What’s arguably the best old-school kung fu film ever made paved the way in which for one of the best trilogy within the historical past of the style. The thirty sixth Chamber of Shaolin is undoubtedly liable for a number of hours of must-watch martial arts leisure.
Through the years, the martial arts style has produced a protracted checklist of franchises, to various ranges of success. Franchises like Kickboxer, As soon as Upon a Time in China, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, boast extraordinarily lengthy runs, with different collection – resembling John Wick and Ip Man – already at 4 and approaching 5. Some, however, stopped at three.
With regards to martial arts film trilogies, names that come to thoughts embrace Jet Li’s Swordsman films, the Eighties Karate Child movies, Rush Hour, and Armour of God. Standing above the pile is the thirty sixth Chamber collection, regardless that it isn’t at all times been appreciated as a trilogy.
The thirty sixth Chamber Of Shaolin Is One Of The Greatest Kung Fu Films Ever Made
A real gem of the martial arts style was created when Lau Kar-leung directed The thirty sixth Chamber of Shaolin, an old-school kung fu film from Shaw Brothers. Launched in 1978, The thirty sixth Chamber of Shaolin starred Gordon Liu as San Te, a person who joins the Shaolin Temple as part of his campaign for revenge.
A lot of the film covers the coaching he receives in every “chamber” of the Shaolin Temple, whereas additionally tackling the ethical dilemma that accompanies his mission; his chief aim goes towards the values of the Shaolin monks, regardless that he is searching for to change into certainly one of them.
On this means, The thirty sixth Chamber of Shaolin is ready to ship greater than only a showcase of Gordon Liu’s martial arts abilities. It has that in abundance, in fact, however it additionally affords a worthwhile character arc for San Te, who has to steadiness his need for vengeance towards his rising affection for the Shaolin Temple and what it stands for.
Getting in hand with the film’s nice narrative are many distinctive coaching sequences that exhibit San Te’s development as a fighter, thus making the super expertise he reveals on the finish really feel each natural and earned.
What’s extra, the payoff for all of the coaching within the film is precisely what ought to be anticipated from a top-notch martial arts revenge film: two martial arts stars – Gordon Liu and Lo Lieh – dealing with off in an epic, excellently choreographed battle with nice emotional stakes because the hero makes use of every little thing he is discovered to defeat a once-unconquerable foe.
The thirty sixth Chamber Of Shaolin Has Two Extremely Underrated Sequels
It might come as a shock that regardless of telling a whole story, The thirty sixth Chamber of Shaolin wasn’t the tip of the street for San Te. The 1978 traditional was adopted up with two sequels, Return to the thirty sixth Chamber and Disciples of the thirty sixth Chamber.
The primary wasn’t a direct sequel, and was moderately a brand new model of the story with Gordon Liu enjoying a brand new character who is definitely a San Te impostor making an attempt to revenue off the well-known Shaolin monk’s picture. However utlimately, he winds up on the Shaolin Temple and reworked into a strong fighter by the actual San Te.
True to the spirit of their predecessor, Return to the thirty sixth Chamber put appreciable emphasis on the hero’s coaching, which, in a standard martial arts film, is an integral a part of the components. The scene the place Gordon Liu combines bamboo scaffolding and Shaolin martial arts is an ideal instance of martial artists utilizing on a regular basis work as a means of coaching their our bodies and minds in kung fu.
The ultimate movie within the trilogy – Disciples of the thirty sixth Chamber – takes viewers again to the unique story and explores the aftermath of the primary movie’s ending, which noticed the creation of “thirty sixth Chamber” of the Shaolin Temple by San Te. The 1985 sequel follows a brand new Shaolin Temple trainee, who will get introduced into the orbit of Liu’s San Te, who’s now serving in his function because the caretaker of the thirty sixth Chamber.
That is to not say, although, that the movie is an easy “passing of the torch” film that sidelines the franchise’s authentic hero. San Te is not the protagonist anymore, however he elements closely into the motion and the story, contributing to a enjoyable coaching sequence the place he suits the hero with a bench, to not point out a wild finale the place the 2 get to group up towards the villains.
The thirty sixth Chamber Is The Solely Nice Martial Arts Film Trilogy
Each Return to the thirty sixth Chamber and Disciples of the thirty sixth Chamber are wonderful old-school kung fu films, full with the excessive manufacturing values that go together with a big-budget Shaw Brothers launch.
Like the unique, the 2 films starred Gordon Liu and have been directed by Lau Kar-leung. With the involvement of Liu and among the best martial arts film administrators of all time on the helm, Shaw Brothers was in a position to make sure that the collection was constant in its high quality from begin of the trilogy to the tip. On this means, Lau Kar-leung’s thirty sixth Chamber collection was in a position to accomplish one thing many different movies had failed.
Most martial arts film franchises – together with these which are trilogies – could not preserve the identical tempo and have been sadly held again by at the very least one weak installment. Oftentimes, this is because of a film using a novel idea, and that sense of novelity getting misplaced within the sequels. The sequels to The Karate Child suffered from this downside.
Different trilogies, resembling Rush Hour and Ong Bak, merely had a lackluster and even forgettable end, with the latter instance having a very poor third entry. In distinction, The thirty sixth Chamber of Shaolin‘s trilogy delivered the products throughout, beginning with a legendary martial arts film, transferring to an entertaining religious sequel, and eventually to a outstanding remaining chapter that brings San Te’s story full circle.