Kang-Yeh Cheng
Blood Brothers
Made at the peak of the martial arts film craze, "Blood Brothers" stands out against the run-of-the-mill kung-fu flicks that flooded the market in the 1970s. It would be hard to find more legendary names in front of and behind the camera: director Chang Cheh, who virtually reinvented the genre; the brilliant martial arts choreography by Liu Chia-liang, before he himself embarked on a directorial career; and the number one buddy team in kung-fu, Ti Lung and David Chiang, joined by Shaw Brothers newest superstar, Chen Kuan-tai. Set in the waning years of the Ching Dynasty, Blood Brothers tells of one of the most sensational scandals in Chinese history, the assassination of a provincial governor (Ti Lung) by his lieutenant and sworn brother (David Chiang). Ti Lung, in a complex role that allowed him to flex his thespian muscles, was honored with Golden Horse Award of Outstanding Performance.
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Apple iTunes
Dragon Lord
Dragon og Bull fordriver det meste av tiden med å cruise rundt og sjekke opp damer. Særlig én, som Dragon er ekstra betatt av. Etter et mislykket forsøk på å sende henne et kjærlighetsbrev havner radarparet uventet på taket av hovedkvarteret til en kriminell bande. Banden stjeler dyrebare relikvier fra byens tempel for å smugle dem videre til grådige kjøpere i Vesten. Men Dragon og Bull føler plikten kalle, og bestemmer seg for å ta opp kampen mot banden.
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Flying Guillotine 2
In 1975, Ho Meng-hua, master of the “esoteric weapon” kung-fu thriller, started an international sensation with The Flying Guillotine. But while he went on to direct such further “crazy cutlery” hits as The Dragon Missile, popular demand insisted upon a sequel to the original decapitator-on-a-chain. So, first, they got a script by a trio of writers, featuring a new, improved “Ring-Chain Flying Guillotine” and the only weapon that can stop it, the “Toothed Wheel”. Next they matched Cheng Kang, the director of their popular true crime thriller The Criminals, with Hua Shan, the director of their superheroes Super Inframan, to double-team the project. Then they cast some of the best martial arts actors in their repertory – all ably choreographed by the often unsung, but universally respected Tang Chia. Finally they filmed Ti Lung as a fugitive from the emperor’s cruelty, against the whole F.G. gang in a blade-on-blade battle to the headless death!
Apple TV
Executioners From Shaolin
Film lovers and critics went out of their way to praise this Liu Chia-liang version of the Shaolin destruction and revenge epic. Many called it the preeminent kung-fu director’s best and certainly his greatest on the theme of history, martial arts, and family. Little wonder, since, beyond the Shaolin story, it also shows how Liu’s own family style of kung-fu, Hung Fist, was created. There are unforgettable sequences throughout, highlighted by Hung Hsi-kuan (the mighty Chen Kuan-tai) and Fang Yung-chun’s (the wonderful Lily Li) wedding night … where the lovers inexorably test their Tiger and Crane kung-fu styles in a symbolic treatment of a couple’s power struggles. Almost equally unforgettable are the training sequences and a full three titanic confrontations with the White-Browed Hermit (the impressive Lo Lieh), betrayer of the Temple. The critics were right: Liu has out-done himself…as usual!
Apple TV
The Duel
In the days before Bruce Lee became a superstar, the greatest heroes in Hong Kong cinema were not just one man, but two: the majestic Ti Lung and the charismatic David Chiang, who were made stars by Chang Cheh. The year after they exploded into superstardom in the director’s landmark teen rebellion action film, Vengeance, they returned in this mano-a-mano classic which contained many of themes that made them famous. A wealthy man is murdered. An adopted son struggles with familial fears. A mysterious, charming, streetwise knight-errant named “Rambler” always turns up in the nick of time. The two protagonists distrust each other until they survive a trial by fire (and fists). Then, side by side, they must face dozens of duplicitous killers from without and within. With the support of action choreographer Liu Chia-liang, this “Iron Triangle” of a director and his two stars creates another winner.
Apple TV