Shaolin and Wu Tang

1983 [CHINESE]

Action

Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 86%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 86% · 1K ratings
IMDb Rating 7.0/10 10 1098 1.1K

martial arts kung fu revenge

Plot summary

Master Liu and Master Law are rival masters of Shaolin style kung fu, and Wudang style sword fighting, running schools in the same city. Their top students, Chao Fung-wu, and Hung Jun-kit, are actually close friends. After observing the two students fighting at a brothel, the Lord determines that the two styles are dangerous, and he must learn both.

Director

Chia-Hui Liu Photo
Chia-Hui Liu

Top cast

Li Ching Photo
Li Ching as Yue Lam
Elvis Tsui Photo
Elvis Tsui as Reverend Fa-Chau
Han Chiang Photo
Han Chiang as Master Liu
Chia-Hui Liu Photo
Chia-Hui Liu as Hung Yung-Kit
720p.WEB
805.9 MB
1280*592
Chinese 2.0
NR
Subtitles cn  
25 fps
1 hr 27 min
Seeds ...

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by 6 / 10

A Shaw film in all but name

Reviewed by 7 / 10

Grindhouse 101

Reviewed by 6 / 10

Not quite the classic it's purported to be

This 1983 actioner marks kung fu superstar Gordon Liu's directorial debut. Unfortunately, it also commemorates the moment at which the Shaolin trend in Hong Kong cinema became a schtick. Several of the training sequences from "The Thirty-Sixth Chamber of Shaolin" are re-enacted (Li Hai-sheng even returns as the contentious monk who, with his butterfly swords, challenges Gordon Liu's character), but they're divorced from the emotional impact they had in the earlier film. "Thirty-Sixth Chamber" was a martial arts movie, yes, but also a story about the triumph of the human spirit; "Shaolin and Wu Tang" is just a series of fight scenes woven together by a thin plot. Great fight scenes, certainly, but only that.Gordon Liu plays the senior pupil of a Shaolin-style master. His best friend, the senior pupil of a master of the Wu Tang sword, is portrayed by Adam Cheng. A treacherous Manchu lord (Wang Lung-wei) pits the young friends against one another: Liu's resolve takes him to Shaolin Temple, where he becomes a monk, trains in the Buddhist fighting arts (first-hand this time) and vows to wipe out the Wu Tang school; Cheng, meanwhile, is detained at a Taoist monastery and learns the finer points of his sword style from the priests there. Will the two friends realize that they have been manipulated by the Manchu lord before they injure or even kill each other?Characterization is sketchy, the drama almost entirely unconvincing. People die, but no one ever seems particularly distraught about it. Because the tragic events in the film are handled so awkwardly, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was watching mediocre community theatre. Granted, this isn't going to bother most viewers...but, on the basis of its reputation, I expected something more from "Shaolin and Wu Tang." Six stars for the fight scenes, dazzlingly choreographed by Liu Chia-liang.
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