Rating: 
Summary: This Is The Real Stuff
Review: A masterpiece of the Venoms era-- matched (not surpassed!) only possibly by Masked Avengers for sheer exuberant heroism and villainy! This is the film that set the tone for so many others-- Evil-general-deceives-rival-kungfu-schools-into-wiping-one-another-out-type-stuff, and is replete with the lengthy, laughable training sequences that made the Venoms famous. You'll never eat scrambled eggs again! So what if it's about as believable as pro wrestling? You get to see bodybuilder/gymnasts somersaulting though Chinese gardens disembowelling one another with amazing weapons, all the while proclaiming their eternal camaraderie!! Unlike later efforts, this one even features a moving camera, so unlike films such as Masked Avengers, actors aren't forced to stand in tableau looking sideways... they can actually walk around the set-- a bonus! And it's a beautiful, colourful, letterboxed print that appears to have been made from film, and not video. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!
Rating:
Summary: This Is The Real Stuff
Review: A masterpiece of the Venoms era-- matched (not surpassed!) only possibly by Masked Avengers for sheer exuberant heroism and villainy! This is the film that set the tone for so many others-- Evil-general-deceives-rival-kungfu-schools-into-wiping-one-another-out-type-stuff, and is replete with the lengthy, laughable training sequences that made the Venoms famous. You'll never eat scrambled eggs again! So what if it's about as believable as pro wrestling? You get to see bodybuilder/gymnasts somersaulting though Chinese gardens disembowelling one another with amazing weapons, all the while proclaiming their eternal camaraderie!! Unlike later efforts, this one even features a moving camera, so unlike films such as Masked Avengers, actors aren't forced to stand in tableau looking sideways... they can actually walk around the set-- a bonus! And it's a beautiful, colourful, letterboxed print that appears to have been made from film, and not video. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!
Rating: 
Summary: Casanova Wong, the human tornado.
Review: Casanova wong stars in an action filled fight film. Eagle han also stars as an angry mantis style master who will do anything to bring down the shaolin temple. casanova trains in the most deadly styles in order to stop the evil mantis plan.
Rating:
Summary: Casanova Wong, the human tornado.
Review: Casanova wong stars in an action filled fight film. Eagle han also stars as an angry mantis style master who will do anything to bring down the shaolin temple. casanova trains in the most deadly styles in order to stop the evil mantis plan.
Rating: 
Summary: Be Warned, this is NOT the Shaw Brothers classic
Review: I bought this thinking it was the Shaw Bros. classic movie wherein teachers from North Shaolin are sent to train the manchu's, they give a beating to the current instructors (the South shaolin teachers). The Shaw Bros. movie's english title is Invincible Shaolin.
Rating: 
Summary: This IS the DVD with the Venoms!
Review: I purchased this DVD and it is the version with the Venoms (aka North Shaolin vs. South Shaolin). All of the Venoms are featured in this film, the story is great, and, as with all Venom films, the fight scenes are top-notch!
Rating:
Summary: Another Hit
Review: If you like Chang Cheh films, then this is another "must buy". Another political corruption storyline with Wang Lung Wei provoking a destructive confrontation between Northern and Southern Shaolin to do his work for him. The best fights are in the climax when Philip Kwok (formerly known as Kuo Chiu) and his pals match skills against the other Shaolin team. The DVD picture and sound quality aren't bad. More valuable now since the passing of the legendary Chang Cheh.
Rating:
Summary: Three new instructors from North Shoalin
Review: The leader of the Ching dynasty now has the right to call on instructors from the Shoalin temple to train the military. However, the leader of one military division wishes to pit North Shoalin vs. South Shoalin. General Pu sees the Shoalin monks as adversaries to the Ching dynasty, and views them as a threat. To eliminate them, he has decided to pit the instructors against each other, and then a war will break out between North and South Shoaling, leading to the end of the Shoalin tradition.
Invincible Shoalin starts with a lot of action, and ends with a lot of action. In between all the action is a whole lot of training. To be honest, this movie reminded me of many of the Gordon Liu flicks (Shoalin Master Killer, Shoalin vs. Wu-Tang, and Fists of the White Lotus), where there is conflict at the beginning, a whole lot of training to improve on skills, then a big fight scene at the end to show off the newly learned fighting skills.
Not to give this movie too strong of a generic feeling, however, the story is strait line, and very predictable. However, the action is first rate, and exactly what you would expect of a Five Deadly Venoms flick. In comparing it to previous Venom flicks, I would place it behind Kid with the Golden Arms, Crippled Avengers, and Five Deadly Venoms. I would place it as good as Masked Avengers, and better then Daredevils of Kung-Fu.
In conclusion, there are many martial arts movies you need to have in your collection before this one. Heck, there are two or three Venom movies you need to have in your collection before this one. Nevertheless, if you plan on collection Venom movies, this is a top 5 Venom flick, and is a nice movie to have in your martial arts collection.
Grade: B
Rating:
Summary: Unbeatabe Dragons!
Review: The Manchus have banned the practice and teaching of Martial Arts throughout China. However, when the Mings surrendered to the Ch'ing army, they agreed that the temples would be outside the law, and the monks of both North and South Shaolin would be able to go on practicing and teaching kung fu, provided they send their best men to come and train the Manchu troops and improve their army. But still, the Manchus believe that Shaolin men are a thorn in the side of their government, and that the temples are nothing more than nests of rebels and need to be stamped out. The evil General Pu (Wang Lung Wei) comes up with an ingenious plot to turn the students of North Shaolin and South Shaolin against each other, and have them kill each other off, thus ridding the Ch'ings of the threat of Shaolin once and for all. General Pu hires two sets of teachers: three from North Shaolin and three from South Shaolin. He forces them to fight a duel against each other under the pretense of ranking the teachers according to their ability. The North Shaolin teachers suggest that it just be a friendly contest. North Shaolin teacher Pao Sen Sung (Lu Feng) is an expert at the iron palm technique, and he defeats his South Shaolin opponent, as do his fellow teachers Su Sung (Sun Chien), an expert in "whirlwind" kicks and Yang Chun Fei (Chiang Sheng), who is a light-skill expert in the pole technique. Though the South Shaolin students are injured in the fight, they are not mortally wounded. However, General Pu takes it upon himself to kill them in the night, and sends their bodies back to their master claiming they were killed by the North Shaolin men. In a rage, their master, Mai Chi, sends his son and two of his students to take revenge. Again, the North Shaolin men only want a friendly contest, but the South Shaolin men persist, and two of them are killed, including the Master's son. The third student suffers a broken arm and goes home in shame, only to commit suicide later. Master Mai Chi realizes at this point that his other students are no match for the North Shaolin men. He sends his son Fung (Wei Pai) to seek out his senior classmates Chu San Chung (Lo Meng) and Fu Ying Wu (Kuo Chui). He sends Fung and Chu San Chung to other teachers in order to learn the skills they need to defeat the North Shaolin men, while Fu Ying Wu stays with Mai Chi to practice the light skill pole technique. In the end of course, the men go off to seek revenge... but will they realize they have been set up by General Pu before it's too late? The heart of this movie is the ultra-extended training sequence, or should I say, sequences, as they make up the duration of the film and are some of the funniest, cleverest and most informative scenes I've seen yet. Chu San Chung is sent to learn the Mantis technique (a style which Lo Meng is a real life devotee of). Not only are we treated to absolutely stunning feats of strength on the part of Lo Meng, but we are even given a history lesson as to the origin and concepts of the Mantis fist, which was conceived by a Shaolin man when he witnessed a tiny mantis valiantly battling a black bird ten times its size. These are the most hilarious scenes as well, as part of Chu San Chung's training consists of balancing over a well and doing push-ups, with eggs under his hands. Every time he breaks an egg, Chu San Chung must have it for dinner. After three months of eating nothing but eggs, the grimaces of disgust he makes are hysterical. Other parts of his training consist of spinning wooden mills which beat him to a pulp until he learns to fight back, harnessing himself to solid stone by the legs, arms and neck, and pulling himself all the way over to stone barbels which he must lift and throw against a giant tree until the tree gives way, and doing yet more push-ups on the well using three fingers, then two, then one, then one hand, etc. Though Wei Pai's training sequences aren't quite as exciting as Lo Meng's, they are just as funny. He is sent to a teacher who is called "The Gardener" (played by Wong Ching Ho). Here we receive another history lesson as to the origins of Wing Chun, which is the style Wei Pai's character must learn in order to counter the long kicks of Su Sung. Wei Pai, or Fung, must practice while balancing on one leg on poles of varying length, and every time he falls off into the surrounding flowers, he must plant more to replace the ones he has crushed. Afterwards, he is then shut within 4 wooden walls which get increasingly smaller as he tries to bust out of them. His hands become black and blue, completely swollen. Kuo Chui must practice knocking wooden poles in the air and hitting them away with his staff. At first, he is continually knocking himself in the head with them, making for a good laugh.This is probably one of the best Venoms films ever made, simply for the training sequences alone. It is also one of the bloodiest out of all the Venoms films. The story is easy to follow, and it is also a very moving and inspiring tale.
Rating:
Summary: Be Warned, this is NOT the Shaw Brothers classic
Review: The Venoms do it again. 3 north shaolin teachers are framed by a sceaming warlord for the death of 3 south shaolin teachers. After hearing of this the shaolin master of the south sends 3 more teachers only to have the same thing happen. finally he sends his son and his 2 best students off to train in deadly styles to avenge and counter those of the north shaoliner's. shaolin vs. shaolin, styles , acrobatics, blood, and hatred untill the real killer is found out.
|
