5 comments about Pride Fighting Championship: Bushido, Vol. 1.

1. Pride's 'Bushido 1' show was put on a couple years ago. It was to promote up-and-coming fighters. It also had a different format than normal Pride matches, with Bushido matches consisting of only two rounds(10 minutes in the first, 5 in the second). The fighters also had to keep the action moving or be penalized with a yellow card.
   
   The first show(there have been six more since)wasn't too bad. It featured Team Gracie vs. Team Japan. The event featured the most Gracies ever on a single card: there were five(including Renzo and Ryan)all with Royce in their corner. On the opposite side were the Japanese(mostly younger fighters, a slimmed down Shoji, and Carlos Newton)with Sakuraba in theirs.
   
   On paper the event looked great, but in my opinion didn't live up to the hype. The matches were okay(most going the distance)but none were truly spectacular. Its not the greatest event Pride has ever put on, but its worth picking up for the $10 price here on Amazon.



2. After watching these fights, I would never train under the Gracies. If you have a x2 PLAY button on your DVD, USE it.
   All the Gracies spend about 90% of the fight on their backs, and do absolutely Nothing when on top. It's almost like they are stunned to realize they are in a good position.
   Watch the first 30 seconds of any of the Gracie fights, and you get the idea. Then, x2 or x4 if you got it.
   
   The other fights are a lot better, and worth watching.
   A long time ago, the Gracies were unstoppable, but now..... Any standup fighter with more then 6 months of ground
   training could beat them. Main method of attack: Lay on your back like a turtle, wrap your legs in the guard, then hope your opponent gets tired of hitting you, and passes out. I would never even pay a regular rental fee for this one.
   
   Also, the commentary is only good when the fights start. The Japanese put on a spectacular show, before the fight, but it's ruined by not having a translator or subtitles, and then having the commentators just saying over, and over, and over again "Wow........ Wow. I wish you were here. Wow. This is like a movie. Wow..... I can't believe this..... wow...... This is amazing.."



3. I tried really hard to like this event. The first two fights were fantastic but the rest simply blows. What the hell was up with the main event anyway?? I really love to watch Pride, but it bothers me when they throw scrubs at their cash cows like this. Putting a WWF style 'wrestler' in his MMA premier fight against Cro Cop is kind of like putting an amature boxer against Oscar DeLahoya for his first fight. It looks good on the highlight reels because it will end up the way it is supposed too... in a brutal KO. Lame.



4. I disagree with most of the reviews on this site. What do they want? What do they expect? There aren't any bad fights on this dvd. There isn't one boring fight. I don't know what these people are objecting to. The Gracies don't just lay on their backs like turtles. What absurd nonsense. Rodrigo, Ralph and Ryan laying on their backs like turtles? What is this guy, nuts? Does Tank Abbott lay on his back like a turtle? If anything, the opponents of the Gracies would sometimes fight defensively to avoid getting submitted.
   
   This was billed as a competition between five Gracies and Team Japan. Three of the Gracies win, and only one Japanese fighter wins. Carlos Newton is one of the world greats, and he gets a reasonably close decision over Renzo. Renzo is a gem. His sportsmanship makes you smile. When one of the judges awards the decision to Renzo, Renzo is shaking his head as if to say it should have been unanimous for Carlos Newton. What class! I love Renzo's smile. He is such a kind gentleman. I met him at his school in Manhattan and he interrupted his extremely busy schedule, running a tournament, to stop and say hi to me and my 6 or 7 year old daughter. He didn't know either of us. He just wanted to say hi, and chat a moment. What a hospitable, friendly guy.
   
   My copy of the dvd didn't have all the fights on it. I was unable to see Alex Emilianenko or Kharitonov. No Russians on my copy. When I tried to have the mouse point to those fights, it wouldn't move. I don't think those fights were on the dvd I had.
   
   I do have to agree with one of the other reviewers who complained about the Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic fight. He fought a newcomer, and he simply kicked him in the head with his shin, and that was that. You can break a baseball bat with your shin.
   
   One of the reviewers ridiculed the announcers. That was uncalled for. The announcers are okay. The reviewer was bragging that he knew that one of the fighters hurt his knee. So what. I watched the replay several times, and it was really hard to tell if the man hurt his knee or not. It wasn't obvious at all at the point of contact. So stop showing off.
   
   I really regret that Rickson Gracie didn't fight for a world championship. I believe that he would have been a great champion for years. The sport really missed a lot by not seeing the greatest of the Gracies win a world championship and defend it. Even today, in 2006, I don't think many fighters could beat him. Fedor Emilianenko, Andrei Arlovski, those guys would have to be favorites to win, but I wouldn't be in a hurry to bet on Chuck Liddell or Mirko Cro Cop to beat Rickson Gracie right now. And Rickson is not a heavyweight.



5. This is a great start to the Bushido series. The Japan vs Gracie set is decent and the Newton vs Renzo fight is unbelievable.

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3 comments about Bruce Lee - Immortal Dragon.

1. This DVD looks to be the same show that A&E aired as their biography of Bruce Lee (1 hour version). The quality of the transfer is good - both picture and sound - but not great.

   Two things that annoyed me are:
   1) Several motion clips and stills were used over and over, detracting from the generally good quality of the production and
   2) The "extras" consist solely of several trailers for martial arts movies, some of which Bruce Lee had nothing to do with.

   Still, for ten bucks, it's a good deal.




2. I saw this episode of Biography under the new title "Bruce Lee - Immortal Dragon" on a low-priced DVD. While it doesn't go into enormous detail and is relatively short, it is still a pretty entertaining and complete version of Bruce Lee's life. I would reccommend it mostly to aspiring fans of Lee. One part of the documentary that I liked was a nifty section on the many Bruce Lee imitators that came after Lee's death. Like most documentaries found in the bargain bin, the film clips are mostly from public domain sources.
   As an extra feature, the DVD contains trailers for Bruce Lee's "The Chinese Connection," "Fists of Fury," "Enter the Dragon," and "Return of the Dragon," as well as trailers for Jackie Chan's "The Big Brawl," Steven Seagal's "Above the Law," and Chuck Norris' "The Octagon" and "A Force of One." All of these trailers are pretty entertaining. The biggest shortcoming of the DVD is that it contains no chapter stops - this is a source of frustration.



3. I picked this up very very cheap in a supermarket, and I know why now.
   The main part of the DVD is a documentary which is quite interesting but really has nothing new to say about Bruce Lee. It contains a lot of stock footage which I have seen before.
   
   For what I paid (£1 in the UK!), and baring in mind I actually don't own any other Bruce Lee documentaries, this is fine. If it costs more than that and you already have documentaries about Bruce Lee its probably not worth buying.

4 comments about Robo Vampire.

1. The vampires bunny hop its a classic



2. WOW! Imagine soaking a bowl of Fruit Loops cereal ith soda pop, downing it down with Pop Tarts, and the resulting head rush -- ROBO VAMPIRE is the cinematic equivalent! YOU GOTTA SEE THIS!



3. this is the worst movie I, and probably EVERYBODY, have ever seen! I have no words to describe it, and I cannot believe it came out on dvd! this is so awful we laugh all the movie long! the vampires jumping like rabbits, the fake blood, the stupid argument...this is really the number one movie on BAD MOVIES! this is even worse than TROMA movies! this is....I'm speachless...



4. This movie is so unbelievably beyond the scope of the human language that I feel the only way to properly start my review is to simply create a new word and have its meaning be tied to this movie. And here goes:

   Pandalerious

   This movie is so pandalerious that I dont even know where to begin. I could start at the beginning of the movie, but thats where I started when I watched it, and I still dont know what the actual plot of the movie was about. Drugs I think. Vampires definitly. And lets not forget the love scene between a ghost-woman and a man in an ape costume. Of course, no vampire can stand up to Robo Warrior. Now on the cover of the movie, clearly you can see Robo Cop headlocking a vampire. Not only is Robo Cop NOT in this movie, there are also NO headlocks whatsoever! Instead we get some goon in a teflon oven mitt costume that cant even take a few rockets to the chest without turning into a flaming dummy made out of tinfoil (special effect #1). Of course, Robo Warrior comes back for the final revenge, when he turns the evil master of the vampires into a flying pile of sheets draped onto a coathanger suspended by a wire (special effect #2)

   To conclude, I will say that if you like terrible movies, this one is for you

   Otherwise, do yourself a favor and go see Zero Tolerance

5 comments about The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires/The Seven Brothers meet Dracula.

1. After Satanic Rites Lee Refused to put on the Cape who could blame him Peter Cushing Returns as Van Helsing and that does not help this poor movie the Dracula in this looks like a christopher lee wanna be he wears lip stick it looks very predictable



2. This is one of the worst Hammer Movies Ever Made this is even considerd to be a Sequel to "Satanic Rites of Dracula" NO IT ISNT this is not a sequel has nothing to do with the Dracula Series if this is a Sequel there are a few things Wrong with This
   
   1. Satanic Rites of Dracula took place in "1974" This happens in "1904" NO SEQUEL
   
   2. The Van Helsing in this can't be the one from the previous one or from "Horror of Dracula"
   
   3. This could have been the prequel to "Horror of Dracula" if they had stuck with the year the movie starts in which is "1804" Because "Horror" starts in the year "1885" but they messed it up
   
   Dont bother with this one I only got this because I am a Big Fan of Hammer. Dracula "John Forbes Robinson" Looks Horrible in this



3. 
   I think this was an inter­esting idea given the time the film was made to link the horror and Kung‑Fu genres. Apparently there were many problems involved with the shooting of a Euro­pean film in Hong Kong, at the Shaw Brothers studios. Despite these problems the film is good visually, and is reminiscent of the earlier Hammer 'Dracula' films.
   
   The acting standard is about average, with the customary excellent performance from Peter Cushing in the pivotal role. Sadly missing from the cast is Chris Lee; John Forbes‑Robertson is hopelessly miscast as Dracula. This problem is not helped by the poor Dracula make-up, which often got laughs in the cinema.
   
   Thankfully Dracula doesn't appear too often in the film, and it may have been improved if they had cut him out altogether! Convincing performances are delivered by all of the Chinese cast. The golden vampires are impressive (and were a good, original idea), in their golden masks and me­dallions, etc.
   
   Another, possibly intentional, humorous touch are the zombies. They appear to virtually hop around every­where in a very comical manner. Les Bowie's special effects are marvelous, especially the resur­rection scenes (somewhat similar in nature to the sequence in 'Plague of the Zombies').
   
   Julie Ege is enticing as the film's love‑interest. David Chiang (who had previously worked with Bruce Lee) plays the leader of the brothers well, and has only a slight accent. His Kung‑Fu tech­niques are highly convincing.
   
   Totally mix‑cast is Robin Stewart (a British TV com­edy 'actor') as Van Helsing's inept son Leyland. His style of acting appears to come from the 'oak‑school', and his presence always seems to detract from the atmosphere of the film.
   
   The movie is beautifully crafted by the consistently amazing Roy ward Baker (the style recalls memo­ries of his earlier 'Vampire Lovers'). Even without the Kung‑Fu this would have stood alone as a good horror film. The Martial‑Arts aspect comple­ments the film, and it amply deserves its cult classic status.
   
   Sadly the film didn't receive its deserved wide‑release after completion in 1974. It has only been around the UK film circuit a couple of times since then, usually on the lower half of an inferior double‑bill. It took five years to be released in the States, with a ridiculous title change. However, it has still managed to become a cult film.
   
   Only a butchered version was available in America. Most Hammer fans avidly sit through this film many times whenever it makes one of it's rare screen appearances.
   
   It was one of the old Hammer company's last at­tempts at a comeback to the horror genre, the other being 'To the devil, a daughter' in 1975. Neither film was finan­cially successful enough to keep the company above water, so that further movies could be made.
   
   One great asset of the film is the superb score by James Bernard and Phil Martell. (A story read by Peter Cushing with some music is available on an exceed­ingly rare soundtrack LP.) As an ex‑martial artist I feel that the Kung‑Fu sections were of a high enough stan­dard to satisfy fans of that particular genre, as well as the straight horror fans. Kung‑Fu films were extremely popular in 1974/5 following the Bruce Lee movies.
   
   It makes a pleasant change to see vampires being killed by the use of unusual weapons and fighting methods (the fight scenes were always ac­tion‑packed and highly exciting), rather than the traditional ‑ run into the ground ‑ stakes, crosses, garlic, etc.
   
   On subsequent viewings the film holds up well and never becomes boring, audiences never seem to tire when watching it. It's a great shame that this film is virtually the only one of its kind, being a most agree­able blend of differing film styles.
   
   Despite the minor flaws of Dracula and Leyland, Roy Ward Baker is to be commended on the con­struction of an atmospheric and enjoyable film; a fitting tribute to the skill and craftsmanship of the Hammer cast and crew.



4. Libretio is right on the money--THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES is a minor part of the Hammer library, but an interesting pastiche, and one heckuva lotta fun! There is absolutely nothing to take seriously here, so enjoy! Enjoy!
   I loved the bouncing zombies in their skull masks, the Seven Golden Vampires who run around in what look like thick mudpacks (I guess only Drac looks good after four hundred years!), the first-generation chop-socky fights (no telegraphed punches here. . .well, maybe a few. . .well, maybe all of 'em), the stiff-upper lip delivery of the always wonderful Peter Cushing (although here he is so rail-thin and gaunt that you can't help but wish for the athletic Sherlock Holmes he played just about twenty years before), the exciting James Bernard score and the great sets. Grand, just grand.
   And it was very interesting to see the two radically different cuts of the film. The truncated, hour-and-a-quarter version uses the same Vampires/Zombie village attack material several times, but by cutting story (huh?) it runs fifteen minutes shorter than the vastly superior original cut. It does have the better "bad" title, though: THE SEVEN BROTHERS AND THEIR ONE SISTER MEET DRACULA! Wotta hoot!
   And the real treat is the audio promo story on side one! Rarer than hens' teeth, and here it is! With the fabulous UK poster artwork, as well! Love it, love it, love it!
   You may not want to actually buy this one without renting it first, but check it out and you just might decide that THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES is so bad, it's great!
   Have fun!



5. The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires is a less than successful hybrid combining Hammer horror and mid-70s chop socky movie as Dracula (not Christopher Lee but an inadequate John Forbes Robertson), for reasons never really explained, possesses the body of a Chinese bad guy to control six golden vampires while Cushing's Van Helsing, on a far from successful Chinese lecture tour, finds himself teaming up with seven brothers and their one sister to rid a remote Chinese village of yada yada yada.. "Black belt against black magic" screams the trailer, and while it's not as poor as I recalled, the only things going for it are a few okay action scenes and a magnificent display of bosom heaving from Julie Ege in one particularly memorable shot.
   
   But it's a masterpiece compared to the butchered US version, retitled The Seven Brothers Meet Dracula, which makes it sound like a bad Howard Keel musical. Although the original was far from dialog-heavy, a good two-thirds of the dialog has been dropped completely (in some cases you can still see the actors' lips moving but no sound emerging). Even more bizarre is the opening two reels, which reuse much of the same footage three times in a row in three separate scenes, hoping that by flipping it around no-one will notice. The end result is a surreal experience that just washes over you.
   
   Anchor Bay's extras package is particularly good: both cuts of the film, the US trailer (which the narrator constantly refers to as 'The Seven Brothers and Their One Sister Meet Dracula'!) and the old LP narrated by Peter Cushing as an audio extra. However, the double-bill set with Frankenstein Created Woman is a better bet than this individual release/

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2 comments about Tai Chi Chuan: The 27 forms by Marshall Ho¿o.

1. This is a great way to gain insight into authentic Tai Chi. Master Ho is a true Chinese Master of the art. His dialogue throughout may seem a little corny, but after viewing a few times, he and his assistant(the perfect Miss Malory) make great old friends who have actual personalities! Definately refreshing to see the forms done with such precision. A sweet, if slightly dated, and groovy way to get in some QUALITY Tai Chi time. Includes ALL correct forms, temple exercises & more.. not new-age yuppie adaptations!



2. PER AMAZON, I SHOULD RECEIVE THIS APRIL 9 2007

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2 comments about Martial Arts Master Jet Li: Born to Defence/The Shaolin Temple/Kids From Shaolin.

1. this pack is awesome .these 3 old school kung fu movie are great
   real fight without cable. real kung fu . chinese vs us officers. shao lin vs wudang. boy vs is dad killer.the image quality is poor but THE FIGHT ARE GREAT.
   buy this .
   for jet li fans & kung fu movies fans



2. Shaolin Temple (1982) is Jet Li's first movie and the first of a series of movies that resulted in the popularity of the Shaolin Temple in the west, and ultimately to the rebuilding of the real Shaolin Temple near Dengfeng (China). The story is not very deep, but the fight scenes are fun, especially as no ropes were involved. A classic.
   
   Shaolin Temple 2: Kids from Shaolin (1983) is the second movie in the series. The story is artificially construed around the rivalry of a Wudang swordsmaster's family of girls and a Shaolin monk's family of boys. Nice fight scenes, but the "comical" scenes always give me the willies.
   
   Born to defense (1986) is Jet Li's third movie, and the first and only movie that Jet Li directed himself. Even though the critics about this movie are generally very bad, I liked the movie very much: realistic fight scenes with no wires, none of the awful slapstick scenes, and the view of a historical situation from the other side, i.e. from the Chinese point of view. Yes, the villain and the good guy are pretty stereotypical, but still there are a number of surprising twists in the story. Also, I liked that even though Jet has great fighting skills and often wins the fight itself, none of the fights actually ends good for him.
   
   All in all: two classics and one not-so classic that might still be worth seeing.

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