Presented by VideoAsia and First Look Studios, the 10-film collection Shaolin Against Wu Tang's subtitle The Battle Royale of the Martial Arts! plays up the notion of the two disciplines pitted against each other throughout. This is completely misleading and really is just an excuse for the company to dump a bunch titles from the 1970s and ‘80s onto a set and sell them, but to get this many movies, and this many laughs, for $20 it’s silly to expect a whole lot or be disappointed with the results.
Shaolin Death Squad is mistitled. It’s about a conspiracy to kill the king and the battles to protect him. Wu Tang Magic Kick finds our hero, and his special kicking ability, captured and kept in a cage. He is driven mad with his imprisonment and is only released when his wife agrees to marry the villain, although there’s no surprise when he regains his wits. The soundtrack is better suited for a western.
In Duel of the Tough Shaolin monks have stolen a special scroll with Buddhist scriptures that Buddhism is the one true faith. A young man plans steal them back. The movie seems like it’s trying to be comedic, which it is in spite of itself. Shaolin Mystagogue stands out because one villain has weapon called the "bloody birds," an awesome, bladed boomerang that is so strong it can knock down trees. Carter Huang Chia-ta from Big Trouble in Little China is one of the leads
Shaolin vs. Wu Tang is where we finally see disciples of the disciplines compete against each other, and conflict arises because two friends follow different teachings. The viewer is forced to watch with both subtitles and dubbing. Shaolin vs. Lama is about Yu Ting, who is looking for a martial arts teacher, but he beats everyone he meets. When he finally finds a teacher, he gets in the middle of a feud between the teacher and a former student.
Article comments
1 - Luigi Bastardo
VideoAsia is one of the worst companies out there when it comes to piss-poor A/V quality. That said, these movies are always good for a laugh. I picked one up a couple years back with a shitload of Godfrey Ho films and we still get a giggle out of them. If you get a chance, check out The Thundering Ninja (or, "T: The Hundering Ninja" as the title card seems to read) and Warriors Of Fire. Very funny stuff.
2 - Luigi Bastardo
True. The first one of us with a million dollars to spare will have to do fix that.