Shaolin [Blu-ray]

What a fabulous film! Moving, suspenseful, fast moving, marvellously filmed and edited and full of rip roaring action. After watching this late into the night, I wondered why we in the west can't make films of such stature. Hollywood has lost the plot and all the British Film "Industry" seems to churn out are sleazy efforts about local pond life. The acting here is top notch, the action scenes fantastic and the story one of carefully plotted twists and turns, with a vein of nobility running through it that makes other films of the genre pale into insignificance. If you haven't seen it, do so and if you haven't bought it yet, BUY IT NOW! Pity I can't give 10 stars.

Good grief, I didn't expect this film to be as good as it was. I really didn't. I was laughing, I was crying, and I was amazed. My one complaint is the amount of flooded lungs - everyone seems to be dribbling blood even when they were injured nowhere near their chests - but that really was my only complaint. The martial arts are amazing, the story is brilliant, and the setting is beautiful. Lots of martial arts masters involved in the casting which made the movements more authentic, and more impressive - though a few have clearly been aided by special effects, because people can't really fly like that. Nowhere near as cheesy or overdone as a lot of martial arts movies I've seen, highly recommended!

The scale of the film Shaolin, the accessible score, the occasional comedic elements all convey a film that would be superior flick to discover on a sunday afternoon. However, the violence is punchy, immediate & often brutal. Some of the scenes i would say linger just a shade longer than is necessary for the audience to grasp how harsh this world was. Saying this though, the martial arts married to the philosophical shaolin,zen, buddhistic elements are thorough and constant. So a religious epic that sports many action scenes that portray the wonders, the mastery of the self, that is martial art. With bloodshed. And horses, lots of horses, and way too many guns. The BBFC in the uk has seen fit to remove scenes of the horses falling, in one scene if you look away for a tad too long you might wonder how the horserider ended up on the floor, and hey, where is his horse? Aside from the taming down of possible animal misuse, which doesnt really harm the whole film but does seem obvious when it happens, the humans here are seeking peace and enlightenment or just going about their business, only to be brutally attacked & double-crossed at every turn. Much of it reminded me of The Godfather to begin with, then a number of chinese epics, some of the better kung-fu of late,and ultimately a more accessible religious flavour than Passion of the Christ which went into the land of gory horror. The overall impact of a two hour film that is never dull & always interesting is becoming a rarity. It never really over plays its dramatic hand, if you don't mind soaring emotions of an asian suddenness. Action that plays with solid shaolin directness & the idiocy that is mankinds delight in war will show a contrast in the tranquility that is shattered. It probably won't compel many westerners to become a full-on buddhist after it is over, but it may make you very glad that there are some on the planet. Now if only we can concentrate on doing without those daft gun things...

Good film

If you like Ip man you should like this. Many people may think its gonna be a comedy because of Jackie Chan but this is a Epic movie with little moments of Jackie Chan in this movie. The shaolin fight scenes are great the story is a epic one. I don't want to spoil so I recommend you watch it NOW..

One of the best movie I’ve ever seen! Great story line makes you understand how karma work in life..lots of Action and touching scene too! Love it!!! Not a dull moment!

I thoroughly enjoyed this film. Sure there was a fair bit of violence however it was not gratitous but only within the context of eastern morality and spirituality of loss and redemption. For me as a Christian, it helped to explain why Monks could and should wield a lethal slap across the head. The only area i questioned was the role if women who are very much of no account in the lives of the period. I think the film makers could have done a lot more to mitigate a certain contempt for women running through the film. Well worth a watch.

Twas brillig, and the slithy toves Did gyre and gimble in the wabe; All mimsy were the borogoves, And the mome raths outgrabe.

Love the story behind this film. Set during the warlord period in China when certain parts of the country were ruled over by military warlords it shows the state of one warlord losing his family and his dominion to his subordinate and then taking refuge within the shaolin temple. He comes to find peace only to go to war with his old subordinate who took over as warlord over his domain. Like Jackie Chan, and he has a small role within the film and was used largely for his name's star power. Still he role is really good and the film is very enjoyable. Nice martial arts sequences, but nothing too spectacular or over the top. Great film in my opinion.

Great Movie, drama & martial arts

UPDATE: July-2020 Own 12 DVD/Blu-ray combo "W" ["Well Go USA"] Oriental/Russian/Western action films, some that seem to be 4K UHD quality: a delight to watch with 4K technology. This movie is "a grand martial arts spectacular", as stated on plastic case, and also, a very touching story. Original item purchased on release date rated 5 stars in terms of movie content and A/V quality. I accidentally dropped / damaged original in 2019. 2 replacements via Amazon suppliers were defective: video image fragmentation and stoppage half-way through movie. This latest (3rd) replacement - collector's version - had different quality issue ("washed out" video appearance). I wonder if these may be "boot-leg" knockoffs of "Well Go USA" genuine products, else, apparently poor reproduction (recopying) issue. Hence, revised 3 stars overall rating when viewing this latest Blu-ray on 4K A/V system.

Brutal movie, but realistic, as opposed to many overdone "action" films. The story-line is one that young people see frequently in "gaming". But cartoon characters don't bleed, or cry. So this is tough for teens, in a way, but the discussion that follows is very thoughtful. Of course if you love Shaolin, and Kung Fu, you appreciate that most of the action was"wire-less" and authentic. Jackie Chan's segments were amusing and well-done, but since "comic relief" only appeared in one segment, it seemed a bit odd and out of sync. We might have liked to see more of him, a little less humorously, for balance throughout. Worth watching with parents, friends, teacher(?) for discussion of moral an ethical meanings.

*NOTE: This review is for the "Shaolin (Collector's Edition) [Blu-Ray]". Amazon merged reviews with another edition that is Blu-Ray + DVD combo. This is a beautifully made film with a compelling story and profound meaning. There is everything in this film: realistic kung-fu actions, human greed/power, undeniable love for family, and seeing an absolutely cold-hearted person becoming all heart. Andy Lau was the star so was Jackie Chan (as special guest) and other supporting actors. One can argue this is a drama-first (my believe), and action second. The package comes with a blu-ray and a DVD. blu-ray comes with two Chinese audio tracks (5.1 and stereo), and two English audio tracks (5.1 and stereo). The main menu says the Chinese is Cantonese dialect, but both tracks are Mandarin. There is subtitle for English and Spanish as well. The English 5.1 seems to have better fidelity and decoding to all 5.1 speakers than the Chinese 5.1 version overall. The English dialog is translated well. The English subtitle is slightly different, but also translated very well. This is pretty rare. Kudos to the translators. The Full HD (1080p) is clean, detailed, sharp but properly softened as needed in the right places. As far as special features on the blu-ray, the deleted scenes are LONG and have pretty interesting "side stories". Many are actually quite significant to properly develop characters and bring out the strength of the overall story, but I can understand the movie would've been close to 3 hours long! There are also two international trailers. The second disc is a DVD, and it contains additional bonus materials. There are interviews of the cast and director, and behind the scene clips and documentaries. The interviews are in Mandarin and Cantonese dialects (no English).