Classic review- 1979 film Crane Fighter aka Champ of Champs

Flying Fists of Kung Fu is a 12 film compilation set spread across four DVD's . with rare Kung Fu films from the smaller studios in Hong Kong ,Taiwan in the 70's 80's.

All of the transfers may not be great as many are from VHS or poor quality prints, but to see the films featured on disc ,this is the only way.

Unlike films from the same time from the big studios which get remastered releases ,well in the far east at least.

Some of the films may not be cutting edge or have the cult status as the maybe the film before it on the same disc.

But as introduction to the more not easy to find films this compilation is a good bargain for some chop- socky action.

Starring Judy Lee Ling Chia

Raymond Liu

Directed By : Raymond Liu

The Crane Fighter – 1979

For our first review from this 12 film compilation 3 disc set we look at one of the highlights of the whole set, that's not to say other films in the set are bad ,but The Crane Fighter is a film worth having the set for. Especially when the price of the set is only slightly higher then buying a copy of the The Crane Fighter by it self..

First things first though , as is often the case with these type of compilation sets , I would not go expecting high quality remastered prints with all the trimmings you may find on a disc from say Dragon Dynasty or the Sword Masters label.

This is due mostly in part to the fact that most of these independent films from Hong Kong,Taiwan from the 70's and 80's have never been treated to such luxury.

So what we have here is a English dubbed print which is pan and scanned and looks like it's taken from a VHS transfer. But that won't spoil the enjoyment of the film to much I'm sure.

If watched on a big screen or a projector in a 4.3 format it will just be like your back in time watching the film in some seedy late night cinema with sticky seats and the odd tramp snoozing in the corner and maybe the odd smell of pee.

With it's grainy screen and speckles it like you entered a time machine ..

The film in question is a true classic and one that most should view if they have not.

Judy Lee Chia Ling plays Ping erh , a daughter of a exiled Shaolin master , along with with his brother they have lived in secret , never showing the knowledge of Shaolin Kung Fu and there specialty ,The Crane Fist style.

Ping secretly learns the art with her father kept in the dark.

But when she ends up showing her technique when coming up against a abusive monk she ends up putting her family s and her-selves life in danger.

What makes matters worse is when the son of a local magistrate decides he wants to marry her it causes other problems, what's worse is the son is a nut case who has trained in a special style of Kung Fu which has sent him insane, basically he has become a overly large humped back man that acts like a five year old on drugs .Plus he has that brilliantly annoying stupid voice that seems to be the norm for these films from the 70's and 80's that decided they needed to add some comedy to the proceedings.

But aside from him we also have a mystery man who comes to the rescue to help Ping and her family on a number of occasions. Referred to as Busy Body in the film the character played by Raymond Liu is also a excellent fighter.

Judy Lee gets to show some excellent kicks and feats in what is one of her starring roles, trained in acrobats and fighting from a young age Judy also entered Peking Opera to finish of her training.

Between 1972 and 1982 she made around forty films ,many of which are hard to come by now. So it's a joy to see even this low quality print getting a release in any form.

The film culminates into a a series of well crafted fight scenes , all directed and choreographed by co- star Raymond Liu.

In the end it will be the Manchu against the Shaolin , where Ping and her new found love Busy Body will take on the Manchu in a fight to regain Shaolin's honour .

The film offers some side stories as well with Busy Body helping out a young girl and her father , and a fight tournament where Ping decides the only man that can marry her is one who can beat her at Kung Fu.

But in the end your be watching for one thing only and that's Judy Lee kicking butt in what many consider her best role .

I myself can't really make that decision on watching this film alone , though I think I have seen Kung Fu Queen aka Queen Boxer but not much else .

As a stand alone independent Kung Fu film from the 70's The Crane Fighter is a one of those must see films and be prepared to hit that rewind button to catch all the action.

Take one of the score if you don't like the fact that the only available print is a VHS transfer.

Score out of Ten = 7

Review Date : August 25^th 2014

Review By : Sertes Nake 

Review of Chinese film ''A Touch of Sin'' from 2013.

Touch of Sin – 2013

Chinese cinema has become more mainstream in the West in recent years , for years the West has indulged in the many films from Hong Kong,Taiwan..

But as China becomes more in line with the West ,their film makers are venturing into genres and stories which one may have not seen twenty years ago.

Of course China is still a Communist country and some subjects in film are still scrutinised heavily before films are allowed to be screened in the region.

Director ,Writer Jia Zhangke is a student of the Beijing Film Academy and one of China's new lights in Chinese cinema. . Jia flms have met with critical praise not just in the East but in the West to.

Unlike Jia's previous works Touch of Sin ventures more into a dynamic piece of cinema then he is known for. Even though the film is actually based on four events which actually took place in modern day China within the last two decades. .

Bonding the stories into one film is quite clever as though there is no connection between them in reality Jia uses the geographical borders of each of the stories locations to loosely attach one to the other. These connections are quite vague and your have to be vigilant to notice them.

Jia has based his film on four events which vary from violent crime , revenge , and the way large corporations make money at the expense of their employees safety or working conditions.

Jia fuses these into a intriguing two hours which will shock and dumbfound you , combined the stories have elements evident in many Wuxia films of the 70's . Hence the title which shares a resemblance to King Hu's classic 'A Touch of Zen'' ..

Though the film had been cleared for release in China in 2013 , it then became known that the film was put on hold and Chinese media where instructed not to comment or do interviews about the film.

The base line for all the four stories is how the working class of China are persecuted and often treated as second class citizens by the new elite rich which often have connections with organised crime.

Of course the subject matter is one that China does not want being shown to it's cinema goers .

But with I bit of web browsing you find that the stories that the film is based on are actually far worse then you have believe from the film. Usually fact based dramas are often exaggerated to add that bit of suspense to the proceedings , if anything Touch of Sin is UN-exaggerated , probably so it had a chance to get a actual release in the Mainland.

Touch of Sin is also a film which gives you a false comfort ,especially with the first story which for me offered some quite comical moments before it unleashes it's fury at the screen , this continues through out the next couple of stories ending with a somewhat sad and depressing end story.

I am trying hard to to spoil the films content as any film which only has a half hour or so to tell a story there's only so much that can be done in film to portray that story.

But once you have viewed the film please look up the events that inspired the film and your find that the reality is a far worse scenario then you could imagine ..

The film is based on the events named below.

Hu Wenhai (2001)

Zhou Kehua (2004-2012)
Deng Yujiao incident (2009, female)
Foxconn suicides (2007-2013)

Touch of Sin is one of the must see films emerging from China's Mainland , it's content may be violent and depressing at times but it is a engaging film that mesmerises at times and then shocks you the next.

Score out of Ten = 9

Review by Sertes Nake

Date December 2014.

The Karate Kid coming to London in October

Yes folks Ralph Macchio star of the original Karate Kid films with the late Pat Morita is coming to London to meet the fans. 

Showmasters London Film and Comic Con Winter will play host to the Star where fans can get that autograph or photo they have always wanted.

The date - 18th and 19th October at Earls Court 2 in London. 

Visit the site to book those tickets. LFCCW

The Original film is a classic from 1984

Master Hwang Jung Lee in the UK / Eastern Heroes return / Kung Fu back in Vogue

Yes it's true i have probably neglected this blog , this is mainly due to being quite busy and spending any spare time making sure the main site stays up to date. But i will try and update more often then not. 

Well of course since my last post here ,we have been busy at shows and events ,reviewed many films and even showcased a special on the Classic Shaw Brothers films in our Spring of Shaw Special , which was a lot of fun to do .

But our latest news is that Master Hwang Jung Lee ( Silver Fox ) and villainous star of films like Drunken Master and Snake in Eagles Shadow with Jackie Chan , Ninja in the Dragons Den ,No Retreat No Surrender 2 and so many more landed in the UK last week to attend the Strength and Combat show in London's Greenwich at the London Soccer Dome.


 

Master Hwang Jung Lee in the UK

In association with 90's Far East film experts Eastern Heroes who have entered the fray once more and relaunched themselves with style by arranging the visit of Hwang Jung Lee.  

There will be site feature up on site in a  few days with many photos. 

We also have some reviews in coming in the form of  classic 1979 film The Crane Fighter with Judy Lee , and a couple of Hwang Jung Lee classics to commemorate the event.

Live now is our feature on July's London  Hyper Japan show ,which actually spreads three articles across two sites. ,don't forget for the full picture visit the main site as this blog is run just to let you all know what's incoming. And I'll promise i will try and keep it up to date more often.

Hyper Japan 2014 was a cracking event ,Martial arts,Culture,Music,Games and more!

Hiroki the Masked Ninja performs at Hyper Japan 2014

Sertes Nake.

Jakkalan (จั๊กกะแหล๋น) Trailer (Eng sub) HD

Jeeja
in the film she made before Tom Yum Goong 2, ,Also stars Pechtai
Wongkamlao who directs as well. Oh and if you want to own this on DVD or
Bluray with English subtitles ,it's out now on Region 1 DVD (USA) under
the title ''This Girl is Badass''

Janna Vernunft bei Wetten dass..? mit Jackie Chan / Jackie on German Chat Show.

Jackie shows how easy it is to break some concrete blocks while holding a egg in the hand. The young girl demonstrating first breaks the blocks but also breaks the egg. Jackie of course shows the technique to not break the egg , oh and he speaks German. Is there nothing he can't do?

From China to Berlin in one night at Terracotta Film Festival

With the London Terracotta Far East Film Festival under way and on it's fourth day at the Prince Charles Cinema in London i thought i would update to let you know what films we have been present at. 

The opening film Cold War which showed on Thursday was a sell out and we just missed getting tickets,but we will review the film on DVD.

So Friday we got to attend the screening og South Korean film Young Gun in the Time ,it's a fun Sci-fi comedy shot on a budget,it showed that even small film makers can make great entertainment. Review on site soon.

A sci-fi action film with a difference.

On Saturday we saw Johnnie To's Drug War ,which is a Hong Kong /China production which deals with the harsh realities of the drug trade.

Also on Saturday we got to see South Korean film The Berlin File which is the new film from City of Violence director Ryu Seung Wan (sometimes spelt Ryoo Seung Wan) .

THE BERLIN FILE

Director Ryu Seung Wan ( Center) at Terracotta Film Festival on Saturday June 8th

It is a intriguing espionage thriller which speeds along like a runaway train. The crowd enjoyed it and even more so with director Ryu Seung Wan in attendance for a Q&A.

Where be back with more from the festival next week.