Shaolin

So annoyed. I just bought this and I wanted it in a Cantonese dub. I can't seem to get a refund

Good grief, I didn't expect this film to be as good as it was. I really didn't. I was laughing, I was crying, and I was amazed. My one complaint is the amount of flooded lungs - everyone seems to be dribbling blood even when they were injured nowhere near their chests - but that really was my only complaint.The martial arts are amazing, the story is brilliant, and the setting is beautiful. Lots of martial arts masters involved in the casting which made the movements more authentic, and more impressive - though a few have clearly been aided by special effects, because people can't really fly like that.Nowhere near as cheesy or overdone as a lot of martial arts movies I've seen, highly recommended!

The scale of the film Shaolin, the accessible score, the occasional comedic elements all convey a film that would be superior flick to discover on a sunday afternoon. However, the violence is punchy, immediate & often brutal. Some of the scenes i would say linger just a shade longer than is necessary for the audience to grasp how harsh this world was. Saying this though, the martial arts married to the philosophical shaolin,zen, buddhistic elements are thorough and constant.So a religious epic that sports many action scenes that portray the wonders, the mastery of the self, that is martial art. With bloodshed. And horses, lots of horses, and way too many guns. The BBFC in the uk has seen fit to remove scenes of the horses falling, in one scene if you look away for a tad too long you might wonder how the horserider ended up on the floor, and hey, where is his horse?Aside from the taming down of possible animal misuse, which doesnt really harm the whole film but does seem obvious when it happens, the humans here are seeking peace and enlightenment or just going about their business, only to be brutally attacked & double-crossed at every turn. Much of it reminded me of The Godfather to begin with, then a number of chinese epics, some of the better kung-fu of late,and ultimately a more accessible religious flavour than Passion of the Christ which went into the land of gory horror.The overall impact of a two hour film that is never dull & always interesting is becoming a rarity. It never really over plays its dramatic hand, if you don't mind soaring emotions of an asian suddenness. Action that plays with solid shaolin directness & the idiocy that is mankinds delight in war will show a contrast in the tranquility that is shattered. It probably won't compel many westerners to become a full-on buddhist after it is over, but it may make you very glad that there are some on the planet. Now if only we can concentrate on doing without those daft gun things...

when you watch a martial arts movie, one special ingredient is a must - a one to one duel between the best fighters.the final duel between andy lau and nicholos tse is boring - because neither are real martial artists.the best fighters in this movie are wu jing and the prime henchman of nicholos tse. but unfortunately there is no sustained fight between them.so i was kind of disappointed in the action - especially after all these rave reviews.

What a fabulous film! Moving, suspenseful, fast moving, marvellously filmed and edited and full of rip roaring action. After watching this late into the night, I wondered why we in the west can't make films of such stature. Hollywood has lost the plot and all the British Film "Industry" seems to churn out are sleazy efforts about local pond life.The acting here is top notch, the action scenes fantastic and the story one of carefully plotted twists and turns, with a vein of nobility running through it that makes other films of the genre pale into insignificance.If you haven't seen it, do so and if you haven't bought it yet, BUY IT NOW!Pity I can't give 10 stars.

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. Sure there was a fair bit of violence however it was not gratitous but only within the context of eastern morality and spirituality of loss and redemption. For me as a Christian, it helped to explain why Monks could and should wield a lethal slap across the head.The only area i questioned was the role if women who are very much of no account in the lives of the period. I think the film makers could have done a lot more to mitigate a certain contempt for women running through the film. Well worth a watch.

Brilliant fun kung fu movie jackie chan supporting role is funny

This is a great film. The performances by the cast were excellent. The Martial Arts sequences were well executed and a joy to watch. The locations and the sets were beautifully filmed. The second half of the film, as Hou Chieh tries to find his path to redemption, was emotional and inspiring. Please enjoy this film as the gift that it is, it will make you glad that you did.

Love the story behind this film. Set during the warlord period in China when certain parts of the country were ruled over by military warlords it shows the state of one warlord losing his family and his dominion to his subordinate and then taking refuge within the shaolin temple. He comes to find peace only to go to war with his old subordinate who took over as warlord over his domain. Like Jackie Chan, and he has a small role within the film and was used largely for his name's star power. Still he role is really good and the film is very enjoyable. Nice martial arts sequences, but nothing too spectacular or over the top. Great film in my opinion.

Everything is perfect no comment

Great Movie, drama & martial arts

*NOTE: This review is for the "Shaolin (Collector's Edition) [Blu-Ray]". Amazon merged reviews with another edition that is Blu-Ray + DVD combo.This is a beautifully made film with a compelling story and profound meaning. There is everything in this film: realistic kung-fu actions, human greed/power, undeniable love for family, and seeing an absolutely cold-hearted person becoming all heart. Andy Lau was the star so was Jackie Chan (as special guest) and other supporting actors. One can argue this is a drama-first (my believe), and action second.The package comes with a blu-ray and a DVD. blu-ray comes with two Chinese audio tracks (5.1 and stereo), and two English audio tracks (5.1 and stereo). The main menu says the Chinese is Cantonese dialect, but both tracks are Mandarin. There is subtitle for English and Spanish as well. The English 5.1 seems to have better fidelity and decoding to all 5.1 speakers than the Chinese 5.1 version overall. The English dialog is translated well. The English subtitle is slightly different, but also translated very well. This is pretty rare. Kudos to the translators.The Full HD (1080p) is clean, detailed, sharp but properly softened as needed in the right places.As far as special features on the blu-ray, the deleted scenes are LONG and have pretty interesting "side stories". Many are actually quite significant to properly develop characters and bring out the strength of the overall story, but I can understand the movie would've been close to 3 hours long! There are also two international trailers.The second disc is a DVD, and it contains additional bonus materials. There are interviews of the cast and director, and behind the scene clips and documentaries. The interviews are in Mandarin and Cantonese dialects (no English).

During the period of internal strife throughout China at the end of the 19th century. General Hou Jie(Lau) ruthlessly crushes any rivals as his forces consume the land around. His lust for power is his downfall. An early confrontation with the peaceful Shaolin monks reveals Hou's lack of compassion as he executes a surrendering enemy right in front of them. In the background, his subordinate Tsao (Tse) observes with quiet menace. Though he once offended the Shaolin Temple Hou takes refuge among the suspicious monks before adopting Buddhism and become a Shaolin monk himself. Atoning for his sins, Hou treads a righteous, peaceful path. Hou recovers within the confines of the temple, eaten away by a mixture of vengeance and guilt, while Tsao consolidates his power with the help of British fire power unaware that his former friend is still alive That is, until Tsao finds him and the whole thing erupts into bloody Chinese on Chinese violence. The Shaolin Temple meets it's end, but righteousness? The way of Shaolin? It survives. Shaolin is about the burning of the Shaolin Temple, so the ending is to be expected. The most fun character is Jackie Chan's, a winning cameo adds to the films strengths. Shaolin is visually magnificent and boasts some incredible performances. Shaolin is still rip-roaring entertainment and deserves as much support as fans can give it. Recommended. Shaolin is presented on bluray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2:35:1 The film is intentionally desaturated and filtered image taking away some vivid pop in terms of color, but which does nothing in terms of the film's fine detail. The film looks monochromatic most of the time, but still retains an incredibly sharp and accurate image. Close ups reveal an abundance of textures in skin and opulent costumes. Black levels are solid despite several long sequences taking place in the dead of night. Two lossless tracks are offered on this Blu-ray DTS-HD MA 5.1, one in the original Cantonese and an English dub. The English language version is mixed considerably higher, which means the spectacular sound effects, most of which are incredibly immersive, are more viscerally impactful than they are in the Cantonese track. In the original Cantonese track the Caucasian bad guy is indelibly American in the English track he is very British. Overall the Cantonese track boasts superior fidelity, ample low end and energetic LFE , and a strong sense of immersion and directionality in both action sequences and even quieter moments.