Keep away from this if you are looking for an old school martial arts joint! I cannot find Jack Long nor Mark Long in this. This is some supernatural vampire movie starring a bunch of kids. I bought at my own risk, so I cannot return this.

In keeping with his effort to accurately portray the historical significance and martial arts world, Liu Chia Liang directed and choreographed a film that focuses on cultural relevant celebrations like the lion dance, and martial arts etiquette. The story is yet another that has as its main character Wong Fei Hung and the martial arts style of Hung Ga, which is well demonstrated throughout the movie. The Liu's brothers Hung Ga lineage is directly linked to Wong Fei Hung, and so no doubt they are trusted authorities on the style as well as Shaolin martial arts history in general. That said, the movie is fun to watch, has an authentic feel, and is a nice break from the anti-Ching movies that I have seen over and over again, but do love. While I would not categorize this as a comedy (something the detracts from many martial arts films) I would say that this one, even with the violence, has also a light-hearted energy! Martial club focuses on brotherhood, martial etiquette, loyalty, and competition. This brings me back to my original comments. For me the best feature of this movie, after having seen many with Johnny Wang as the villain, is seeing him in a noble role as the outsider (Northerner) who is just in town to learn about Southern styles. Yet he is the one who insists on honoring martial code when he is caught in the middle of a rivalry between two local schools. He wants to get his fight on as well, but here it is only for testing and improving his own vast martial arts knowledge. His is an upstanding character and as such, he does get more on screen time to show off his skills. In the finale, of course, he is not the one doing those acrobatic moves. My guess is that is Hsiao Hou who is also in the film, but with no significant fighting scenes. He is, however, known for his incredible acrobatics in other films. Check him out in Mad Monkey Kung Fu, which showcases much of the same cast you find in Martial Club. Great movie with valuable lessons.

I believe those who give this movie a bad review miss the point! Yes, this was supposed to be Shaws' last hurrah in the martial genre, and of course critics/fans wanted a major epic perhaps, once again, depicting common martial arts movie themes.

Shaws did some of that, but with a twist. Those of us who are movie collectors know well the stories of Fong Sai Yuk, Hung Hsi Kwan, and Hu Hui Chen. See Men from the Monastery and/or Shaolin Avengers that has pretty much the same cast.

This is another anti-Ching movie, but it takes a look at the conflicts that arise between a group of budding monks and a group of rebels who use Shaolin more so as a place of refuge from the Chings than as a place of practice and worship.

What happens is a movie filled with jovial antics and tricks in which each group tries to one up the other. This is where the comedy occurs and very appropriately so. It is a different less serious take on what training/conflict behind those hallowed walls could have been like.

There is a serious side... Lo Leigh, again plays the evil Ching representative who is trying to get into the Temple to get a golden seal from Hung. This some monks use as a reason to have Hung and the other secular students expelled from the Temple. This is keeping with the history that these rebels brought the Temple under suspicion and therefore brought danger and the eventual burning of it.

Perhaps after decades of showing the training films, and the demise of the Temple, Shaws just went in another direction that showed the internal conflicts, the boyish competition, and the lighter side of sometimes failing in one's effort to be righteous.

The only thing I did not like about this film deals with Lo Leigh. Almost all of his scenes were increased in speed and required acrobatics that he obviously could not do. The use of a double and speed makes the film seem too cheesy at some points.

Lo Leigh had established himself as a great on-screen martial artist and to have much of his fight scenes be fought by someone else did him and the movie a dis-service. Oh and wasn't it great to see Lo Meng in a film where he did not get killed off in the first half hour or so?