Executioners from Shaolin

This is an almost epic tale of fighter and son trying to avenge the death of the old shaolin master, fighting the evil master, infused with humor and style it follows the flight from the evil Pai Mei and his henchmen, disguising as theatre troups performing Shaolin Kung Fu shows for a period and the tiger-style fighter Hsi-Kuan settles down with a crane-style fighting wife and have a son to prepare for epic battles with Pai Mei. Hsi-Kuan's and Yung Chung's marriage and wedding night on board a boat is a very funny highlight of the film. Telling more about what happens would be telling too much, but the battles with Pai Mai are spectacularly set. 7/10

Thank God for Celestial Entertainment's re-releasing of this classic! Okay, the plot is rather straightforward, and not terribly original (a revenge theme in a Martial arts movie. Nope, never seen that before!) But it is very well acted, very well directed and damn if the fight scenes aren't excellent.

Basically, it follows the historic destruction of the Shaolin Temple by the Manchus. The assault is led by Pai Mei, (yup, the same Pai Mei from Kill Bill 2, in fact, Bill even talks about this in that movie) played by Lo Lieh. Gordon Liu who played Pai Mei in Kill Bill 2, appears briefly as a Shaolin student who informs Hong Xiguan (played by Chen Kuan Ti) that Pai Mei killed their master. Gordon Liu sacrifices himself so that Hong and some of the other students may escape.

A few years later, Hong, hiding out as a Peking Opera performer, meets and marries another Martial Artist, played by Lily Li. They eventually have a child. But Hong cannot enjoy married life for too long, because he still has to train to avenge his master and his fellow students.

A good example of vintage Kung Fu films. Not to be missed by any Kung Fu film connoisseur.

I had only just watched "Clan of the White Lotus" a month or two back, which could be seen (well in my eyes) as a more accomplished rehash of this particular period martial arts enterprise. Nonetheless the similarities in the story's structure (which is hard to pass by) doesn't matter because the Shaw Brothers and director Chia-Liang Liu along with actor Lieh Lo as the Kung Fu Master Pai Mei and minor cameo by Chia Hui Liu makes this one very enjoyable, downright flamboyant and utterly unique cult martial arts feature with a good sense of humour abound and dashing action. Pai Mei had just killed a Shoalin priest and surviving students led by Hung Hsi Kuan (ably acted by Kuan Tai Chen) vow vengeance for their master's death and that of fellow students. And it's no rush either. As Hung happily marries a strong-minded lady (a perfectly pitched Lily Li) who's well developed in the crane-style fighting and has a son while spending many years perfecting the skills and stamina of the tiger-style fighting before taking on master white brow. Cheng Kang-Yeh provides a cheeky performance as one the Shoalin students and Wang Yu is quite good as the grown up son. The pacing can be rather bumpy (especially in the leisured midsection concentrating more on the trivial aspects in the character dramas that hold the narrative), but when it came down to the atypical fighting it was excitingly displayed with verve-like camera-work working around the smooth, but tough choreography with numerous, long encounters. Maybe repetitive but never dull, although the ending is a little disappointing in the way it just seems to finish hastily.

This movie is a great Shaw Bros. pic, except I liked the remake Fists of the White Lotus a bit better. Still they're both great, especially Master White Brows aka Pai Mai and Lau Kar Leung's intense choreography.

This movie is dark and there's little comedy which effectively sets up the revenge theme (a revenge theme in a kung fu flick?) to help motivate our hero from Shaolin. Tai Chen Kuan as Hung Hsi Kuan shows formidable Tiger Claws style and some neat training sequences with bronze statues and vital point strikes. BUT, I really loved watching Ying Chun (Li Li) and her crane style. Man, if you're going out with her, you better be able to break her leg stance! Plus, her effort and grace in movements are as good as Kara Hui's in Fists of the White Lotus. It's a strange, yet wonderfully hypnotic combination of kung fu and dance.

Now, the action. What do you expect from the real deal kung fu master Lau Kar Leung? Countless opponents, one on many battles, quick strikes, and amazing choreography are the strong points here. Pai Mai's battles are so awesome that he really seems invincible. I can't get enough of him dragging guys along with his groin! One of the strangest, yet highly entertaining kung fu villains ever. Plus, Lo Lieh mastered that menacing look that says, "You want to fight me? Are you kidding??" Strangely enough, I wasn't really rooting against him.

The only downside I can find with this one is that Gordon Liu only makes a brief cameo. However, Gordon Liu is the main star in Fists of the White Lotus AND he battles Lo Lieh as the menacing White Lotus. So, watch both films because they're the great stuff that SB movies are made of.

The Shaw Brothers have made a bunch of kung fun movies in their lifetimes, not a single one has left me bored. In "Executioners from Chaplin", a couple bore a son whose father is trained in Tiger Boxing and a mother in Crane style. The son learns crane style kung fun, but he doesn't learn the tiger style until his father loses his life battling the eunuch tyrant Pai Mei(Lieh Lo). This brutal fighter has made his way killing anyone who would challenge his fighting style. He killed the father's master, he's killed the ones who's avenging him. So it's up to the son to get his revenge. Spending all his life learning to be warrior, he sets out to seek Pai Mei. Both men learn how to find Pai Mei's vitals. They were no good in the nether regions. And unlike his father, he was successful on getting PaI Mei. I think this movie has got a little humor in it as well. Before the son was born, the couple made their way following a side show when they met. The brothers kept their fighting skills intact throughout their lives. This movie was very entertaining, and very fun to watch. I found nothing to complain about here. A true gem here. 2 stars