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Shaolin Boxers
Ta Huang (director)
Eureka Video (studio)
tbc (certificate)
78 min (length)
24 March 2025 (released)
3 d
This rare martial arts action flick by Chinese director James Tien is - at long last - available on Blu-ray and while this is good news, the film’s rather simplistic plot leaves much to be desired.
The people of Fukien live in constant fear of Ho Yung (Chu Mu), leader of the local security squad. Suffice to say, Ho gained his position by bribing a certain referee… who conveniently happens to be the referee of a martial arts tournament which takes place every year and which sees members of four villages compete against each other. Not content with his dodgy position, Ho Yung has also set eyes on a nearby harbour in Dragon Village, where more shady business is supposed to take place. However, there is a massive obstacle to conquer: namely Master Zhuang, who not only owns Dragon Village but - despite a serious heart condition sustained from an injury years ago - runs the local martial arts school and is adamant to send two of his students, who are representing Dragon Village - to participate in the tournament - even though chances of winning look bleak, given that ‘ringmaster’ Chien Tang has no other option than letting Lei Biao (Li Min-Tang), a deeply dodgy kung-fu expert in cahoots with Ho Yung, win.
Master Zhuang, eager to free the villagers from unwanted payments towards Ho’s protection racket (which no one in Dragon Village asked for anyway), is having none of it and dispatches his best martial arts student, Chuan Tai (James Tien) to compete against Lei Biao, which turns out to be easier said than done - even with the help of Chuan’s goofy looking friend and fellow student Jun-Ping (Kwok-Choi Hon), who by the way is at least as accomplished a fighter as Chuan. Meanwhile, Ho’s henchmen keep on harassing Master Zhuang and his daughter Ru Yu (Mi Tien) over gaining control of Dragon Village harbour. We also witness Ho Yung’s hoodlums intimidating villagers who cannot pay Ho for his ‘protection’ which, in any case, is nothing more than an excuse to rake in extra money. There’s also a flashback scene which provides a clue as to Master Zhuang’s injury…
While the martial arts stunts are impressive, superbly choreographed and effortlessly executed, the film focuses too much on action and not enough on plot, which here, feels pretty run-of-the-mill. A sub-plot or fleshing out the characters a bit more wouldn’t have gone amiss but hey, with a running time of 78 minutes it will please all those who prefer action over content. Kwok-Choi Hon, who plays martial arts student Jun-Ping, is particularly worth mentioning as he strikes a good balance between a fierce fighting machine and comic relief.
SHAOLIN BOXERS is presented as a Limited Edition release (2000 copies only), featuring an O-card slipcase and collector’s booklet. Additional bonus features include various audio options, new audio commentaries and new a interview with Wayne Wong, editor of ‘Martial Arts Studies’.
The people of Fukien live in constant fear of Ho Yung (Chu Mu), leader of the local security squad. Suffice to say, Ho gained his position by bribing a certain referee… who conveniently happens to be the referee of a martial arts tournament which takes place every year and which sees members of four villages compete against each other. Not content with his dodgy position, Ho Yung has also set eyes on a nearby harbour in Dragon Village, where more shady business is supposed to take place. However, there is a massive obstacle to conquer: namely Master Zhuang, who not only owns Dragon Village but - despite a serious heart condition sustained from an injury years ago - runs the local martial arts school and is adamant to send two of his students, who are representing Dragon Village - to participate in the tournament - even though chances of winning look bleak, given that ‘ringmaster’ Chien Tang has no other option than letting Lei Biao (Li Min-Tang), a deeply dodgy kung-fu expert in cahoots with Ho Yung, win.
Master Zhuang, eager to free the villagers from unwanted payments towards Ho’s protection racket (which no one in Dragon Village asked for anyway), is having none of it and dispatches his best martial arts student, Chuan Tai (James Tien) to compete against Lei Biao, which turns out to be easier said than done - even with the help of Chuan’s goofy looking friend and fellow student Jun-Ping (Kwok-Choi Hon), who by the way is at least as accomplished a fighter as Chuan. Meanwhile, Ho’s henchmen keep on harassing Master Zhuang and his daughter Ru Yu (Mi Tien) over gaining control of Dragon Village harbour. We also witness Ho Yung’s hoodlums intimidating villagers who cannot pay Ho for his ‘protection’ which, in any case, is nothing more than an excuse to rake in extra money. There’s also a flashback scene which provides a clue as to Master Zhuang’s injury…
While the martial arts stunts are impressive, superbly choreographed and effortlessly executed, the film focuses too much on action and not enough on plot, which here, feels pretty run-of-the-mill. A sub-plot or fleshing out the characters a bit more wouldn’t have gone amiss but hey, with a running time of 78 minutes it will please all those who prefer action over content. Kwok-Choi Hon, who plays martial arts student Jun-Ping, is particularly worth mentioning as he strikes a good balance between a fierce fighting machine and comic relief.
SHAOLIN BOXERS is presented as a Limited Edition release (2000 copies only), featuring an O-card slipcase and collector’s booklet. Additional bonus features include various audio options, new audio commentaries and new a interview with Wayne Wong, editor of ‘Martial Arts Studies’.
