Shaolin Martial Arts

Bluesky

Shaolin Martial Arts (AKA Five Fingers Of Death, not to be confused with the Shaw Brothers film from 1972, 5 Fingers Of Death) is one of several outings with Shaw Brothers and director Chang Cheh. Many years after the destruction of the Shaolin Temple (It was only ever destroyed in folklore and films, the real temple still stands to this day) some apprentice Shaolin warriors get into a petty pissing contest with some Manchu students over the order of a ceremony. One of the Shaolin is murdered and a fight brakes out. The Manchu authorities crack down on the Shaolin, hiring two martial arts masters, Yu Pi (Lung-Wei Wang) and Pa Kang (Ka-Yan Leung), whose kung-fu skills make them physically invulnerable.

The Shaolin master Lin Tsan-tien (Ti Lu) dispatches two apprentices to learn the secret techniques that can breach the invulnerable men's defences. The apprentices fight bravely, but to no avail. In this film one has to wonder at the Shaolin's mastery of Dying Fly technique. Lin Tsan-tien sends two more, Chen Pao-yung (Chi Kuan-chun) and Li Yao (Sheng Fu), to learn better super secret techniques.

Shaolin Martial Arts is characterised by Chang Cheh's trademark use of fast pans, tilts, pushes and pulls, superbly choreographed but overlong fight scenes and some fairly gentle comedy. One of the teachers has Chen Pao-yung perform menial tasks, catching fish and chopping wood. It is something that inspired, with similar humour, the paint the fence and sand the floor training in the The Karate Kid. The romantic pursuit of Li Yao by Lin Chen-hsiu, Lin Tsan-tien's daughter, will also bring a smile to your face. The two actors, Sheng Fu and Chen Yi-ling, have enough chemistry between them to be on the right side of delightful.

The film has its problems. The acting, in general, is not that great. In places there is dodgy camerawork, and the framing of shots can be questionable. Sets in places look shoddy. Some of the fight scenes are just too long and a bit repetitious.

Shaolin Martial Arts may not be the best that Shaw Brothers or Hong Kong in general could deliver but it has had a lasting effect in cinema, influencing films from The Karate Kid to Kill Bill. And despite its problems it is a fun watch.

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