gorthu

IMDb member since April 2009
    Lifetime Total
    50+
    IMDb Member
    15 years

Reviews

Gau ban ji ma goon: Bak min Bau Ching Tin
(1994)

Stephen Chow delivers the laughs, but the movie is just average
Stephen Chow stars as a young judge who allows himself to be pushed around. He gets offerred a bribe to let someone free, but it turns out he was being tricked and loses his spot as a judge. Now he has to work for a brothel as a gigilo and ends up learning talking kung fu from Ada Choi. He ends up being named the supreme judge and shows that he can argue with even the best of lawyers.

This is not a great movie or anything, but it is a lot of fun. Stephen Chow has a few brilliant comedic moments, but there is just too much time filler. The problem with Stephen Chow movies is that they rarely feel original. There are a few that stand out, but most of the time Chow plays someone who starts out rich, turns poor, then has to fight his way back to the top. Another thing that is the same is that Ng Man Tat always stars alongside Chow, and Cheung Man always plays his love interest. But luckily they come up with a few new things. Ada Choi is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen and she has a great role as the mistress of the brothel. The ending is a hilarious sequence in the courtroom and only Stephen Chow can deliver huge laughs in a mindless movie like this.

Ching se
(1993)

A strange and touching movie
2 giant snakes named White (Joey Wong) and Green (Maggie Cheung) are trying to become humans. White does her best at trying to act like a human but Green finds it too hard to change. White falls in love with an honest man, and even after he finds out she is a snake he still loves her. But Green doesn't like all the attention that White is getting and starts flirting with her man. Vincent Zhao plays a high monk with unlimited power and his job is to kill any evil beings who do not follow the Heavenly laws. He has problems of his own and does not know for sure if these 2 snakes are truly evil.

This is quite an adventure and it never gets boring. Joey Wong is very good in her role, but Maggie Cheung manages to outshine her. I would have liked to see some actual kung fu moves from Vincent Zhao, but he is perfect for his role. He is a master of playing straight-faced roles like the one he plays in this movie. The music is mesmerizing and the ending is very special even though it is a bit illogical. But then again, this is a movie with snakes and spiders acting as humans so the end doesn't feel too far fetched. It is one of the best endings I have ever seen. This is not you typical mindless Hong Kong movie. I had to watch it a few times to take it all in, and it manages to get better every time I see it. This movie is a real gem.

There is no real fighting, and the action is what you would expect from a Tsui Hark wuxia. All of the action involves flying around, posing, and using magical powers.

Lie ri kuang feng ye huo
(1979)

An all star kung fu cast in a very boring movie
I usually don't care whether or not a kung fu movie has a good story, but the story is the reason I didn't like this movie. Everybody is looking for a map and it just doesn't make much sense. There are other parts to the story but it is mainly just mindless talking.

I suggest just fast forwarding to the last 20 minutes. Dorian Tan, Lo Lieh, Roc Tien Peng, Angela Mao Ying, and Chang Yi all get to show off, and Chang Yi is the only one I felt got enough fighting time. He is on fire in the final fights and he is the only reason this movie is worth watching.

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San ga fat
(1999)

Louis Koo- WOW
This is another review where I am not going to go into the plot. It is way too complicated. I'd probably mess it up somewhere, so I'll just go over everything else. And don't worry, the plot isn't hard to follow, it would just take too long (for me) to describe. Alex Fong plays a bigtime gangster, and after some crazy events, Louis Koo joins his gang. Louis Koo is really the only thing I want to talk about. Seeing him in a role like this is something special. The guy is a total badazz. I don't see how he isn't a star in American movies yet. Seeing him in movies like Flash Point, Bullets Over Summer, and now this, it just seems like he has unlimited potential. And I still have a lot of his movies to see, like Throwdown and Election. I have a feeling that I haven't even seen the best of him.

Alex Fong does a good acting job, about as good as he is capable of, and Simon Loui, Frankie Ng and Sam Lee give great performances.

The action is OK. Loius Koo does good, but it's too obvious that he doesn't have the real life skill level of the killing machine that he's made out to be. But dang those big knives are sweet. No complaints there. There is one fight I liked a lot, MIGHT BE A SMALL SPOILER HERE- Loius Koo vs Simon Loui. It's not choreographed very well, but I can't explain it, it's just a great fight with a great ending to the fight. I don't know if Koo won an award for his performance, but he should have. There are few that can show the pain that he shows.

So don't go into this movie thinking it will be great, and you will have to take a chance on it, but you may just like it.

The ending of this movie is really amazing. I love when Alex Fong tells Koo that he didn't have to cause all this bloodshed, he would have just fought Koo, man to man. And then the very end of the movie is incredible. I shouldn't even be saying this. Because if you are expecting something really incredible like a big action scene, you will be very disappointed. So I guess the best way to describe it is to say that I absolutely loved the end of the movie. You just gotta love gangster movies! One more thing, this movie has an AWESOME soundtrack.

Shi san tai bao
(1970)

One of the Shaw Brothers best
Made in 1970, the Shaw Brothers really went all out on this one. Ku Feng stars as a Mongolian King who is famous for his great army, and his 13 sons. David Chiang and Ti Lung are his favorite sons. Chen Sing plays a warlord who doesn't like Ku Feng and his sons, at all. I don't really want to give anything away, so I will just say that the story is very well done, and the fight scenes are awesome for 1970. David Chiang looks sloppy, but with all the stuntmen on hand and Tong Gai and the Lau Brothers doing the action, you can expect greatness in a lot of the action scenes. The battle sequences are truly epic. There had to be like 200-300 deaths in this movie. Like I said, David Chiang doesn't look all that good, but luckily Ti lung is on hand and gives an amazing performance. This was one of Ti Lung's first big roles , and he really makes the most out of it. The rest of the cast includes Cliff Lok, Lily Li, Lo Wai, Lau Kong, musclemen Cheng Lui and Bolo Yeung, Bruce Tong, James Nam, Wang Chung, Chin Han... the list goes on and on. David Chiang's last scene of the movie is one you will never forget. The final fight I thought was disappointing with how it was handled, but if they could have made the final fight better then this movie would get a 10 star rating from me.

Joi gin a long
(1999)

"I am not scared of anything. I am only afraid of one thing."
Wow, I thought I rambled, but Lau Ching wan takes it to another level! His character is so complex, and there's so many things that I pick up on in his performance when I rewatch this movie. I didn't really know how to fit these thoughts into my review, so I thought I would just point it out right away. That quote in the title of the review is classic rambling from Lau Ching Wan's character. I don't know how I didn't get annoyed of his character, but Lau Ching Wan just gives such a great performance. I kept wanting to hear what he had to say, because the more he rambles on, the more violent he gets with his words. Great stuff.

Lau Ching Wan stars as a gangster who just got out of jail, and right away he gets into a fight. After his brawl he decides to stay at a really cheap inn run by a poor widow played by Ruby Wong. They slowly begin a relationship, and I found it well done and touching. Lau Ching Wan's character is over the top with how rude he is, but he does a great job at it. I really found myself liking his character, even though his character is supposed to be almost completely unlikeable. One scene I liked was when Lau Ching Wan literally forces the owner of the inn and her son to go out and have a day of fun with him. It is quite an odd scene. So they go out for the day, and do all types of fun things. For instance Lau Ching Wan shows them what part of a wall he painted while he was in prison. But seriously, there are a lot of good things about this movie. There's one hilarious scene where Lau throws a big fit screaming at the inn owner that his room has been taken. He couldn't have been a bigger baby. She doesn't say a word, politely shows him to his room, and when the door opens, the drunken Lau Ching Wan figures out after a few seconds that he must have been in the wrong room before. Such a great scene. There's some more scenes like that, and that's the main reason the movie is worth watching. Plus you have those great small touches that Johnnie To is known for. Like when the inn owner is cleaning Lau's room, she sees a big pile of money in his drawer, and she shuts the drawer right away. Good scene with good character development for both actors. But then what Johnnie To does is expand on it. About 4 days pass, and she is cleaning his room, and once again sees his drawer open, but this time that big pile of money is nothing but a few bills. Like I said, it's just a small touch.

While this movie isn't that exciting, and it's anything but original, I loved the directing job, the acting, dialogue, the short action scenes, and I found myself laughing outloud at least a few times. Lau Ching Wan + Johnnie To. How can you go wrong with that? You can't. And you also have Lam Suet giving a great performance. This is back when he actually got good roles. Nowadays it seems like he just gets really small roles or cameos in Johnnie To movies. Don't expect a great thriller or something really exciting, just an enjoyable movie.

Ma hei siu chi
(1994)

Only worth watching for a couple of fights
Donnie yen only has a small part in this and Yuen Biao plays the lead. Wu Ma runs a circus and Yuen Biao is his top performer. Because of war going on they have to close the circus. David Lam Wai (co-star of Project A2) plays a clown who becomes a drug addict and ends up getting killed. Now the circus goes to take revenge on drug smugglers.

The movie basically comes down to 2 main fight scenes. Yuen Biao takes on Ken Lo and Donnie Yen fights Bey Logan. The Yuen Biao fight starts out bad but gets a lot better once Ken Lo starts kicking. Then we have Donnie Yen vs. Bey Logan. This is one of the worst fight scenes ever filmed and I kid you not, it is worse than their fight in the Fist of Fury TV series from 2001. I don't think I have ever seen a worse Donnie Yen fight.

Yong zheng yu nian geng yao
(1980)

One of the best kung fu movies ever made
Jimmy Lee stars alongside Norman Chu, Kwan Young Moon and Alan Hsu in this near masterpiece produced by Lo Wai. The story is much more thought out than your average kung fu tale. Even though the movie on a whole is extremely strong, the fighting is what makes it so great. Kwan Young Moon and Jimmy Lee give their single greatest performances, and based on fighting alone, this movie is one of top 10 best kung fu movies ever. The ending is a super intense 17 minute non stop killfest. If you are not a fan of kung fu cinema, this may turn you into one. I don't know how Jimmy Lee didn't become a big star, but he sold every punch and kick so well that I honestly think he should have won an acting award. Unlike movies of today, Rebellious Reign has all the stuff I miss. Countless movements in a single take, stuntmen putting their lives on the line to make the action look good, and an epic story. Kung fu movies don't get any better than this.

Wen da
(1979)

One of Bolo's best performances
This is just an average kung fu movie, except that it is directed by Bolo Yeung and has a dark tone to it. John Chang (the guy who breaks Bruce Lee's back in Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story) plays a scholar who keeps getting ridiculed by his students because he can't fight. Bolo plays an outlaw who has come to town to secretly rob some people of their treasures. The story in this movie is very bad but luckily the kung fu is good. Bolo has 3 awesome fight scenes. Bolo is already such a unique fighter because of his awesome movements and the way he doesn't look at his opponent when fighting, and in this movie he fights while playing a flute. It is absolutely jaw-dropping. This may be Bolo's single greatest performance, and it is too bad that the movie itself isn't very good.

Yu qing ting
(1978)

A good kung fu murder mystery with an allstar cast
Chi Kuan Chun plays a mysterious man who says he has come to town to find his brother's killer. His brother is played by Lo Lieh and he stole some gems before he died and now tons of bad guys are after the gems. Kam Kong plays the super tough police inspector, and Phillip Ko and Yee Yuen play villains. This is not your typical kung fu movie where a guy trains in kung fu to revenge a death. There is no training, and not much revenge. So what is there? There are a bunch of guys going after some gems. This is one of those movies where none of the main characters are good guys. In fact, they are all pretty bad. It is revealed at the end that one person is a good guy, but it makes no sense and I don't even consider it part of the movie.

The fights are good, but nothing special. But, if you watch closely you will see a few brilliant hand to hand exchanges. If you have the Xenon version, check out the exchange between Chi Kuan Chun and Lee Chui (the guy in blue) at the 57:58 minute mark.

The Xenon DVD is full screen and the picture quality is decent. The full screen affects the action, but not enough to ruin the movie. Find a widescreen version if you can. This movie is also known as Murder of Murders.

Kong shou ru bai ren
(1980)

Wilson Tong at his best
this is a pretty basic story, with awesome kung fu. The acrobatic Mung Yuen Men (from Hellz Windstaff) stars as a young man who wants to learn kung fu. He goes to learn from a cook played by Chan Lung, but soon after he starts learning, Chan Lung gets killed. His next teacher is played by Alan Hsu, and once again, right when he starts learning kung fu, his teacher gets killed. I would say that this movie is a bit of a mystery, but I don't want you to go into it expecting a great story. It's a decent story, but the fights are why it's worth watching. Wilson Tong, Chan Lung, Alan Hsu, Lily Li-Li-Li and Mung Yuen Men are all in top form.

Liu xing fei ying
(1980)

Buddha's Palm and Dragon Fist, also known as Roving Heroes (1980)
Chi Kuan Chun is sent to look for a killer. Kuan Chun is a student at Shaolin and Lee I Min is mad that Kuan Chun was chosen to go. The rest of the movie is nonstop fights and comedy with Lee I Min playing jokes on Kuan Chun. It does get serious at times, but there is too much fighting to have a good plot. That's right, TOO MUCH FIGHTING! But I am not complaining, no sir. The fights are the reason I watch these movies. If the fighting wasn't good, then I would have a problem, but luckily the fights are very good. And overall the movie is above average with lots of good comedy. So turn your brain off and enjoy.

The choreography is done by the main villain of the movie Suen Shu Pau. I am guessing Robert Tai also had a hand in the action because I spotted him in the movie. The fighting is very dance like and it is so much fun to watch. There are too many fights to go over, but I will tell you that the final fight is the best. It is fast and furious and 8 minutes long.

She xing zui bu
(1980)

A must see for fans of snake style
The snake style used in this movie makes the snake from 5 Deadly Venoms look like a joke. The first scene is an incredible fight between Fung Hak-on (Last Hurrah for Chivalry) and Wilson Tong (Daggers 8). They are enemies and the match ends with neither being killed.

Ng Kwan Lung stars as a young man who loves kung fu. He is willing to fight anyone who causes trouble. His father is played by Wilson Tong and it is suspected that his father and others are thieves. Fung Hak-on looks to teach the kid kung fu so they can fight the thieves together.

The story is nothing too special, but not bad. I was very surprised by the end of this movie. The kung fu is superb, no doubt about that, but the ending is what bumps this movie up to an 8 star rating. And what other movie will you find a lobster kung fu style? Almost as cool as Yasuaki Kurata's crab style that he uses in Shaolin Challenges Ninja.

All of the actors are amazing kung fu performers. The first fight is probably the best, but there are plenty of other good fights. Chan Wai Man (Blooded Treasury Fight) looks great, Angela Mao Ying (Enter the Dragon) looks just as good as she always does, and Phillip Ko (The Boxer's Omen) never disappoints.

Zhu rou rong
(1979)

Butcher Wing
While there are plenty of Wong Fei Hung movies, this is a story about Wong Fei Hung's most famous disciple, Lam Sai Wing (aka Butcher Wing). It is obvious the lead actor was chosen because he is a little chubby, and he also looks a bit like a pig. He is not much of an actor, but his kung fu skills are decent. He has some good forms and is light on his feet, but his movements are kinda slow. The rest of the actors are good at kung fu and also good at doing comedy, so overall the movie is enjoyable.

Lam Sai Wing (pronounced Au Wing in the movie) is friends with a young man (Han Kwok Choi) and the 2 of them learn from a kung fu teacher (Jason Pai Paio). While Wong Fei Hung is not named, Jason Pai Paio is basically playing the role of Wong Fei Hung. Pai Paio teaches the 2 young men kung fu so they can defend themselves from local goons. When the pair accidentally finds a bunch of opium, they now have to face the evil and powerful Lee Hoi San. The 2 final fights are definitely worth sticking around for. This movie wouldn't be nearly as good if it didn't have the great Lee Hoi San as the villain. He gives one of his better performances and looks nearly invincible. Jason Pai Paio is a dang good kung fu performer, but even he looks like a little boy in his fight against Lee Hoi San. And I love what Mark Pollard says on kungfucinemadotcom about how he is the Christopher Lee of kung fu cinema. Lee Hoi San was in countless movies, and every once in a while he gives an amazing menacing performance like this. He kind of reminded me of Chang Shan in Shaolin Raiders of Death. The good guys do everything they can to beat him, and even after they immobilize him, Lee Hoi San still manages to dish out plenty of final blows before his death.

Huang Fei Hong yu gui jiao qi
(1980)

Magnificent Kick
This is a simple story of 2 girls out for revenge. Han Ying Chieh (the Big Boss from Bruce Lee's first movie) plays the evil government official the girls are after and 2 students of Wong Fei Hung help the girls defeat their enemy. The kung fu action is a little above average and it is literally non stop. Even though the story is extremely simple the movie is still a lot of fun because there is so much fighting. Kong Do has a great cameo fight. I was a bit disappointed that Kwan Tak Hing, Lau Hok Nin and Cheung Lik didn't get more screen time, but there is so much fighting that I can't really complain. The only problem I had was that none of the fights are really great, except maybe the short appearance that Kong Do makes. The final fight is a bit of a letdown.

Get the Brentwood version. It's partly wide and has good picture quality. Much better than the Videoasia version. It comes in a 10 pack called Kung Fu Crusade.

Ninja Terminator
(1986)

A spliced up ninja cheesefest starring Richard Harrison and Hwang Jang Lee
I have seen way too many Joseph Lai/Godfrey Ho ninja movies, and most are completely unwatchable. About 1/10 may have something decent in it. Luckily, Ninja Terminator is one of those in the minority. The dialogue is so bad that it is actually good. It is laugh out loud funny at times, but I don't think it was supposed to be. If you can make it through a script that seems to have been written by a 5 year old, you may be able to make it through this. It doesn't help that this is 3 movies spliced together, and it doesn't make any sense. But if you love bad movies, you can't pass up this masterpiece of horrible cinema. In one scene, the bad guy uses a toy robot to send a message to Richard Harrison. The toy robot arrives with smoke and can talk. Godfrey Ho really wanted to show off his $5 budget. And if you like to see people kick a lot, you will get plenty of that. Jack Lam (named Jaguar Wong in the movie) and Hwang Jang Lee give great kicking displays. Hwang only participates in the final fight, but Jack Lam gets to show off his kicking skills throughout the entire movie.

I have the Videoasia DVD and the picture quality is decent, and the English dubbing is classic. Sometimes a guy will have a redneck voice, and sometimes it will sound like a little kid. Fans of cheesy movies will love this Godfrey Ho classic. "I don't usually smoke this brand, but I'll do it for you."

Du ming zou tian ya
(1978)

Not your average kung fu movie
This is a very dark movie. A man named Minute Fong is an assassin who only kills bad people. He reads their crimes outloud so if they are innocent they can present evidence. By the end of the movie it turns out he was just being tricked by his master (Leung Kar Yan), so therefore he wants revenge on his master. Leung Kar Yan is great as the villain. I don't think I have ever seen him look more evil than this. I would go over how exactly Leung Kar Yan tricks Minute Fong, but I don't want to give away the story because it is actually pretty good.

The fighting is magnificent. I was blown away. The first fight against Wong Chi Sang is good, as is his brother Wong Wing Sang's fight, and then Lung Fei turns it up another notch in his scene. There are 4 more fights before the incredible finale. Minute Fong vs. Leung Kar Yan is one of the best fight scenes I have seen in quite a while.

Minute Fong is played by Man Lee pang. . The only other movie I have seen him in is Kung Fu on Sale where he plays the villain. Although this guy is a nobody, he is one of the best screen fighters I have ever seen.

Most kung fu fans will probably be disappointed by the ending. I won't give it away, but it does correlate with the dark tone that the movie has.

Ah sau ging gat: Si gou aat sin
(1994)

Terrible
This is one of the worst ripoffs of Hard Boiled I have ever seen. Donnie Yen plays the reckless cop and he is after the man who killed his wife. The story is horrible. The cops travel to the Phillipines to find the killer of one of their informants. When they get there Donnie finds the guy who killed his wife and looks to take revenge. Roy Cheung is always good as a villain and he does a fine job here. The musclebound Frankie Chin plays a henchman, and for some reason Frankie Chin's character just disappears at the end of the movie with no explanation.

The action was a big disappointment. The gunplay is some of the worst I have ever seen and there is only one good fight scene. The fight in the bar is the only one I liked and it is also the hardest fight to see because of the terrible lighting. Or maybe that's just because I have the crappy Videoasia DVD. The final fight is trash. Everything is visible and it is a horrible fight. Some people like the final fight, but I can't figure out why. This movie is highly not recommended.

Da lui toi
(1983)

"Chop down a forest for fire tomorrow"
Wow, this movie is really out there. A lot drug use, weird murder scenes, and a shot of Wang Lung Wei's behind (not my type of thing, but I figure some ladies out there would want to know).

In a setting somewhat similar to Mel Gibson's The Road Warrior, Johnny Wang Lung Wei and Ray Lui play friends who train all day to fight some Neo Nazis. And Eddy Ko has a nice role as their master. This is definitely not a well made movie, but I loved it. It's one of Wang Lung Wei's best fighting performances, and there's just something about seeing him in a black rain coat going off on people that gets me excited. A lot of his punches and kicks actually connect. I can't even count how many times I said "ouch" outloud. The choreography is done 80's Hong Kong kickboxing style, and it fits Wang Lung Wei like a glove. The bottomline is, if you are a fan of Wang Lung Wei, you have to see this. You won't be disappointed with his performance, trust me.

The Tai Seng DVD is full screen and the picture quality is actually pretty decent. But there's one big problem. The movie seems to be heavily cut. I've heard about an original version under the name Health Warning, so I would advise seeking that out.

Xing mu zi gu huo zhao
(1979)

Not one of the best kung fu movies, but still good
Steve Tung Wei stars as a young man named Kung Fu Chin. He really wants to be a great kung fu fighter and tries to learn as many styles as he can. The 2 teachers he is learning from have become rivals, and he has also found a 3rd teacher. Sammo Hung plays the 3rd teacher and tells Kung Fu Chin that kung fu is like food, eat all that you can as long as it's good. So while Kung Fu Chin is learning all the kung fu he can, Phillip Ko has a plan to kill the 2 rival teachers. He sends in 2 spies and says they are his sons.

Nothing much happens in this movie, it is just your standard kung fu flick where a kid gets picked on, learns kung fu, and then takes revenge. The training sequences are some of the best I have ever seen. Tung Wei can do things with his body that made me cringe. I only wish I was a tenth as flexible as him.

The final 25 minutes is non-stop action. It is missing the intensity, but the choreography is certainly there. It's a shame they didn't put much into the fighting until the last few fights. At least it was a nice surprise to see so many good fights after so many average ones. Sammo looks brilliant, Phillip Ko looks as good as he always does, and Lee Hoi San and Steve Tung Wei also do great work. Lee Hoi San's performance comes close to matching his work in Magnificent Butcher. Austin Tin Chi Wai has a good cameo where he fights Sammo, but still, the kung fu is just lightweight. Only in Phillip Ko's fight did I get a real feeling of excitement. If you are looking for hardcore kung fu action with Tung Wei, check out Killer Wears White (AKA Shadow Ninja) which can be found in the Martial Arts 50-Pack. Killer Wears White is fast, furious, and downright brutal. Incredible Kung Fu Master is just a walk in the park. This is a kung fu movie the kids can watch.

Saat sau kwong lung
(2002)

Not even Sammo can save this
This is about as bad as it gets. Sammo raised a group of kids and is their Godfather. He has them kill people for him. So the real heart of the story that were left with is the interractions between this group of 20 year olds. Prepare to be bored out of your mind. I watched this with a friend and we had the sound down at the end and were doing our own dubbed voices. We had to do something, because the movie is unwatchable. Sammo gets some brief action at the beginning and end, but other than that the movie is a complete waste of time.

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Fen zhu chi lao hu
(1980)

Master Killers
This movie starts out really really bad, but if you can make it through the first hour, you are in for a real treat. I'm not going to go over the horrible story, because it's just not worth it. The reason to get this is to see Bolo Yeung give a good fighting performance, and the final fight is one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. Phillip Ko is in top form (which means your jaw will drop and smash right through the floor), and he takes on Blacky Ko and Cassanova Wong. It's 12 minutes of pure bliss.

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Da can quan
(1979)

Ninja Supremo aka Crippled Kung Fu Boxer
Cliff Lok stars as a troublemaker who gets sent to learn kung fu from Goo Chang. This movie has a ton of training, right up until the final fights. And the final 2 fights take up the last 20 minutes of the movie. Ma Chin Ku and Choi Wang are the villains, and they really get to shine. They are crippled at the start of the movie, and come back for revenge at the end. Ma Chin Ku is a hunchback, and Choi Wang holds his hands out awkwardly in front of him and his hands are always shaking. These 2 are why the movie is worth watching. They are perfect for these roles. And I have always liked Goo Chang, so I enjoyed his role a lot. And Cliff Lok is good just like he usually is. It's not a great kung fu movie, but definitely worth watching for oldschool fu fans.

Picture quality on the Tai Seng DVD is fine. Pretty much the same quality as all the other Martial Arts Theater releases. The English dubbing is pretty good

Wu hu tu long
(1970)

Action packed
If you have seen Shadow Whip, then get ready for more of the same. Long fight scenes, and lots of them. Directed by Lo Wei, once again the story is about as simple as it gets. The beautiful Cheng Pei Pei is on a quest for revenge. She wants to gather the 5 Gao brothers so that they can take revenge on the all powerful villain played by Tien Feng. The Gao brothers are played by Lo Lieh, Yueh Hua, Chang Yi, Chin Han and Kao Yuen. So the story is simple, and boring at times. But, the action is pretty awesome, especially for 1970. There are sooooo many fight scenes. And on top of that, some of the fights go on for so long that you actually begin to wonder if they are ever going to end. If there is one thing I didn't like about the fights it's that some of them go on too long. And I thought the final fight was a bit disappointing, but that's only because I like some of the other fights so much. So why are some of the fights so good? The first thing that struck me is how long they go without cutting. And the cinematography is as good as it gets and makes the fights way better than they would be in most low budget movies. The Shaw Brothers really went all out on this to please fight fans. And Chang Yi is magnificent in this movie, and you can tell that he is way more skilled than the other 4 Gao brothers. He has some amazing fights. And I have to mention Cheng Pei Pei. I love the scene where Lo Lieh rescues Kao Yuen and Cheng Pei Pei steps in front of like 50 guys so that they can get away and she slices them up like butter.

One more note on the action. The undercranking is distracting at times, but for the most part I thought it was well done and helped the fight scenes. And in case you are wondering, the action was done by Simon Chui and Sammo Hung. Sammo has a cameo as an escort (he's a bit hard to spot). The minute or so of fighting that he does is pretty decent, and he gets a great death scene. And Ku Feng, Wong Hap and Lee Ka Ting star as villains. And look for a cameo by Unicorn Chan at the start of the movie. He uses this huge gold flying fork thing as a weapon.

Picture quality on the Well Go USA DVD is great. The audio is a problem though. They decided to use the Celestial 5.1 remixed audio instead of the original mono. The sound effects are horrible. I almost turned the movie off because of the sound effects, but the worst of it seems to occur in the first few fights, and it isn't as bad the rest of the movie.

Secret War
(2003)

Typical dollar bin garbage
I just wanted to do a quick review to warn people about this horrible movie that was made without anyone knowing about it. I knew it was going to be bad when I read on the back of the DVD case- "with K.C. Armstrong and Jim Florentine from The Howard Stern Show and Crank Yankers". Not that I don't enjoy these guys work, especially Florentine, but when your main selling point for an action movie is 2 not so well known comedians, then, well, I guess it just reminds me how much of an idiot I am for buying this movie. Anyways, the script is as bad as it gets, the acting is OK, and there is literally nothing good about the fights. The main problem is that the lead actor (some Korean guy) is very short, and his kicks don't look that powerful, and he can't kick high. The only reason I got this movie is because Bobby Samuels is listed as action director on the back of the DVD. He gets a fight scene, and after that I gave up. I couldn't take it and I turned it off about halfway through. Truly one of the worst movies I have ever seen.

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