Movies like The Idiot Swordsman (1978)
The best movies like The Idiot Swordsman (1978) are Sword Master (2016), Seven Swords (2005) and Return of the One-Armed Swordsman (1969). If The Idiot Swordsman hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBloodsport (1988)7.1/10 from 2,327 votes
- NewestDeathstalker (2025)Released 2025
- In ChineseSword Master (2016)Also in Chinese
Sword Master (2016)
Weary of the bloodshed and violence from the martial arts world, a powerful swordsman banishes himself to the humble life a vagrant, wandering the fringes of society. But his violent past refuses to let him go quietly. The master swordsman must regain the ability to wield his sword and fight those disrupting the peace he so desperately craves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeven Swords (2005)
In the middle of the 17th century, the Manchus conquered China and founded the Ching dynasty. Due to widespread uprisings against the new rulers, the study and practice of traditional martial arts is forbidden and punishable by death. The unscrupulous leader of a troop of mercenaries takes advantage of this situation to make a fortune with the bounty on his head.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisReturn of the One-Armed Swordsman (1969)
After the events of The One-Armed Swordsman (1967), a retired Fang Gang is drawn back into the jianghu to protect various young apprentices whose swordsmanship schools have been terrorized by 8 evil swordsmen seeking to rule the jianghu.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEye for an Eye (2022)
A highly trained and exceptionally deadly swordsman looks for revenge after being caught in the middle of a power struggle that results in the assassination of an innocent woman's family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTrue Legend (2010)
Su Qi-Er, a wealthy man living during the Qing Dynasty who loses his fortune and reputation as a result of a conspiracy against him. After being forced out onto the streets, Su dedicates his life to martial arts and reemerges as a patriotic hero known as the "King of Beggars."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeathstalker (2025)
A powerful swordsman known as Deathstalker recovers a cursed amulet from a corpse-strewn battlefield. Marked by dark magic and hunted by monstrous assassins, he must face the rising evil and break the curse.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisEye for an Eye 2 (2024)
The blind swordsman, skilled in martial arts, named Cheng Xiazi (Xie Miao), accidentally saves Zhang Xiaoyu (Yang Enyou), who has suffered from the destruction of his family. Under the persuasion of the orphan Xiaoyu, Cheng reluctantly keeps him by his side and teaches him skills. Xiaoyu also waits for the opportunity to seek revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Grandmaster (2013)
The fall of China's last dynasty, a time of chaos, division and war, is the golden age of Chinese martial arts. Legendary kung fu master Ip Man, who will eventually train Bruce Lee, finds his peaceful life interrupted by vengeance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNinja: Shadow of a Tear (2013)
Fight everyone and trust no one: it's the code of survival practiced by martial-arts master Casey Bowman after his life of domestic bliss is shattered by a savage act of violence. Vowing revenge, the fearless American stealthily tracks the killer from Osaka to Bangkok to Rangoon with the help of a wise and crafty sensei. His only clues: a series of victims whose necks bear the distinctive mark of strangulation by barbed wire. Fighting to avenge as well as to survive, Casey must sharpen his razor-like responses and take his battle skills to the next level, even using deep meditation to fake his own death. His target: the sinister drug lord Goro, who is flooding the streets with deadly meth cooked at his remote jungle factory. To prepare for his ultimate confrontation, Casey must finally become an invisible warrior worthy of the name Ninja. But just when his prey is cornered, an unexpected twist shows Casey that his battle is only beginning: he truly can trust no one.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCrouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny (2016)
A story of lost love, young love, a legendary sword and one last opportunity at redemption.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHalf a Loaf of Kung Fu (1978)
A young daydreamer assumes the identity of a dead martial arts hero and quickly finds himself caught up in a plot by several clans to steal famous martial arts artifacts being transported by an escort company.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisScaramouche (1952)
In 18th-century France, a young man masquerades as an actor to avenge his friend's murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAccident Man: Hitman's Holiday (2022)
The Accident Man is back, and this time he must best the top assassins in the world to protect the ungrateful son of a mafia boss, save the life of his only friend and rekindle his relationship with his maniacal father figure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBrain Donors (1992)
Three manic idiots—a lawyer, a cab driver and a handyman—team up to run a ballet company to fulfil the will of a millionaire. Stooge-like antics result as the trio try to outwit the rich widow and her scheming big-shot lawyer, who also wants to run the ballet.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlind Fury (1989)
A blind Vietnam vet, trained as a swordfighter, comes to America and helps to rescue the son of a fellow soldier.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBloodsport (1988)
An American Army Major goes AWOL to Hong Kong for an outlawed martial arts contest called the Kumite.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRemo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985)
Tough Brooklyn street cop Sam Makin is unwillingly recruited as an assassin for a secret United States organization known as CURE, who fake his death and give him a new identity: Remo Williams. With his appearance surgically altered, Williams is trained to be a human killing machine by his aged, derisive and impassive Korean martial arts master Chiun.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLast Knights (2015)
When an evil emperor executes their leader, his band of knights – bound by duty and honour – embarks on a journey of vengeance that will not come to an end until they've destroyed their mortal foe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSun Dogs (2017)
A man eager to serve his country but rejected by the Marines pairs up with a young runaway to form an unlikely team on a misguided adventure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKung Fu Jungle (2014)
A martial arts instructor working at a police academy gets imprisoned after killing a man by accident. But when a vicious killer starts targeting martial arts masters, the instructor offers to help the police in return for his freedom.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Idiot Swordsman?
The closest matches to The Idiot Swordsman are Sword Master (2016), Seven Swords (2005) and Return of the One-Armed Swordsman (1969). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Idiot Swordsman?
Start with Sword Master (2016), the closest match to The Idiot Swordsman.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Idiot Swordsman?
Bloodsport (1988), rated 7.1/10 by 2,327 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Idiot Swordsman?
Deathstalker (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Chinese movies like The Idiot Swordsman?
Yes: Sword Master (2016), Seven Swords (2005) and Return of the One-Armed Swordsman (1969).
How are movies similar to The Idiot Swordsman chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Idiot Swordsman, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.