Shawscope Volume 2

Is it even possible to have a bad time while watching a Shaw Brothers movie?  Short of being interrupted by a cancer diagnosis or impending nuclear war, I don’t believe so.  Like an early version of the Marvel Universe, this cinematic kung-fu cornucopia shared superstars, spin-offs and spoofs over the course of two-decades, perfecting a formula that never seemed to cut corners when it came to creativity and showmanship.  And Arrow Video’s Shawscope: Volume 2 offers up another exemplary collection of films that proves just that.

Things start off with The 36 Chamber of Shaolin, perhaps the best of the fighter-in-training films, starring Gordon Liu as a desperate villager who convinces the reclusive monks to share their kung-fu knowledge in hopes of getting revenge against the evil Manchus.  Liu returned for two sequels (both included) that spun off into a comedic direction will just as satisfying results.  

 

From there we move on to Mad Monkey Kung-Fu, directed by and starring Liu Chia-liang, one of the studio’s go-to fight coordinators, as a crippled master who takes on a student to save his sister from sexual slavery.  The acrobatic “monkey-style” is a real showstopper, full of leaps, cartwheels and a bit of comedic groin scratching.  It’s paired up with Five Superfighters, a non-stop parade of hand-to-hand combat instigated by a wandering villain who punishes those with bad kung-fu.

 

If you’re staging a marathon, there’s a bit of a lull with titles like Invincible Shaolin, The Kid with the Golden Arm, Magnificent Ruffians and Ten Tigers of Kwangtung, all featuring the Venom Mob in some capacity.  All gobs of fun but slightly repetitive;  My Young Auntie being the exception that swings things in much-needed female direction.  The final films find Shaw moving into the ‘80s with a pair of outliers – Mercenaries from Hong Kong and The Boxer’s Omen – and a final double feature, Martial Arts of Shaolin (starring Jet Li) and The Bare-Footed Kid.

 

All fourteen films look superb, with nine of them sporting new 2K restorations, plus a 60-page illustrated collector’s booklet and two CDs of music culled from the films.  You won’t be disappointed by way of extras either, with hours of new interviews, video essays and historical breakdowns of Shaw’s legacy, both the good and the bad.  It’s a follow-up that’s as impressive as Volume 1 in every way.

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