ckormos1
1978 was one of the most, if not the most, prolific years in the history of martial arts movies. By my count about three of these movies were made every day. If you make a list of the best martial arts movies of all times then these movies from 1978 must appear on that list or you know nothing - The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, Crippled Avengers, Heroes of the East, Five Deadly Venoms, Drunken Master, Warriors Two, and Dirty Kung Fu. So where does Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin fall in among this plethora? We must pretend, to be objective, that Jackie Chan was just another of the hundreds of capable would be star material stunt men of the era. Is there anything about this movie that makes it worth mentioning along with the other seven named? Short answer, yes. There are two fight sequences. First is a sword fight sequence at about the 45 minute mark. (I'm pretty sure Jackie took many of these same moves and improved the overall sequence in another of his movies. I'll get back and edit this once confirmed.) Second is the spear fighting sequence in the final fight. Those two fights are on the level of Liu Chia-Liang greatness (the Grandmaster of all martial arts movies). The only problem is the rest of the movie is "meh". I will not be adding this movie to the best of 1978 list but it is certainly rated above average and mandatory viewing for fans of the genre.Since I mentioned it - I will add my list (up until 1978) 1967 One Armed Swordsman, Dragon Gate Inn, Rape of the Sword 1968 Killer Darts, King of All Swordsmen 1969 Killers Five 1970 The Chinese Boxer 1971 The Eunuch, Lady with a Sword, The Brave and the Evil 1972 The Black Tavern, Five Fingers of Death 1973 Enter the Dragon, Win Them All, One By One 1974 The Savage Five, Shaolin Martial Arts 1975 The Flying Guillotine, The Female Chivalry, The Man from Hong Kong 1976 Challenge of the Masters, Master of the Flying Guillotine, Killer Clans, The Secret Rivals, Dance of Death 1977 The Iron Monkey, Broken Oath, Invincible Armour, Shaolin Plot, Executioners from Shaolin, The Lost Swordship, Judgement of an Assassin, Pursuit of Vengeance 1978 The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, Crippled Avengers, Heroes of the East, Five Deadly Venoms, Drunken Master, Warriors Two, Dirty Kung Fu
Guardia
This Kung Fu film has some really good ingredients. The thing that doesn't quite come through for it are the production values. The action sequences, the plot, the characters, the settings are all interesting and worth filming, but the actual cinematography and audio quality are quite poor, and so I found it unusually difficult to watch.If you can put these issues aside, the film is great for it's time. Jackie Chan really begins to show his immense talents for what is probably the first respectable time. His acrobatics are great, as are the Snake & Crane styles he employs further on in the film.Interestingly, his character is a little bit cocky, and his body language is a little unusual for him, as if he was told to act a little more American or something. Also, his back-hand strikes seem a little odd and over-used. One of the other great things is the appearance of all the different clans in the film. Th Black Dragons, the Flying Tigers etc really add some colour and interesting rivalry - not to mention the opportunities for various back-stabbings and double-dealings.I would give everything in this movie an A, but the production values a C.
sal-29
One of the most coolest Kung-Fu movie ever made. I saw this one on the Japanese movie theatre when I was a kid and I thought it's cool, and I saw it again today on video and it's still cool!! This is definitely one of Jackie's best movie. It was shot mostly outdoors so you'll enjoy beautiful winter landscapes of somewhere in Asia as well. If you like Jackie Chan or Kung-Fu movies, you MUST see this!!
Machine-3
This is one of very few early Jackie Chan movies that Jackie is totally in control. Normally, his character is played as either a bumbling fool or the underdog that rises. Not in this film. Jackie has attitude and confidence and he kicks butt from scene one. See this for sure!
