1978 ‘少林三十六房’ Directed by Lau Kar-leung
The anti-Ching patriots, under the guidance of Ho Kuang-han, have secretly set up their base in Canton, disguised as school masters. During a brutal Manchu attack, Lui manages to escape, and devotes himself to learning the martial arts in order to seek revenge.
Gordon Liu Chia-hui Lo Lieh John Cheung Ng-Long Wilson Tong Wa Lun Hon Kwok-Choi Lau Kar-Wing Wai Wang Chan Sze-Kai Wong Ching-Ho Woo Wang-Daat Lee Hoi-Sang Hao Li-Jen Shum Lo Chan Shen Chiang Nan Wang Han-Chen Norman Chui Gam Tin-Chue Keung Hon Yuen Siu-Tien Wong Yu Hsiao Ho Ting Tung Szu-Chia Chen Alan Chui Chung-San Johnny Cheung Wa Billy Chan Wui-Ngai
La 36eme chambre de Shaolin, To 36o domatio ton Shaolin, Shaolin - Ta daktyla tou thanatou, Thirty Sixth Chamber of Shaolin, La 36ème chambre de Shaolin, 少林寺三十六房, The Master Killer, Shaolin Master Killer, las treinta y seis camaras de shaolin, Las 36 cámaras de Shaolin, 36th Chamber, 36. komnata Shaolinu, I 36i aithousa ton Shaolin, La 36a camera dello Shaolin, Shao Lin san shi liu fang, A Câmara 36 de Shaolin, A 36ª Câmara de Shaolin, ยอดมนุษย์เส้าหลิน
Still the best.
For those tracking Shaolin folklore: When San Te leaves the Temple and recruits followers, among them are Hung Hsi-kuan and Lu Ah-cai. Hung Hsi-kuan is also the hero of Lau Kar-leung's Executioners from Shaolin, where he escapes the Temple after it is destroyed by the Manchu (because they're harboring anti-Qing activists, which was of course the whole point of San Te's 36th Chamber). My Chinese names may be confused, but I believe this is also Hung Hei-gun, the founder of the Hong Gar fighting style practiced by Wong fei-hung and eventually passed down to Lau-Kar-leung. Lu Ah-cai is in some traditions Hung Hei-gun's student, and then in turn the teacher of Wong Kai-ying, Wong Fei-hung's father. But…
The other movie about a young man from humble roots who wants to join a rebellion against an oppressive occupational force, loses his loved ones, flees his hometown, learns special skills from a monastic order of an old religion, builds a special weapon, then leads an attack against the oppressive regime.
There's something very appealing to me about the highly structured training sequences. It's got the thrill of a sports movie as we watch Gordon Liu learn basic balancing and movement skills up through absolute mastery of forms, but it also has a very clearly delineated "leveling up" system like in a video game as Gordon passes the challenge of each chamber. The challenges themselves are absurd, sometimes resembling medieval…
"i should have learned kung fu instead of ethics."
athletic cinema. the human form in carefully balanced motion and how the camera rhymes with it. this power belongs to all of us.
The kung-fu equivalent of King Hu's A TOUCH OF ZEN. maybe the purest martial arts film ever and a Shaw crown jewel.
“The 36th Chamber of Shaolin” teaches the eternal piece of wisdom: one can be a badass to end all badasses. But if one is a badass alone, they might as well be a chump.
Basically guys: if you can bench press a metric ton at the gym, that’s cool and all. But it doesn’t mean anything unless you’re helping your pal to carry a loveseat down the stairs of a seventh floor walk-up.
There is undoubtedly much Buddhist depth to the distribution of knowledge through cyclical legacy in “Shaolin.” This, I can also appreciate.
But I’m just saying… cyclical knowledge also involves helping your buddies on moving day (Kevin).
Director Chia-Liang Liu’s kung fu film practiced what it preached, with…
A man must do or die.
my body was prepared for this, but my soul was certainly not. The 36th Chamber of Shaolin is an ordinary story about overcoming your inner demons, discovering your strength and seeking spiritual awareness rather than revenge upon your enemies, but what makes it great is the fluidity of said personal achievements. a notion that there is more to marital arts than just fighting with your body; wisdom, patience and power are also a key part in it. a movie with exceptional storytelling and the action is wall-to-wall martial arts goodness; a visual feast of mesmerizing choreographed fight scenes—the long take training sequences made me tense the fuck up—and holding it all together are acts of selflessness, the most human kung-fu movie? I think so.
I am now in love with Gordon Liu, I am now in love with The 36th Chamber of Shaolin.
just fantastic from start to finish. thnx Kris for the rec!
I know what you’re thinking. You want to see Gordon Liu have his vengeance on those Manchus. Maybe you’ll get that, if you’re patient. First you have to get across this pond by balancing yourself on this log. Then you’ll need to perfect both body and mind by mastering the skills in all 35 chambers so powerfully that you will end up creating a 36th chamber to share your wisdom with the masses. And then, towards the end of this 115-minute film, you will finally be ready.
English Version below
Winterzeit ist Klassiker/Kultzeit die Achtzehnte (18/3)
Mach ein Tatar(en) sagten sie. Oder heißt es Tatare …? Tataren wie die Tataren …? Schließlich muss ich doch Tatar(en) machen, für ein Mönchskloster, einem ganzen Mönchskloster, keinem halben oder einem zu Dreiviertel gefüllten. Nein! Einem ganzen Mönchskloster wie es nur ganz sein kann.
Tatare …? Tataren …? Tataron???
Ach polier mir doch den Haarscheitel bis zu den fehlenden Kotletten.
Ruhig sein. Durchatmen. Die Hände vor die Brust verschränken. Das Qi in mir finden. Die Ruhe finden. Das durchgeatmet Sein Sein lassen. Die vor die Brust verschränkten Hände lösen. Das Qi, die innere Mitte, gefunden.
Suchen wir erstmals die Zutaten. Was braucht es dazu? Eeeinnn … Was für eine Klaue von…
The stuff outside the Shaolin temple is a little below top-tier Lau Kar Leung, but everything inside the temple is among the most beautiful filmmaking around.
"Watch your step kid, watch your step kid, watch your step kid, ya best protect ya neck" - The Wutang Clan (NIF)
Did this movie invent cross-fit? BTW, when are these bad guys going to realize that they need to stop fucking around with people's martial arts schools?
In The 36th Chamber of Shaolin a man's teacher and associates in his martial arts school are all killed. Lu Yu-De escapes the ambush and makes his way to a shaolin temple where he must master 35 different forms of training to become a Shaolin warrior monk. Now that Yu-De is stacked and packs a punch it's time to revengineer and awesome final act. I like this movie so much I had…
Art in action.
But that’s doing this a disservice. The beauty of THE 36th CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN lies in its mastery on at least two fronts, rising above the pack as this double-edged sword of movement and spirituality.
Of course, it’s the glorious martial arts displays that are the main draw, these blink and you’ll miss it dances of the body and soul. It’s a flurry of arms and legs, flailing body parts and their sorry targets. That never once feels out of control. Or anything less than wholly orchestrated, even within anarchy.
I’ll come out and say it: I’m a total kung fu rookie, so my perspective here is one of an outsider with no previous education, by and…
criterion 4K restoration with RZA commentary track and Disc-2 RZA live score version when
