to advance in his art is through combat, so beginners don’t stay beginners long, they are either killed or they become better. A master is a truly magnificent sight in a gun battle."

Whether or not this is directly where the term has come from in regards to it's use in modern martial arts cinema is anyone's guess, however, this game system is dated back to 1983 in it's original publication.

Movies removed

Some of the titles I removed from the movie list because they're NOT examples "gun fu." Spaghetti Westerns? Blade? Bourne series? Whoever put the movies who I removed is an idiot. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.229.156.77 (talk) 16:22, 17 July 2009 (UTC)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberpunk —Preceding unsigned comment added by Custodia (talk • contribs) 05:08, 20 March 2009 (UTC)

Origins?

This article claims that "A Better Tomorrow" was the first example of a gun fu movie, yet this movie is not listed in the category page "gun fu movies." One of these should obviously be changed. (I would do it myself, but I know nothing about gun fu -- I just noticed the contradiction.) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.225.102.76 (talk) 03:22, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Additional example-movies?

I'd say the movie Kick Ass provides good examples of gun-fu, particularly in the hallway scene where Chloë Moretz mows through a crowd of bad guys, reloading pistols with magazines flipped into the air, and doing all sorts of other gymnastics.

Would Equilibrium count. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.241.20.47 (talk) 00:35, 7 February 2011 (UTC)

Ultraviolet should count as well. The producers said that they re-used the "gun kata" style which they invented for Equilibrium.--TeakHoken213.150.232.3 (talk) 14:10, 18 February 2020 (UTC)

Merge ? (2018) Martial arts

I have a question about the page. Since the page is kinda small how come the information isn't condensed and merged with Martial arts?Unequalpaper (talk) 04:06, 18 October 2018 (UTC)

This isn't a martial art, it's a style of action filmmaking using guns (sometimes presented on film as a fictional gun-based martial art). It's completely wrong to merge it to martial arts. (it would be like merging airsoft-paintball-gun into sword) -- 70.51.201.106 (talk) 11:26, 21 May 2019 (UTC)

Other possible names

• Gun kata
• Jushojutsu - Hand-to-hand combat incorporating a gun. It is mentioned in episode 6 of the anime Chrome Shelled Regios (but that doesn't mean it's not real).

Setenzatsu (talk) 13:28, 4 June 2019 (UTC)

You would need to add a section for appearances in TV for that. (perhaps there should be one to match the videogame section, one for film, and one for TV) -- 70.51.201.106 (talk) 13:41, 21 June 2019 (UTC)

Article refurbished and updated

Hello. I have been assigned to edit this article for a class and have gone ahead and made several edits that I think makes the article more cohesive overall.

-History and origins

The biggest edit I made was adding a "history and origins" section as an umbrella under which any information regarding the origins of the actual term "gun fu" as well as the cinematic style of it could be added and expanded upon. I retitled the "heroic bloodshed" section which was previously a main section directly under the lead to "on screen" to reflect the history/origins of gun fu pertaining to cinema. I kept the link to the "heroic bloodshed" main page under the heading because it is pertinent, but I think leading the section with "heroic bloodshed" was a little confusing especially for those who haven't heard the term before.

I added an "off screen" segment that focuses more on the history/origins of the actual term "gun fu". I think knowing where and when the term gun fu actually originated is important in gaining a more cohesive understanding of the style and its origins.

-Citations

I tried my best to cite all the new research I've put in with good sources. I also found a couple sources that matched some of the information previously added to the "in other media" section.

-Additional edits

I removed a few things here and there that either had been needing citations for a long time or reflected original research. I put in a nod to The Matrix under "spread to the U.S." because it's one of the first examples many think of regarding gun fu in American cinema. I also removed the external link * Gun Kata: the action & fight style of Equilibrium because the domain is now owned by a photography company that has nothing to do with gun fu.

I hope my edits help. Here's a link to the article before I started working on it in case you'd like to see what I started with and want to change any of my edits. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gun_fu&oldid=946244483 --Agilpin4927 (talk) 21:17, 25 March 2020 (UTC)

I separated "in other media" into three subsections to reflect appearances of gun fu in different specific types of media since they were already pretty much separated into appearances in tabletop gaming, comic books, and television. I think this just provides a little more organization. --Agilpin4927 (talk) 22:21, 25 March 2020 (UTC)