Invincible Shaolin DVD

INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN (1978)
Ground Zero
104 Minutes
Directed by Chang cheh
Produced by Mona Fong and Runme Shaw
Written by I Kuang
Cinematography by Tsao Hui Chi
Fight Choreography by Liang Ting, Lu Feng, Tai Chi Tsien
Music by Chen Yung Yu
Cast: Phil Kwok, Lo Mang, Chiang Sheng, Sun Chien, Lu Feng, Wang Lung Wei, Wei Pei, Hui Ying Hung, Niu Niu, Ching Miao, Wang Ching Ho, Sun Chu Pei, Tan Chun Tu, Tan Chun Tu, Chow Mai -Li
Video: Widescreen (2.35.1)
Audio: Dolby Digital Mono 2.0
Subtitles: None
Packaging: Keepcase
Chapter Stops: 6

INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN (aka UNBEATABLE DRAGON and NORTH SHAOLIN VERSUS SOUTH SHAOLIN) was the first film that reunited Chang Cheh with his Venoms crew (Phil Kwok, Lo Mang, Sun

Chien, Chiang Shien, and Lu Feng) after the international success of the original FIVE DEADLY VENOMS in 1978. Audiences across the globe were taken with the execution of THE FIVE DEADLY VENOMS when the movie initially premiered, and little did they know that Chang Cheh and the Shaw Brothers studio were about to take the mayhem to all time high with THE KID WITH THE GOLDEN ARM, CRIPPLED AVENGERS, and TEN TIGERS OF KWANTUNG. Today, Kung Fu fans regard INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN much like they do the original FIVE DEADLY VENOMS--very tame and often slow-going for a Chang Cheh epic, because it is decidedly different from most of his other Venom films. Well, you can thank NS Video for releasing this (and a host of other Venoms classics) on DVD, so you can watch it and make up your mind for yourself. Unlike other Venoms films on DVD, INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN looks to be relatively uncut.

The corrupt Ching Warlord General Fu (Wang Lung Wei) invites representatives from the rival Northern and Southern Shaolin schools to his imperial palace. General Fu fools them by telling them he is looking for the best school to instruct his troops in the martial arts, but it is an elaborate ruse to turn the schools against each other. The Northern Shaolin send their best fighters to represent them, known as the Northern Elite, consisting of Pao San Tso (Lu Feng), Yeung Chun Fei (Chiang Sheng), and Su Feng (Sun Chien). The Southern Shaolin sends three of their fighters to engage the Northern Elite. General Fu offers the winners of the duel the teaching spots in the Ching army. The Northern Shaolin fighters make a point to keep this to a friendly competition. It’s obvious the Southern Shaolin are no match for the Northern Elite, and they are soundly defeated. The Southern Shaolin are unhurt, but are distraught over losing face for their school. After the competition, General Fu invites the losing fighters to supposed celebration, only to murder them in cold blood. General Fu sends the corpses back to the Southern Shaolin School, and blames the deaths on the Northern Elite. Teacher Mei, leader of the Southern Shaolin, is naturally outraged and sends three of his top fighters (including one of his sons) to General Fu’s palace to challenge the Northern contingent.

Pao San Tso, Yeung Hun Fei, and Su Feng ponder the deaths of their opponents. They discuss the possibility that they are being set-up by General Fu. Suddenly, Teacher Mei shows up with his three protégés, accuses them of murder, and challenges them to duel his top students. The Northern Elite agree to fight on the condition that they shall be friendly confrontations, and not to the death. Once again, the Northern martial artists get the better of their opponents. However after each duel has ended, two of the Shaolin fighters keep fighting aggressively. Teacher Mei does not try to stop his fighters from going too far, and the Northern Elite are forced to kill the two Southern fighters. So that leaves only Teacher Mei’s son alive. They return home in disgrace, and Teacher’s Mei’s son eventually commits suicide because he cannot live with his defeat. Teacher Mei is rightfully bitter and distressed, but he is too old to seek revenge for himself. Instead, he summons two of the finest Southern Shaolin warriors to graduate from his own school, Fu Ying Wu (Phil Kwok) and Chu San Chung (Lo Mang), to join with his eldest son, Fung (Wei Pai) and strike back against the Northern Elite.

Teacher Mei realizes his contingent still may not be ready to defeat the Northern Elite. So he sends his son Fung and Chu San Chung to learn at the hands of Teacher’s Mei’s fellow teachers up in the mountains. Teacher Mei’s son undergoes rigorous training from this old master, while Chu San Chung receives lessons in the Mantis style. Teacher Mei himself trains Fu Ying Wu in pole fighting. As the months go by and these three men improve their strengths and weaknesses, Pao San Tso, Yeung Hun Fei, and Su Feng court some local women, one of whom, Su Ying, is an attendant to General Fu. In an attempt to gain the trust of the Northern Elite, The General adopts Su Ying so he can be invited to her eventual wedding with Pao San Tso, where he will spring his trap. Teacher Mei soon grows frail, and when his disciples return from their harsh training, he is on his deathbed. His last words to his own elite fighters are to avenge his death and that of his son by slaughtering the Northern Elite. They choose to attack the Northern Elite when they least expect it--during the wedding reception of Pao San Tso and Su Ying!

Chang Cheh does it again with INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN. Chang Cheh’s biggest critics insist that the director’s shortcomings are in area of characterization, story, and humor. These are the same people who usually cite Chia Liang Liu as bringing the human element to Kung Fu movies. Chang Cheh silences his critics with the most balanced Venoms film of all. INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN is full of Cheh’s trademarks, such as brotherhood, honor, and sacrifice. But Cheh adds plenty of light tones, tragedy, and characterization in with the bloody violence and breathtaking fight choreography. In fact, the elements that Venoms fans have come to expect (non-stop combat action and graphic bloodshed) take a back seat to the characterization and humor. For instance, in every Venoms movie, we have thrilled to the martial arts prowess of Lu Feng, who usually plays the heavy or is overlooked. Here we get to see Lu Feng shine in a rare heroic role, and he even goes so far as to land a girlfriend. In true Cheh manner, Lu Feng’s character ultimately suffers a gruesome fate at the hands of General Fu’s soldiers.

What makes INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN so poignant and endearing among others Venoms films, is that each character is heroic. Usually when you witness a Venom actor fighting another Venom actor, one is the hero and the other is the villain (usually Lu Feng or Sun Chien), which makes it easy for the viewer to take sides and pretty much determine beforehand who is going to win (hint: the bad guys always lose in the end). In INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN, every Venoms actor is a hero. The real villain is General Fu who manipulates the Northern and Southern fighters into battle. The real tragic moments of the film come when both sides realize they’ve been shammed. The Southern Shaolin are remorseful, but they have promised their deceased master that they would take revenge no matter the cost. Out of all six Venoms actors, only two survive the massacre at the conclusion of INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN--the death of four heroes is quite moving indeed. In a brilliant shot from Chang Cheh, Southern Fighter Phil Kwok in his last breath of life crawls to the mortally wounded last member of the Northern Elite, Chiang Sheng, and they grasp each others bloody hands in a final show of respect between the two factions before they expire.

INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN is unique to the genre, for it is a balanced piece of filmmaking that delivers not only the visceral delights of Chang Cheh, but also more character, tragedy, and plot than any other Venoms picture. INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN is close to being perfect, were it not for one crucial element--pacing. Granted, the training scenes are used to build character and inform the audience of the ancient techniques used by the old masters, but these scenes drag on far too long. Whereas Chia Liang Liu’s THE MASTER KILLER riveted your attention with incredible training techniques, that particular film chronicled one man’s personal journey and growth, so it worked. INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN is an epic film however, with way too many characters to waste time on endless training sequences (as cool and informative as they are). Cheh continues defining the characters of the Northern Elite while the Southern Shaolin endure brutal training techniques. This allows plenty of acting opportunities for Sun Chien, Lu Feng, and Chiang Sheng while Phil Kwok, Lo Mang, and Wei Pei sweat it out at the various Kung Fu training camps. The old masters who train the Southern Shaolin provide most of the humor, as well as the history of each training technique.

NS Video presents INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN in the original Shawscope ratio of 2.35.1. The picture appears very slightly misframed, as the opening titles go off the sides of the screen (on both sides). There is very little to complain about here though; the source print is in amazingly good shape with nary a scratch or a blemish after the opening title sequence. This is easily in as good condition (if not better) as Ground Zero’s THE KID WITH THE GOLDEN ARM. The color is very full bodied, with the interior lighting employed by the Shaw Bros. studio looking natural. The black levels may be out of calibration, because any fighters dressed in black disappear in the shadows. The editing and camera play during the action is very old school—the lens stays in one position while the combatants flip around overhead (as opposed to today’s martial arts movies where the camera moves around the performers). The choreography is intricately planned out but not as prevalent as most Venom films—no wire work here, but lots of cleverly edited trampoline shots. The last act is full of bloody closeups, which the crimson hues flowing freely. The transfer also enhances the Shaw Bros. high production values.

It’s amazing how some companies like Crash Cinema, known for their great work on visually restoring old school classics usually cannot seem to provide a decent soundtrack. Then there is NS Video, who always provide solid acoustics on all their DVDs. The sound is always in two channel mono, but it’s always a clean sounding audio experience that never hisses, pops, or distorts. INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN is no exception. The soundfield comes to life with the bone-cracking blows, spinning flips, and clanging weapons. INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN is an epic film with a large set of characters. The folks who lend their voices to this (and other Kung Fu films) deserve praise for delivering the natural English dialog for this movie. The score by Chen Yung Yu is quite different from others, with long periods of Congo-style drum beats. NS Video does a great job with the audio and video quality.

None. But the disc features pleasing animated menu with music from the film.

INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN is near perfect Kung Fu film that succeeds on many levels. Not only does it contain savage fights and mayhem, it has heart and soul; something all too rare in Kung Fu films. Hardcore Venoms fans may be disappointed with the lack of weaponry and non-stop fights all the way through, but those who appreciate good plotting, characterization, and emotion with their Kung Fu addiction will enjoy INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN. It truly is a great showcase for the Venoms crew acting-wise. NS Video produces perhaps their best DVD transfer to date, and long time fans who suffered through poor bootlegs over the years will be ecstatic with this DVD. My only complaint is the lack of extras. Even the KID WITH THE GOLDEN ARM had some photos and talent bios.

Movie:	4.5
Video:	4.0
Audio:	3.0
Extras:	0.0
Overall:	4.0