Mantis Fists And Tiger Claws (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure This is one of the dumbest movies ever made. Period. They expect us to believe that the same sweet, lovable, innocent little girl repeatedly allows herself to be raped. To what end? To get tea and sympathy? Most of the fights are laughable if you can get past that. And then there is the big grindhouse horror movie payoff. This movie is only for die hard Johnny Chang fans to see once--after which, this film must be destroyed.
Two Assassins Of Darkness (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Great cast, interesting story, and you want fighting too? At least it's not some swingy-army nonsense. And I still liked it.
Ninja In Ancient China (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure I'm a little torn on how to rate this one. mostly due to plausibility issues with the story. I know it's a martial arts movie. But still.
It was good to see Chang Cheh without a sound stage in sight. It must have been hard shooting outside after all those years inside.
Someone called this a low budget film. But I don't believe that it was. Too many people. Too many costumes. But what he didn't have were the Shaw Brothers artisans: the set designers and costumers.
It's a must-see for fans. And it isn't as bad as "Shanghai 13" or as weird as the fantastic magic baby. Thankfully, it isn't a homoerotic sausage party. Even if the streets are still paved with blood.
Shadow Of The Tiger (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure I don't care what anyone says. This movie rocks. It's fun and the choreography is amazing. Training scenes are awesome. A story that you can follow. While not terribly original, it's still good. Loads of fun.
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Five stars is a little to high for me, however I did enjoy this especially the training scenes and fight finale!
The Cheeky Chap (product link) Martial Arts / Comedy This is an interesting movie if you want to know what happened to the Snake Venom from "The Five Venoms". It's fairly fun. The martial arts are inspired. The tone is light until the classic third act decent into hell. (Maybe they should read "Poetics" by Aristotle.) Anyway, nothing special but worth seeing.
One Arm Hero (product link) Martial Arts I was rather disappointed with this. It took the filmmakers forever to clearly define the antagonist. The plot got so confusing as this became every martial arts movie ever. (Must cut off my arm before the poison spreads.) I was willing to overlook the over abundance of wire fu until the magic fu leapt in. Was this supposed to be a historical drama or a wu xia epic? Too bad, I really liked the first one.
One Foot Crane (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure This is a fun little movie, definitely worth owning and seeing. Lily Li is amazing. The story is interesting and different enough to keep your attention. The choreography is inspired. And the action overall is an interesting mix of stylized fighting techniques and wuxia movie magic (whips and hidden flying weapons). There is even a tea house scene. God I love these cliches. Revenge, like sex, is easy to motivate.
The Absurd Brave (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Considering that it's a late sixties Taiwanese wuxia movie, it isn't too bad. But I must say that after seeing this movie I suddenly realize that "Flying Cat's Paws" (starring Judy Lee and Kam Kong) is an homage to this type of movie.
The Web Of Death (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure I feel that I have to defend this film, if only because I am a Chor Yuan fan and I love a good yarn.
There has to be a different rating system for different types of films. This is a wuxia movie, so the story, acting, sets, and costumes will always outweigh the action. Just as in most action movies the action often outweighs the story and the acting. It's sad isn't it?
Sure the effects here seem dated, but not as dated as 70s martial arts movies in contemporary settings. At least this story still seems fresh. And if you look closely you'll find Yuen Wah as a stuntman.
Killer Clans (product link) Swordplay/Sword(s) / Martial Arts Jiang-hu. The martial arts movie version of Middle Earth. A world with its own rules, its own evils, and its own cliches.
Ku Long is probably Taiwan's most famous pulp fiction novelist. (Why can't I find any of his novels translated into English?) And when he met Chor Yuen, magic happened: the movies that they made together were incredible--well written, suspenseful, vibrant, and exciting.
Although there are a lot of familiar faces here (including a very young Danny Lee), there aren't a lot of martial artists besides Norman Chu. But when there is action, it's fun and acrobatic and it fits within the context of the story.
Life Gamble (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure This is without a doubt one of Chang Cheh's final masterpieces. This is one of the most interesting wuxia/kung fu movies of all time with one of the most interesting premises of all time. Yeah there are very few actual fights. And, boo, hoo, hoo, you actually have to pay attention. This is Jiang Hu (the martial underworld, riverlake country), not the Republic, not the Ching Dynasty, etc. And the story here is much more straightforward and a lot less work than say "The Ten Tigers Of Kwangtung". There aren't any flashbacks within flashbacks here. But it might be a tad bit expository.
Kung Fu Of 8 Drunkards (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure I seem to remember not being too impressed with this one the first time I watched it. But after the second time, I must admit that it isn't bad. The choreography is really rather nice. My only criticisms are that there seems to be a huge hole in the story (is there a scene missing between when our hero's uncle disowns him and he fights the dude in red only to be rescued by monkey?), and what's with the huge red herring in Lung Fei and the man in red? Oh and then there's Chen Sing showing up for the last ten minutes of the movie to bust out his bad tiger's claw.
But that aside, this is a rare opportunity to see Meng Fei without a sword, or a fan, a weave, or an expensive set of silk pajamas.
Deadful Melody (product link) Martial Arts / Fantasy Watching this again reminds me just how terrible most of these movies were during this era. Campy, confused, meandering, wandering tone. As if someone were trying to appeal to everyone rather then the largest audience possible. There is a difference.
This one has an interesting mix of washed up martial arts actors and Cantopop stars. There really aren't any martial arts here, only wire- and magic-fu. It's worth a once-over if you are a fan of Yuen Biao or Brigitte Lin. But it isn't "The Storm Riders".
The Mighty Four (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure You have high hopes because it's Casanova Wong. But once he got back to Korea, it's sad. Joseph Lai and Thomas Tang have destroyed many a career.
Armor Of God (product link) Action/Adventure / Comedy So which one came first? "Operation Condor" or "Armour of God"? Regardless. It seems to me that they are non-sequel sequels.
Anyway, this has got to be one of the campiest Jackie Chan movies (made worse by JACKIE singing the closing song in ENGLISH). As a fan, you still love it, but come on. Not my favorite, not the worst, but not the best either.
Hard Boiled (product link) Action/Adventure / Bullet Ballet What can I add? Nothing. This is John Woo's masterpiece. "Red Cliff" is beautiful and ambitious. But this is what he is good at: gun fu. Melodrama with heart.
The Eight Immortals (product link) Martial Arts / Fantasy This is the kind of movie that makes you wish that they didn't open the Taiwan film archive. The film is all right for historical purposes. It's worth seeing once if you have a passing interest in Chinese folk heroes. But if you're into martial arts, look somewhere else.
I'm a little confused as to the timeframe of this movie. But it appears to be one of the few Venoms movies that actually has some historical merit. But we aren't Chinese. Apparently we are into the republic era (no question). And the railroads have put a lot of martial artists (who owned or worked for escort agencies) out of work.
Some cool fights but it's all sort of by the numbers, considering it's Chang Cheh.
Shaolin Challenges Ninja (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure What else can be said? Take me to school and let me enjoy the ride. Top twenty all favorites.
The Young Vagabond (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure It's 1985. The Shaw family will soon be packing in movie production to focus on TVB. The martial arts movie is hopelessly lost and will be until it is re-invented with "Project A".
You really want to like this movie. I've watched it twice now, with many months in between viewings, and it's still disappointing. What is this supposed to be? A buddy picture? A love story? A drama? A comedy? And that nasty tone shift? And the ending.
There is only one "Thundering Mantis". And even there we were let off the hook and allowed not to take it all that seriously.
Five Shaolin Masters (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure It was right about here that Lau Kar Leung was able to shine as a choreographer. Hung Gar had arrived and the martial arts began to look like martial arts. It wouldn't be long now. But 1977 was a few years away.
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A lot of talented individuals were involved in this one. One of my all time favorites
Eagle's Claw (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure You see, there you go. A great cast. An interesting story. A perfect mixture of real techniques and movie magic. This is a Lee Tso Nam picture.
Picture Of A Nymph (product link) Ghost / Action/Adventure The Hong Kong film industry has always relied, for better or worse, on the trends. Here is one of the better examples of the ghost story movies.
It could be described as cute. Wu Ma directs and plays the old Taoist priest. (He sings a few silly songs as well.) Yeun Biao hams it up with his cute smile and baby face. (How was he ever going to break out with that?) And poor Joey Wang will be playing this role 'til she dies. But like I said, it's one of the better ghost story fantasies.
The Master Of Death (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure This movie is just alright. It's worth seeing. It's worth owning if you're a Chi Kuan Chun fan. But I never could understand why he's always pitted against people who know next to nothing about fighting. Chen Sing? Lo Lieh? Good actors (and name actors) but never really fighters. It seems he spends a lot of the ending trying not outshine them.
The best part of this movie is the Judy Lee/Wu Ma gambling scene--which of course doesn't belong in this movie.
The Phantom Kung Fu (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure One feels as if the filmmakers were searching for a new gimmick to overpower the usual cliches: Ming vs. Ching, a secret manual (which will make you invincible), a secret edict/name-list, and an escort agency. And this new gimmick is well worse than the cliches. To quote Johnny Rotten, "Do you ever get the feeling that you've been cheated?" Chang Yi is over the top. And this is made worse by the dubbing. And what is with the monkey dude's cameo? How did this further the story? You just expect more when Lee Tso Nam's name is attached.
My Life's On The Line (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure What's not to like? It's a kung fu western. Trade fists for guns. Beardy as the crazy bad guy. And what Otto Preminger used to call touches. Okay, the end kind of sucks. But I guess we can make up our own minds.
Drunken Master Strikes Back (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure You can't help but feel let down here. All of the elements are here for a good movie. But in typical Hong Kong style they're making it up as they go along. The funny bits are hilarious. The cock fight unnecessary. Drunken Master marketing/Simon Yuen cameo shameless. Then there is the tragic killing of innocents to set up the revenge plot. And this some 60 minutes into the picture. And by then you just don't care. Too bad, we could have had another "Goose Boxer".
Battle Of Shaolin (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure A decent film, rated more for the story than the fighting, which is merely functional and for the most part practical. There are some great movie gimmicks though. Good writing. And decent directing by one of kung fu's only female directors.
Stranger From Shaolin (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure A good movie and a welcome addition to any collection. There have been better movies and there have been worse. One of the things that I really appreciate about this movie is that homegirl really looks like she is struggling to learn the moves. As anyone who has ever bothered to learn a martial art, even form training can be a bit like learning to walk all over again. Oh yeah, and watch out for the dude in the pimp hat.
Descendants Of Wing Chun (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure A good film with a good cast. The story was a little confusing and lopsided, but the choreography more than made up for it. I would have liked to see some more training sequences a la "Warriors Two" and "Prodigal Son", but what are you going to do? One of the things I always find interesting about wing chun movies with Lee Hoi Sang in them, is that he's never using wing chun. Why is that?
Long Step Mantis (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure Not bad. Not bad at all. A decent enough story. Another secret manual that many people have died for. Another rich kid that just wants to learn kung fu and be a hero. You know. It's like the blues. Ain't nothing wrong with the cliches, it's how they're presented.
Decent acting. Excellent choreography, even if the medium shots were a bit over used. But still you feel as if it's missing something intangible that wold make it truly great.
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The fight scenes are insane. I am going to have to disagree with Denizen.
The Green Jade Statuette (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure One of those rare times when a martial arts movie has multiple things going for it, and not just one or two which redeem it. (And I love these movies!)
This one has an interesting story filled with intrique and suspense. Great characters for the actors to sink their teeth into. Oh yeah, then there are the fights and the fighters. My only real complaint is that the [Tai Seng] transfer was a little dark, but even there I've seen worse.
The South Shaolin Master 2 (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure In typical Asian fashion we have what is affectionately referred to as the non-sequel sequel. It has some of the same actors and possibly the same film company so we'll put a "2" behind the title.
This time we are smack dab in the middle of the "Opium Wars". That damned East India trading company. The choreography is less grounded in this one. Too many noticeable wires, flash cuts, and far too many flying swordsman elements. It was the era, though. By this time Jet Li was a star and the filmmakers and actors had to compete with film workshop and the "Once Upon A Time In China" series. All in all an enjoyable effort, however. Not as great or as special as the first one, but enjoyable.
Disciples Of Shaolin Temple (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure The mainland wu shu warriors strike again. This was an interesting era (mid 80's) while Hong Kong was planning its next big move ("Project A") and relying heavily on wires--and not just the wuxia movies, the mainlanders were focused on choreography. And although highly stylized, it always seemed more grounded. Not bad for flowery kicks and embroidered fists. Not quite a lost classic but certainly a hidden treasure.
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Kung fu films are so rare these days so I would label this a hidden treasure as well as a lost classic.
The South Shaolin Master (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure A great film to remind us that Jet Li wasn't the only member of the Chinese national wushu team, just the most decorated. Of course the lead actor in this film could have been one of his coaches, which is probably why we didn't see more of him. The choreography, costumes, and camerawork are all top notch. And the story is interesting without being overly simple or needlessly convoluted. One of the best of the era.
Hero Of Kwang Tung (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure I dreaded watching this again, and now I know why. This is a lame movie with a tedious and confusing storyline. Something about extortion, land, gold. And it's all made worse by the poor dubbing. It isn't my favorite era of kung fu movies (early seventies), but I'll try to be fair. The actual fighting is somewhere between swingy army and actual karate. So it's slightly better than the fighting of Jimmy Wang Yu--into whom it would seem the movie company was trying to turn Wen Jiang-Long, based on this and other films like "Rickshaw Man" and "Shaolin Kung Fu". Too bad.
The Massive (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure This is a solid, character-driven whodunit. The action takes a back seat to he story, giving the martial artists a chance to act for a change. It's a Ku Lung swordfighting story without the swords and costumes. But it does have the same all-star cast.
Return Of The Kung Fu Dragon (product link) Martial Arts / Action/Adventure A low budget Chinese fantasy. Swords and magic rule the day. The story is interesting although slightly confusing, with loads of silly costumes. Polly Kuan plays her usual slightly naughty self.
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