Shaolin Traitorous
Director: Sung Ting-mei
Year: 1976
Rating: 7.0
The revenge plot in the film is as standard as
they come, but that was basically the heart of martial arts films. What matters
is how good is the revenge and here it is pretty terrific. All straight-ahead
kung fu with no tricky weapons or unorthodox styles. Just people trying to
kill one another with blows or finger thrusts to the head, heart or chest.
The choreography from Chan Cheun (The Boxer from Shantung, King Boxer, When
Taekwondo Strikes) and Ko Pao (The Female Chivalry, The Lady Constables)
is fierce, fast, well-timed and relentless with no flourishes or fancy acrobatics.
And there is a lot of it beginning right from the start. A solid cast with
the Astaire and Rogers of Taiwanese kung fu films, Carter Huang and Polly
Shang-kuan. They were in a lot of films together and are always good to watch.
Carter rarely shows much personality, but Polly is all feisty pouty personality.
Throw in the always reliable white haired villain Chang Yi and his vicious
right-hand man, Sammo Hung, also white-haired. Yes, Sammo playing a very
bad guy. But he was on his way - the next year he was to direct his first
film, The Iron-Fisted Monk. He had been doing choreography since the last
1960s but is not credited for it here.
In charge of the Royal Guards, Chang Yi
rides up to a small farm with his troops and his killers, Sammo and Huang
Fei-lung, and in a good fight they kill the elderly father, his son and the
son's wife - with Sammo gouging her eyes out. Not really sure why but as
far as they are concerned that is the end of the Yangs. Ha! Little do they
know but the small son has been watching from cover and you know what comes
next. He gets into the Shaolin Temple by kneeling for three days in front
of the temple before they let him in. To work in the kitchen but the cook
teaches him kung fu - the buckets of water up the many steps and jumping
out of a mud ditch. And in 22 minutes, we have Carter ready for revenge.
It doesn't take long. He arrives at an inn
where the Royal Guards are arresting an old man and his family and he sends
them all to the infirmary. I hope they have insurance. Meanwhile, back
at the Guard's headquarters, Polly walks in with a challenging look in her
eye and starts walloping them one after another as Chang Yi looks on. Then
in a very cool set piece, Sammo begins drumming and all the guards create
an impenetrable wall of men - six standing on the ground, six on top of their
shoulders and then five on top of them and Sammo's drumming instructs them
what to do as they constantly jump down and then back up. It was the highlight
of the film.
Turns out Polly is his adopted daughter
and she says she will go teach this guy a lesson. Watch me dad. I will show
him. Well, he is Shaolin trained! Like most women is kung fu films, when
she loses, she begins to fall in love. Lots of action ahead. Sammo has one
good one on one with Carter and the finale is as always impressive. This
video was in Mandarin with subs and decent widescreen quality. Nice to come
across one of these old Taiwanese martial arts films in decent condition.
They made so many of these but there are so few in pristine condition. I
got this off of YouTube.
