The end was near for Movietown. While Shaw Brothers had been a theatrical powerhouse since the ’50s, the studio made a major shift at the end of 1985. They were no longer kings of the Asian box office. Golden Harvest (run by form Shaw Brother employees) dominated the market with Jackie Chan. Shaw’s own young star Alexander Fu Sheng had died in 1983 in a car accident. While smaller studios were bringing action to the modern Hong Kong, Shaw Brothers kept making period pieces. Making matters worse was the rampant bootlegging of Shaw Brothers films. Instead of declaring bankruptcy, Shaw got full invested in the television business. The studio’s massive Movietown complex was renamed TV City. This boxset contains 12 films that were released from 1980 to 1984 by the studio. While the studio would change, the movies had all the excitement, glamour and fearsome weaponry fans had always enjoyed. Half of the films in the Shaw Brothers Classics Vol. 4 boxset were directed by the legendary Chang Cheh with his Venom Mob members. Also included are the only three films directed by Chia Tang, who was best known for his fight work.
Legend of the Fox (1980 – 128 minutes) is the first of the film in the collection featuring Venom Mob members being directed by Chang Cheh. None of them are the legendary Flying Fox. Chin Siu-ho (Ten Tigers of Kwantung) plays Hu Fei, who is being looked after by his uncle. One rainy night, he learns the truth about who made him an orphan and what happened to the two vital pages in his father’s fighting manual. Hu Fei decides to take out his revenge on them and becomes the Flying Fox. The Venom Mob members here include Philip Kwok, Lu Feng and Chiang Sheng. Along with the numerous fights and swords flung around, there’s a slot of colorful toxic powders blown at fighters. The best fight involves the uses of a metal chains being swung like a lethal game of Double Dutch. The film has a Mandarin soundtrack in DTS-HD MA Mono.
The Rebel Intruders (1980 – 99 minutes) has refugees pouring into the city seeking safety from the Republic Civil War. The head of the city (Crippled Avengers‘ Lu Feng) assigns Wong Lik, Yang Hsiung and Sun Chien to handle the borders while he controls the Southern border. monitors its Southern border. Their individual armies have their own unique uniforms. While the head is nice to the displaced citizens, the other three treat the refugees as people they can treat like trash, torture and do more horrific things. Three refugees (Venom Mob members Philip Kwok, Lo Mang and Chaing Sheng) join together as blood brothers. Things get bad when they are set up as patsies in a plot to turn over the city to an enemy. Can they protect the city and their fellow refugees? Seeing how this is a Venom Mob film, Chang Cheh is naturally the director. Cheh delivers plenty of battle with his team of stars. There’s a cool moment when a fighter wears a pair of metal Hulk fists. The film has both Mandarin and English soundtracks in DTS-HD MA Mono.
Two Champions of Shaolin (1980 – 106) will seem different depending which language you want to hear. If you selective the Mandarin track, you’ll be hearing about the Wudang Sect. When you pick the English dub, you’ll be hearing and reading about the Wu Tang Clan. Choose wisely if you have someone watching with you that will constantly be asking when is RZA, GZA or Method Man showing up. There group showing up in this film once more is the Venom Mob. Lo Meng is part of the Shaolin Temple. He’s given the task of taking out the Wu Tang Clan and the Qing Empire along with other students including fellow venom Chiang Sheng. Later Lu Feng shows up, but is he on the side of his fellow Venoms? The film was once more directed by Chang Cheh and delivers the action expected from his crew. The film has both Mandarin and English soundtracks in DTS-HD MA Mono.
Black Lizard (1981 – 86 minutes) features the legend of a thousand-year-old lizard that is able to assume human form every three years. Why does it get to do such a transformative miracle? To track down and kill a person to keep living that thousand-year life. Derek Yee Tung-Sing (Heroes Shed No Tears) learns of the lizard monster from his new bride played by Helen Poon (Crippled Avengers). He’s got to go away for two years so he returns to the town when the lizard is ready to feast. This is great mix of martial arts and the supernatural. Director Yuen Chor (Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan) keeps up the spooky nature of the tale. The film has both Mandarin and English soundtracks in DTS-HD MA Mono.
Masked Avengers (1981 – 91 minutes) has director Chang Cheh turning up the violence in his films. A gang of masked men that are skilled with tridents have been terrorizing a region as hired killers. But they don’t merely kill their victims. The final members of a family they’ve been paid to wipe out are brought down to their dungeon where they are tortured. While they’re dying, their blood is drunk by the masked killers. These are not your normal hired goons. They’re led by three men that have masks with colorful beards attached. Who are the people in charge of this cult gang is the mystery that Chi San Yuen (Crippled Avengers‘ Chiang Sheng) is hired to uncover. He gets a lead with ex-member Kuo Chui (Venom Mob’s Philip Kwok). This is a rather gruesome Shaw Brothers film that shows they were ready to get a bit extreme on the screen. The film has both Mandarin and English soundtracks in DTS-HD MA Mono.
The Sword Stained With Royal Blood (1981 – 109 minutes) opens with the father of Yuan Chengzhi getting sentenced to the death of a thousand cuts by the Emperor. His son is taken away to a remote a remote martial arts school and grows up to be Philip Kwok. When he’s old enough, he heads out and uncovers the martial arts manual and weapons of The Golden Snake. During his journey Yuan ends up meeting up with a wealthy clan that have mastered the Five Element Array. Things don’t get well in this place and Yuan has to take them all on to survive. This is another film directed by Chang Cheh with members of his Venom Mob. Along with Kwok, Chiang Sheng and Lu Feng are part of the excitement. The film has a Mandarin soundtrack in DTS-HD MA Mono.
Five Element Ninjas (1982 – 108 minutes) has the Shaw Brothers jumping onto Ninja-mania that was sweeping the World. Two rival schools face off against each other in a student against student combat. Yuan Zeng (Kwan Fung) is delighted to see his student dominate the competition against the challenging Chief Hong (The 36th Chamber of Shaolin‘s Chan Shen). The final battle appears to have Hong introduce a ringer into the mix. It’s a Japanese Samauri with a sword. He beats Zeng’s student and talks the guy into a drastic surrender. This ending doesn’t please Liang Zhi Sheng (Five Deadly Venom‘s Lo Mang) and he escalates things until the Samauri poisoning Sheng with a ring and promising his ninja pals will take care of all of them. The Ninjas attack in groups that have been trained to reflect Wood, Earth, Gold, Water and Fire. Only one of Zeng’s star students survives. Shao Tien-hao (House of Traps‘ Tien-Chi Cheng) puts together four students and devises a special weapon to make sure they won’t be wiped out by the next ninja attacks. This was directed by Chang Cheh who includes title cards claiming extensive research went into this film. While it might not be too accurate in its depiction of ninjas, they do come off as worthy opponents as they drop from the skies, disguise themselves as trees, blind them with umbrellas and even pop out of the sand. We get more than guys in black outfits casting off throwing stars. Five Element Ninjas is Five Star Ninja excitement. The film has both Mandarin and English soundtracks in DTS-HD MA Mono.
House of Traps (1982 – 95 minutes) was noted for being one of the hardest to find of the Venom Mobs movies. Philip Kwok, Lu Feng, Chiang Sheng and Sun Chien unite this time around. For quite a long time the movie was only available in low quality VHS dub and missing nearly 20 minutes. The movie appears to be complete and in glorious Blu-ray. You’ll see all the traps clearly around the house. Why is this house full of traps? Because an evil prince (Ngaai Fei) has stolen quite a few rarities and hid them inside the building. The House of Traps is notorious for killing anyone who tries to sneak inside. But the Emperor wants stuff back and assigns The Black Fox (Philip Kwok) and a group of five known as the Rats to retrieve his stuff. Beside the death traps, they have to worry about the villainous Butterfly (Lu Feng). Director Chang Cheh gives us both great fights and dangerous real estate.
Shaolin Prince (1982 – 94 minutes) has the 9th Prince ready to move up the royal ladder. He’s known as Iron Fingers for having an iron hand that has two fingers sticking out. In order to become the rightful emperor, Iron Fingers has to kill the Emperor and his two newborn sons. He’s up for it. The two babies escape the attack, but are split up by their rescuers. Tao Hing (Shaolin Temple‘s Ti Lung) ends up at the Shaolin Temple with 3 Holy Fools. He has no clue about his real identity. Wong Szu Tai (Black Lizard‘s Derek Yee Tung-sing) know everything since he’s raised by the prime minister. He even knows he has a brother, but has no clue how to find him. Are the two brothers going to eventually find each other and get revenged against Iron Fingers? The film was the directorial debut of Chia Tang who had been working for decades as a fight choreographer. Being the director doesn’t stop him from giving us amazing fight scenes. The battle between a swordsman and Iron Fingers is spectacular since Iron Fingers only uses his iron fingers. Chia Tang proved more than ready to call all the shots on a film. The film has both Cantonese and English soundtrack in DTS-HD MA Mono.
Shaolin Intruders (1983 – 90 minutes) has people suspecting something is wrong at the Shaolin Temple. Local leaders are being killed by a group of four mysterious men who are using the Shaolin Palm technique. Are there monks gone bad inside the Temple? Lei Hsin (Derek Yee Tung-sing) wants to go undercover to bust the evil monks. Before he is allowed to enter, he still has to pass a few tests although not all 36 Chambers. Director Chia Tang doesn’t hold back in the inventive fights on the screen. There’s a bench fight that has the wooden furniture flying at maximum velocity. He gives you the reason you really get hooked on Shaw Brothers films and maintains the investigation angle. The film has both Cantonese and English soundtrack in DTS-HD MA Mono.
Holy Flame of the Martial World (1983 – 89 minutes) is supernatural action directed by Chun-Ku Lu (The Bastard Swordsman). A husband and wife are attacked by group of villains wanting his Kung Fu manual. They die in battle, but their son is saved by white haired master (Venom Mob’s Philip Kwok) with his laughing attack that creates Deadly Echoes. The guy raises the orphan Yin Tien-chou as his own and trains him in supernatural attacks. The grown-up Yin (Once Upon a Time in China II‘s Siu Chung Mok) goes off to find the manual. During his journey he has to help Tu Chaun-erh (Little Dragon Maiden‘s Jing-Jing Yung) fight off evil clan warriors. After he finds the relic in psychedelic tomb raiding, he discovers Tu has been kidnapped by an evil clan leader who is sacrificing maidens to revive a corpse. When he frees her, the duo goes on a quest to find the Holy Flame. This leads to encountering a lot of people who defy gravity and fighting them. This movie is extremely trippy and features laser effects emitting from warrior’s hands and weapons. This really changed up the Shaw Brothers’ wuxia formula. The fights are more visually stunning with all the movie magic on top of the normal sword, fist and feet action. The ending involves characters flying off on large swords as if they were magic carpets. This is the perfect film to show to friends for a weird film night. The film has both Cantonese and English soundtrack in DTS-HD MA Mono.
Opium and the Kung-Fu Master (1984 – 90 minutes) is considered one of the important films produced by the Shaw Brother at the end of theatrical run since it dealt with drugs and martial arts. During a burglary, Master Tit-kiu (A Better Tomorrow‘s Ti Lung) comes to the rescue. He’s a bit of a legend having been part of the Ten Tigers of Canton. His fight with the burglars is so amazing that the town’s mayor treats him to a visit to the local opium den. It’s treated like they cracked open a bottle of champagne as they lit up the pipe. This leads to Tit-kiu becoming a casual user. His Kung Fu skills diminish as addiction take hold. The owner of the new opulent Opium Den takes advantage of the legendary fighter’s impaired condition. Can Tit-kiu break the grip of addiction like he does the legs of hoodlums. Or is he a junky for life? Chen Kuan-tai (The Chinese Boxer) plays the villainous owner of the opium den. There’s a great scene of ceremonial lion fighting. Director Chia Tang does a fine job mixing dynamic martial arts scenes with the grip of opium. This was his third film and he left filmmaking after it was done. The film has both Cantonese and English soundtrack in DTS-HD MA Mono.
When Shaw Brothers switched from theatrical to television, they locked up their film legacy in the vault. They never struck a legit deal to release their movies on VHS during the mid-80s and ’90s. They stopped licensing their films for Black Belt Theater to run on TV in America. They didn’t run them on TV in Hong Kong. Quite a few of the films in Shaw Brothers Classics Vol. 4 didn’t get the following they deserved at the time because of this action. Now they can be fully enjoyed in this retrospective in their full aspect ratio, not hacked up like the versions that ran on US TV. We finally get to see all the action and the blood. Shaw Brothers Classics Vol. 4 proves that the studio’s talent didn’t slow down before the studio got out of theatrical releases.
The Video is 2.35:1 anamorphic. All 12 films were shot in Shawscope. The transfers bring out the action, sets and wardrobe. The Audio for each movie is listed with each film above. Everything sounds fine including the English dubs. The movies are subtitled in English.
THE REBEL INTRUDERS:
Audio Commentary with film historian Brian Bankston was extremely informative. All the commentaries add a lot to the experience of watching the film by giving background on what was going on at the studio, background on the weapons and details on the cast and crew.
Original Theatrical Trailer (3:40) promises units from all directions coming under attack. The refugees are arriving, and things aren’t so welcoming. We get teased with the battle of bendy spears.
TWO CHAMPIONS OF SHAOLIN:
Audio Commentary with film historian Brian Bankston
Original Theatrical Trailer (4:02) features the “disco” version of the Shaw Brothers Logo. There’s a lot of focus on the guy throwing boomerang knives.
Celestial Trailer (1:06) adds snazzy graphics to the footage.
LEGEND OF THE FOX:
Original Theatrical Trailer (3:26) sells the literary roots of the film along with the impressive sword fighting. We get a lot of the “evil jump rope” battle.
Celestial Trailer (1:10) stars off with a Flying Fox fights.
BLACK LIZARD:
Audio Commentary with James Mudge, Veteran Hong Kong Film Critic at easternKicks
Original Theatrical Trailer (2:56) has the lizard attacking. This is not your usual revenge flick. We even get a “Visitor From Hell.”
HOUSE OF TRAPS:
Audio Commentary with David West, Critic and Author of Chasing Dragons: An Introduction To The Martial Arts Film. West points out that this was one of the last films Chang Cheh directed for the Shaw Brothers after nearly 20 years at the studio.
A Confined Conversation (14:23) catches up with veteran Shaw actor Chu Ke (Chu Ko). Besides acting as the bearded Sky-Penetrating Rat, he was martial arts stunt coordinator. He goes into how Chang Cheh worked on the script and the elements of filmmaking. He gets into the dangerous art direction for House of Traps. He talks about his long relationship with Lu Feng starting at Japan ’70 expo live show.
A New Generation of Gore (14:34) allows academic Leon Hunt, author of Kung Fu Cult Masters. Has him talk about how many Venom Mob members are needed to consider a film as part of the Venom Mob. This has four so it works. He gets into how the film is talky compared to the other Mob films. He gets into the actual House of Traps set since it is original to the production and not redressed from another movie. There’s also a lot more blood in this film. I really like Hunt’s ShawScope t-shirt.
Celestial Trailer (1:18) shows off the lethal quality of the House of Traps.
MASKED AVENGERS:
Audio Commentary with film critic Ian Jane
Audio Commentary with film historian Brian Bankston
Avenging Force (25:32) has veteran Shaw actor Chu Ke (Chu Ko) admit that he worked with the Shaw Brothers because he had recently married and needed the money. The Peking Opera in Taiwan doesn’t pay nearly as well. He went to an audition when a newspaper report of Chang Cheh was coming to audition talent. His wife insisted he go. Thousands of people showed up and he was at the end of the line. He decided to show off more than the basic moves. Cheh asked him to do it again. He did it. Cheh was impressed. Even though he had to wait 10 months to finish his contact with the Peking Opera, Cheh brought him to Hong Kong.
Celestial Trailer (1:07) shows off the masks and a lot of “piggy” talk.
THE SWORD STAINED WITH ROYAL BLOOD:
Royal Attraction (14:11) has veteran Shaw actor Chu Ke (Chu Ko) point out that his wife is in the film. She got a part because he wanted to go back to Taiwan to see her. She wasn’t a film actress, but did study at the Peking Opera with him. She didn’t understand Cantonese which was spoken by most of the crew. He talks about his big martial arts scene in the film.
Bloodstained Insight (10:51) catches up with star Lung Tien-Hsiang. This film was his best time working with Chang Cheh. He said Philip Kwok was all about business. He socialized with Chiang Sheng. He gives more details about working with the Venom Mob. He points out that each major director had their own soundstage for showing at Movietown.
Original Theatrical Trailer (2:46) has Chu Ko (Chu Ke in the bonus interviews) get plugged as a hot new talent.
Celestial Trailer (1:06) gives us the legacy of the Golden Snake.
FIVE ELEMENT NINJAS:
Audio Commentary with James Mudge, veteran Hong Kong film critic at easternKicks
Audio Commentary with film historian Brian Bankston
In His Element (16:08) has veteran actor Chu Ke talk about how the film came about along with the special spear weapon that was used and modified to take on all five different ninjas. It was the coolest weapon after The Flying Guillotine.
Enter The Ninjas (12:59) has David West (Chasing Dragons: An Introduction To The Martial Arts) gets into Cheh and the Venoms. He gets into how certain characters only die after they’ve achieved a level of revenge on their enemy. He points out that the Ninja’s earliest impact in Western Culture with James Bond’s You Only Live Twice.
Original Theatrical Trailer (4:15) promises us a battle between Ninjas and Shaw Brothers’ heroes. We get to see all five types of Ninjas in action.
Celestial Trailer (1:07) reminds us that ninjas are all about the surprise attack.
SHAOLIN PRINCE:
Audio Commentary with film historian Brian Bankston
The Shaw Years (16:53) is the second half of actor/director Derek Yee Tung-Sing. He began acting at Shaw Brothers from 1977 to 1985. He reflects on his work in wuxia movies for the studio. There’s talk of how dangerous the stunts were since they didn’t have CGI. He then went to become a director (Full Throttle with Andy Lau). The interview was conducted by Fred Ambroisine
Celestial Trailer (1:07) reminds us that when you can’t see danger, it doesn’t mean it isn’t there. The screen is filled with teasing of danger.
SHAOLIN INTRUDERS:
Audio Commentary with James Mudge, veteran Hong Kong film critic at easternKicks
Original Theatrical Trailer (3:37) promises that ever move will be fatal with the Shaolin Monks involved.
Celestial Trailer (1:09) promises to find a culprit in the world of Shaolin.
HOLY FLAME OF THE MARTIAL WORLD:
Audio Commentary with James Mudge, Hong Kong film critic at easternKicks
Fire And Slice (8:31) sits down with veteran Shaw actor Chu Ke. After Chang Cheh left Shaw Brothers, the studio wanted Chu Ke to stay. This was his first project without Cheh. Philip Kwok was stunt coordinator on the film. He freaked out one of the performers after spending 3 hours explaining camera angles so they could be more effective on screen. He gets into the extensive wire work in this film.
Original Theatrical Trailer (5:17) is missing the audio. They sold this film on everything flying around the screen from performers to weapons to tickets. They even have laser blasts coming out of hands.
Celestial Trailer (1:06) has the olds score being settled in supernatural combat.
OPIUM AND THE KUNG-FU MASTER:
Audio Commentary with film critic Ian Jane
The Addiction of Empire (31:50) allows Asian history academic, Prof. Lars Laamann to inform us about opium abuse in China over the centuries. He also gets into how the Chinese opium was smuggled into other countries.
Celestial Trailer (1:18) promises us a fighter with iron fist at a time when China is getting hooked on opium.
Shout! Studios presents Shaw Brothers Classics Vol. 4. Directed by Chang Cheh, Chia Tang and others. Starring Phillip Kwok, Chiang Sheng, Lu Feng, Lo Meng, Sun Chien, Chu Ke, Cheng Tien-chi and Derek Yee Tung-Sing. Boxset Contents: 12 movies on 12 Blu-ray discs. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: December 19, 2023.
