Shaolin Vs Lama
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DVD: Region Code 0Movie Reviews of Shaolin Vs Lama
Movie Review: An impressive martial arts film chock-full of great action
Summary: 5 Stars
If you see the word Shaolin in a film title, there's a pretty good chance you're looking at a pretty good martial arts film. Shaolin vs. Lama (1983) is an excellent example, as this film goes predominantly old school, filling the screen time and time again with plenty of fabulous displays of kung fu. It's generally regarded as director Lee Tso-nam's best film and should find itself a place on many a must-see martial arts film list. It does have a few stray moments of goofiness, but there's nothing goofy about any of the many combat scenes.
Alexander Lo Rei stars as Sung Yee-tung, a sort of wanderer who has spent the last five years searching for a master to teach him kung fu. Sung isn't exactly a novice, and so far no potential expert has passed his test (if a potential teacher can't beat him in a fight, he sees no use in becoming his student). One day he happens upon a young monk who sneaks into the city daily to fetch meat and wine for his eccentric master, and that meeting leads him to the teacher he has been searching for. The old man, Pu Chi Eh (Sun Jung-chi), acts like he may have been out in the sun for too long, but he has little trouble showing Sung that his kung fu is of comparatively poor quality. Unfortunately, this Grand Master refuses to take Sung (or anyone else) on as a student because his last student, Fan-lin (Chen Shan), betrayed his fellow monks, absconding with the temple's most precious martial arts manual. As fate would have it, though, this same Fan-lin soon reappears for the first time in over a decade, executing his plan of wiping out all of the local clans. Sung gets mixed up in the coming conflict when he meets up with a young woman being pursued by Fan-lin's men, but he discovers he has many things to learn (technique-wise as well as Buddhist-wise) before he can possibly defeat his master's traitorous prior student.
The fight choreography is excellent, and the skills of all the performers make this a kung fu cinema fan's absolute delight. Most of the contests are bare-handed fights, although staffs and swords also come into play a good bit. Li Wei Yun fights like a banshee with her sword, and I am a little disappointed that she did not get more screen time; it's always a treat to watch a female martial artist teach the fellows a few new tricks. Speaking of treats, Sun Jung-chi really puts on a show as the quirky yet deadly Pu Chi Eh. Most impressive by far, however, is Fan-lin, whose Shaolin-taught skills have actually been improved upon over the years since he betrayed the temple (which is not too surprising given the fact that the Shaolin manual he stole discusses the most advanced of fighting skills). No one is a match for him, including Sung - not until, that is, he has trained and practiced night and day for months and learned the deadly move known as the Finger of Buddha.
Obviously, I enjoyed Shaolin vs. Lama a great deal. There's nothing like good old traditional kung fu fighting, especially when the combatants are all as talented as those in this film. No martial arts fan could go wrong with Shaolin vs. Lama.
Summary of Shaolin Vs Lama
AKA: Shaolin V Lama Two rival families--one with sons, the other with daughters--gang up to defeat a band of evil marauders. All the while, the sons are trying to get their father and uncle married off but are confounded at every step by the daughters' paranoid father. Overview: A kung fu fanatic, Yu Ting (Alexander Lo Rei), searching for the ultimate master, saves a young Shaolin monk, Hsu Shi (William Yen), from a group of mobsters and sees it as a golden opportunity to enrich his kung fu skills. He persuades the young novice monk to smuggle him into Shaolin, but Ting's presence isn't welcome and he is driven out, but remains close to the temple, keeping in touch with Hsu Shi. When Ting rescues a girl from the clutches of the Flying Eagle gang, the Golden Wheel Lama and sworn enemy of Shaolin finds the perfect excuse to lead an assault on the Temple. Realizing Ting's devotion, the abbot decides to bring Ting into the Shaolin order and teach him the deadliest techniques to prepare him for the Lama's merciless fury. Cast: Alexander Lo Rei, Chen Shan, Wong Chi Sang, Sun Jung Chi, William Yen. Running Time: 91 mins. (approx.) Languages: ENGLISH Subtitles: None Features: Full Screen Trailers:Similar DVD Movies
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