5 comments about Secrets of Tai Chi.

1. This video both in DVD and VHS format (I have both, having just purchased a DVD copy), is an English dubbed, panned and scanned, old school Hong Kong cheapie done on a very small budget with mostly unknowns. But it is well worth getting if you like old school kung fu flicks, Tai Chi, and good fighting without wires. It begins with documentary film clips of Chen Xiaowang, one of the greatest Chen style Tai Chi Ch'uan practioners in the world who is from the Chen Family, the creators and preservers of Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan, the "mother" style of all Tai Chi styles. This is interspersed with documentary film clips of another great Tai Chi practioner whose name slips my mind, but trust me, she too is great. The film itself uses the classic cliched kung fu film revenge plot of "you killed my Dad, prepare to die!", but it carries it out with some fresh touches of humor and style and some great fighting sequences. The Tai Chi philosophy and principles are addressed with respect and authenticity. As an amateur practioner of Tai Chi, I can "feel" the "echoes" of genuine Tai Chi in this movie. The locations are sort of haunting and the acting is not bad. There is some classic Hong Kong filmmaking visual "chutzpah", most especially a fight scene featuring dozens of bad guy drones in brightly colored costumes running around in color coordinated circles, conducted by the had bad guy, the evil general. It is like some sort of Busby Berkley nightmare: strangely beautiful, beautifully strange. The dubbing is the typical over-the-top English voice over dubbing, but is not as bad as some and is better than many. It would be nice to have a wide screen version of this movie, but this flawed panned and scanned dubbed, mono print is most likely as good as it will ever get. And again, if you are a fan of this genre, this is a must have--at the very least it is a must see.



2. The movie starts out with some real tai chi players then goes into standard martial arts. This isn't no Shaw brothers movie. Couple of the training sequences are ok but that's it. And most importantly, not much tai chi application at the last fight seen. If you are a novice, yeah get it.



3. 'Secret of Tai-Chi' is a movie I have had sitting on my shelf for a couple of years now. With great kung fu DVD releases coming out all of the time, I have had bad experiences with a lot of Tai Seng's martial arts theater line up though about 30% of them are actually pretty good. Well I looked this movie over for far too long. If you want a movie with a great story, don't watch this. If only you like movies with big budgets that have recognizeable actors, and great sets and costumes, then please don't watch this movie.
   
   If you are a fan of great kung fu movies with tons of great fights, then this is a movie you will watch over and over and over and over again. And over again. It is fight filled throughout the ENTIRE movie. We do get a couple of breaks to see experiences like the young students watching the girls "dancing", but then we find out it is called Tai-Chi. And then of course we see a young man get embarrassed with his flashy and super weak kung fu style. If you are a fan of kung fu because of real styles being used, this movie won't be a total dissapointment. Don't expect anything like Woo-Ping's recent masterpiece of Tai-Chi in the TV series 'Tai-Chi Master' but it does have some real practicioners at the start. The person who wrote the first review for this movie says they are members of the Chen family who practice the Chen style. You can see the elder woman's power from a mile away as it hits you with a bang even when you glance at her. That is as far as the real Tai-Chis goes. You will for sure notice a couple of other applications in the finale against the main villian though mostly it will be a dissapointment if you are expecting it to be applied properly. The styles being shown in the movie are various. There are many mixed together. If you have seen movies like 'Undaunted Wudang', 'South Shaolin Master', or 'Ahrats in Fury, then you will see the same type of wushu style. The fights in this movie are actually longer and better. None have the particular impact that a couple of scenes from those other 3 but they still are all well choreographed.
   
   The movie is your typical revenge flick and is in fact average at very best in it's sorytelling. This is unfortunately a distraction but it takes literally no longer than 5 minutes at any given point for a fight to happen so it all even's out. The general, who the 2 young kids want to kill because he killed their dad, is a great villian. All of the villians are superb. All of the actors in the movie not only have fists of lightining and unbelievable timing in their choreography but they can pull off back flips on to their stomachs and all of that cool stuff. In 'Ahrats of Fury' I remember some cool wire shots but this movie does not have any wires which is just the way I like it. There is no budget for this movie, they just have to rely on the fights being good. My favorite fight has be the part where the villians show up at Shaolin Temple chasing the heroes. The monks who are practicing outside will not let them inside of course and they do all sorts of formations to protect their temple. They are all 3 on 1 and then 4 on 1 fights. You need good villians and this movie supplies that no doubt. The final fight I thought could have been better and the color coded fighters could have been a lot better but there is still a hell of a lot going on and it will take mulitiple viewing to fully take this movie in. The final shot of the movie is classic for the genre.
   
   The DVD release from Tai Seng is full screened and this almost completely ruins the movie. Picture quality is more than watchable though nothing to get excited about. The English Dubbing is alright but the villian is classic. A widescreen version does exist. It does not have quite as good of picture quality but is highly recommended and you just need a region 2 or all region DVD player since it is from Europe.



4. This video, while adequate, is not in the class of "T'ai Chi Master." There is far too much "air fighting" and too little "ground fighting." The sequences, while interesting, do not show the complexity of motion that constitutes T'ai Chi.



5. The story line was basic the typical revenge, the characters were fair in their acting ability and the fight scenes were above average some trills. The training sequences were interesting and I liked the villian so 3 stars works for me not a bad movie.

5 comments about Ten Tigers from Kwingtung.

1. The Ten Tigers is actually based on a true story. Great use of Northern Styles, as well as forms and fighting based on the Southern Style 5 Animals system. Throw the Venoms in the Mix and you have a great Kung Fu Classic!!!



2. Wow, Wow, Wow! You will not be disappointed at all with this old school flick! You will see the top ten Venom Mob stars in this one. They team up to deliver an awesome old school hit. The fighting scenes are mob classics, nothing short here. But hold your stomachs, because this is filled with major blood baths, gutts being spilled out and awesome hand to hand combat, sword and pole fighting scenes. You will feature some of the best fighting scenes here. This is typical of the mob classics that I'm used to. This flick is filled with action all the way through.
   
   The plot begins early with treachery, rivalry and trickery as the Venoms team up to guard one of their heroes and get him safely out of the country. In the beginning, the Ten Tigers were tricked into fighting each other, thus giving into the plans of the evil officials. Soon, they discover they were being tricked and used to lure their hero out in the open to be killed. The Ten Tigers soon came together and planned their strategies for sneaking their hero out of the country. Without giving too much away, they met up with strong opposition - from those seeking revenge to the crooked officials seeking to do away with the famous hero and kill off the Ten Tigers at the same time. Those seeking revenge knew that they were no match for the Ten Tigers (together they were too strong) so they resorted to a scheme of trying to kill them off one by one by isolating them. Alone, each Tiger was more manageable to deal with.
   
   This flick is awesome and a must have for real Venom Mob fans. This is worth having. You can't go wrong!!!!



3. What I have noticed about this flick,,,it has several names. The original name for this flick is " 10 tigers From Kwangtung",(SEE DETAILS IN GOOGLE.COM) "10 Tigers From Kwingtung",AKA "10 Tigers from shaolin". When this movie was reviewed under the original name," 10 tigers From Kwangtung",it got a 5 star, and when reviewed under the name "10 Tigers from Shaolin",,it only got 3 stars. Now this is a little disconcerting to me as it appears most people, SO CALLED KUNG FU LOVERS tend grade or rate movies, based on what others have to say! That is extremely sad I think, since I usually buy kung fu movies based on my Amazon colleagues!! THIS MOVIE OVER-ALL WAS AMAZING, and deserve nothing less than 5 stars. I recommend it highly!! So those who graded it 3 Stars, are all IDIOTS AND FOLLOWERS,,,,,,I never liked followers, they usually make me ill!!!



4. Easily one of the best casts ever. Ti Lung, Fu Sheng, and all 6 Venoms, even Johnny Wang Lung Wei who I consider the 7th. Ku Feng is the only star that doesn't fight, but everybody else is obviously on a much higher level than him. To round out the rest of the cast, we have Dick Wei(just like all of his Shaw Brothers movies, he gets the least action out of everybody), Brasshead from 'Kid With the Golden Arm', Chin Siu-ho('Fist of Legend' and '2 Champions of Shaolin'), and Wang Li('Flag of Iron' and '2 Champions of Shaolin').
   
   The story is really bad. It's not that it's stupid, just incredibly boring. At times, things don't even make sense. Other than the jaw-dropping fight scenes, the great acting and graphic violence are the only real positives.
   
   It starts out with a plot for revenge on the pupils of the Ten Tigers. Then it flashes back for an hour! A conclusion does finally come, and includes a very nice Chang Cheh moment. As bad as the storytelling is, the thing that really bugged me is that all of the huge stars aren't even involved in the final fights. The action was still AWESOME, so I can't complain too much. The story can be distracting and boring at times, but since I watch these movies for the fights, it was very enjoyable. I don't even consider this to be good, but I have watched it many times because it is just so much fun.
   
   I also love how you don't meet most of the characters right away. You find their names when they start fighting. Like Lo Meng and his iron fingers, Chiang Sheng's pole skills, and Phillip Kwok's special upside down kick. Lung Wei steals the show with the weirdest fight scene when he pulls out a 3 foot miniature bronze statue. Ti Lung breaks his sword, now try to break that weapon! The best 2 scenes are saved for the last 25 minutes. The first has a guy armed with multiple weapons(Wang Li) against a guy who can make a weapon out of anything that is lying around. After an extremely boring and overlong non-action death scene, we move on to the final fight. It does not disappoint. 3/5
   
   Region 3 IVL is the best version.



5. All the Shaw Bros stars in one movie: the 5 Venoms, Ti Lung, Fu Sheng, etc. The story is told largely in flashback, which makes it a bit tough to follow at times, but the quality of martial arts is great.

5 comments about Long Step Mantis.

1. I watch a lot of kung fu movies and have come to expect that the DVD transfer of such films is usually less than perfect, but this one went above and beyond the call of duty to be one the worst DVD transfers of a kung fu film I have ever seen. During the first 20 minutes the film is almost unwatchable as everything takes place in what appears to be heavily-foliaged terrain, its very hard to tell because everything is washed out green with almost no detail visible, even the actors appear to be green when seen in the distance. Also one can see this was transfered from a VHS tape or similar format as it appears that the tracking was being adjusted constantly for the first sequences of the film. The only thing that saves it from getting 1 star is that it has some very good scenes of Mantis Kung Fu, when they're actually visible of course. Here's to hoping they find a better print of the movie someday.



2. 
   I don't understand why they think that the average kung fu movie consumer could tolerate such crappy quality. I've seen this movie in Europe and I know for a fact that the picture quality is decent in it's widescreen format. When I seen this one come to the states, I refused to buy it unless there was some indication that it's either remastered or in letterbox or both. They should start doing decent transfers of kung fu movies and quit ripping us kung fu movie fans off!!



3. On Like the other two so called kung fu lovers above, when I watch a martial arts flick, I usually watch it for the actual art of kung fu PERIOD!! As a true old school kung fu lover, I cannot afford to focus 100% on the sound or picture quality, I'm just too caught up in the choregraphy and or the cinematography. These flicks are usually 20 to 30 years old,,come on be a flexible. You don't score a flick simply on the picture and sound quality alone!! Personally,,,just as long as I can see and hear appropriately what is happening,,I'm good to go. Therefore, I will rate that movie accordingly!! Yeah, the picture and sound quality is not the greatest,,but that did not take nothing away from the acceptable story line and the amzing fight scenes! This is a top notch flick where the art of kung fu is absolutely transparent, an amazing kick ass flick which deserves nothing less than 5 stars in my book!!!



4. Beckybwoy you're absolutely correct,these movies are 20-30 years old and in the 80's when I went to 42nd street every friday night to see them ,some of them were poor quality then but that does not take away from the action and that is what you are looking for.Those other two guys with their upity reviews need to get back to their little preppy school before their teacher marks them absent,any Real old scooler knows that these pictures are old and they accept them as they are.



5. This movie is bad, but worth watching for the fights. The story is too complicated for it's own good. It's not interesting whatsoever. Mark Long plays a young man who wants to learn kung fu. He finds a secret book, and now he has to defeat some villains with his new skills. Blah blah blah. So how are the fights? Not bad, not bad at all. This movie is a perfect example of what kung fu fans in the UK call "shapes". Basically the best way to describe shapes is that when you watch an actor's body you can see them making shapes. Simple as that. Also, when the actors are doing kung fu exchanges, a lot of the time they are fitting shapes together with their arms. Kind of hard to explain, but when you see the action in this movie you will see the style of choreography I am talking about.
   
   Alright, so back to the fights. TONS of fighting, and most of it is pretty good. Lung Fei's the villain, and he rarely disappoints. He uses a cool one hand style where he keeps his other arm behind his back, but I didn't feel that the director made the most out of this. But it's still cool.
   
   The Groundzero version has decent picture quality, but the full screen presentation really affects the fighting. I'm not one of those people who complains about an actor being out of frame while he's talking, but when the full screen affects the fighting, that's when I get mad. The movie deserves a 3 star rating, but this DVD only gets a 2. Seek out a different version.

3 comments about Killer of Snake, Fox of Shaolin.

1. Killer of Snake, Fox of Shaolin could have been better, but there were a few elements in it which made it watchable.
   
   The story starts, when Carter Wong gets invloved in a dispute between the Fox and Snake clans.(the two clan are actually Foxes and Snakes in human form and both can use magic) Choy Tien Sing, of the Sankes, wants to marry Won Ku of the Foxes. She won't have anything to do with him however, so he tries to take her by force. Carter Wong happens by, and steps in to help the Foxes. Choy Tien Sing injuries him however, but is driven off by the Gods for using magic in a fight. Won Ku nurses Carter Wong back to health and falls for him. Later she and her father try to get Carter to marrry her, but he rufuses. Then they shceme to get the two together by having Won Ku follow Carter Wong.
   
   Eventually they stop at an Inn where Carter stops trouble between the town thugs employed by Kin Tai Fung and the Inn keepers. As a thankyou the Inn keeper allows Carter and Won Ku to stay at the Inn. In the night, however, a female ghost, So Ju Chin, approaches Carter and asks for his help to kill the gang leader Kin Tai Fung. Apparently he had raped her 3 years earlier and she hung herself in shame. Carter is confused at first, because after making a trip to a Buddist temple the next day, he discovers evil is close to him and he must rid himself of it. Eventually, Carter discovers the evil is actully Won Ku, not the spirit, and he aides the ghost in getting revenge on Kin Tai Fung.(Iguess since Won Ku is a Fox in disguise misleading Carter, she is evil)
   
   Meanwhile, Choy Tien Sing tracks down Carter Wong and Won Ku. He is determined to kill Carter and marry Won Ku. He and Carter Wong Battle in the end to settle matters, and Won Ku leaves Carter due to her incompatablity with him. Since she is a Fox and he is a human.
   
   Well as you can see there was a confusing story which was most likely due to the Hong Kong tradition of let's make it up as we go approach to movie making. However, the idea was a fresh one, and I liked the use of the magic, and the idea that the two clans were actually Foxes and Snakes in human form. Also, the plot with the ghost was interseting, better than the clan rivalry and Won Ku's crush on Carter Wong. Both clans also had cute daughters, although we see Won Ku the most.
   
   The bad news is that the plot does suffer due to lack of continuity. Also, Carter Wong is not the best choice for a hero, he plays better villans in my opinion. The disc quality should have been a little better too. There are points where the film looks out of focus, and the digital transfer gets a little hazy at times. The Kung Fu is not that great either.
   
   So in summary I gave 2 stars because I liked the idea of magic, and the addition of the ghost plot.(that helped the movie pick up somewhat) If you are a Kung Fu fan and are looking for a film with decent fights however, this wont do it for you. Keep looking. I'd say it's worth a watch only if you like Kung Fu films with something different in them. With the magic, a ghost, and animal clans, Killer of Snake, Fox of Shaolin delivers in that regard.



2. What starts with some decent at best kung fu sadly turns into a stupid fantasy movie. When a young man(Carter Wong) tries to rescue a girl from another young man, he uses black magic to subdue Carter and is punished by God for using his powers. After being turned into a snake for using his magic he comes back to life I guess and goes right back to try and get the girl. We find out the snake and the girl who is the fox are really mythology figures or something. The main plot is about how Carter Wong is the one that the girl wants while the other young man wants the girl to be his wife and it gets tired very fast. 20 minutes in Nick Cheung (aka Cheung Li) fights Carter Wong and this was ok but the choreography doesn't bring us anything new and unfortunately doesn't have any intricacy to it. The fantasy elements of the movie seem to actually be an excuse to cut the fights short and it tries to make the fights seem that they are better than they actually are. Even with proper editing this wasn't filmed good enough to look even decent. Certainly not the worst fights but only Carter Wong looks above average. Nick Cheung comes back for another fight after not appearing in the movie for about 40 minutes. It is another decent action sequence but really has no relevance to the story. The final fight is the best but it is still bad.
   
   The story keeps going back to this guy at the start of the movie trying to take the girl as his wife and we get to watch the story run back and forth putting in a stupid side plot or flashback sequence here and there. Carter Wong's Buddhism teaching helps him defeat the black magic and he forces the villian to fight for the girl in an even match.
   
   So basically this is a fantasy but with extremely limited production values. They substitute kung fu action with a boring story most of the movie and it is just plain dumb. The whole fox and snake thing is just something they mention here and there to act like they actually have a story.
   
   Picture from Tai Seng is of course full screened. There is slowness that shouldn't happen in some frames and it is a bit blurry but overall this is actually decent release. Watchable picture quality with good brightness.



3. Do not go into this film expecting a typical kung fu movie. It is quite the opposite, it focuses greatly on Chinese Mythology, specifically Animal Spirits. I learned more from watching this movie than if I would have taken a class at the local community college. It does* have kung fu in it, but also deals with Fox and Snake spirits...I was pretty shocked that it had much more of a plot than the typical kung fu movie (young man gets beat in combat, goes off to find a teacher of some secret style no one else knows, returns after an idiotic amount of time to best his opponent with his new skills).
   I agree with the previous viewer that Carter Wong was not the best choice for a hero and that he makes a better villian, however the mythological elements really kept this movie going. The fact that no one else noted the animal "clans" were animal spirits was their loss in watching the movie.
   The movie does also suffer from some budget issues, however the use of mythological elements that one doesn't see every day makes me consider buying another copy for my friend who got me back in to kung fu movies -- however, I would not even classify this movie under kung fu or martial arts movies; it is more suited as Foreign Drama.

1 comments about Master With Cracked Fingers/Fantasy Mission Force.

1. The film career of Jackie Chan, the most famous of the Hong Kong martial arts stars, stretches back to 1962. Chan was 8 years old when he appeared in the now lost "Big and Little Wong Tin Bar." Since then he's been in almost 100 movies, mostly made in the Orient.
   
   Jackie stars as a young man out to avenge his father's murder in "Master" and is part of an ensemble in the Dirty Dozen-ish "Fantasy."
   
   
   For twice the kickboxing action, try BCI's INVINCIBLE WARRIORS.
   
   
   Parenthetical numbers preceding titles are 1 to 10 viewer poll ratings found at a film resource website.
   
   (4.4) Fantasy Mission Force (Taiwan/Hong Kong-1982) - Jackie Chan/Brigette Lin/Yu Wang/Yueh Sun/David Tao/Jung Fang
   
   (4.7) Master with Cracked Fingers (Hong Kong-1971) - Jackie Chan/Siu Tien Yuen/Dean Shek/Kwok Choi Hon/Feng Tien
   
   
   CHAN TRIVIA--
   
   Loosely patterns his comedic style after silent film star Buster Keaton, another skilled stuntman.
   
   Doing stunts he's broken his nose 3 times, an ankle, most of his fingers, both cheekbones and his skull, which has a permanent hole in it.
   
   Was awarded an M.B.E. (Member of the British Empire) in 1989.
   
   Underwent "Occidental" eyelid surgery in 1976.
   
   Was a stunt coordinator for Bruce Lee.
   
   Speaks Cantonese, Mandarin, English and Korean.

4 comments about Nunchaku.

1. This guy is great. Master Yong Kil Song, former Captain of the Emergency Response Unit for The Korean Special Forces and Master of several Martial Arts including Taekwondo, Yudo, Hapkido (my favorite) and Weapons Expert including Sai, Tonfa and of course Nunchaku/Nunchucks.

   This Top Rate DVD is superior to anything close out there teaching:

   Grips
   Blocks
   Strike Essentials
   Transitions
   Drills
   Origin, other Weapon Applicaions and more.

   Within the first 5 minutes Master Song is already demonstrating reverse grip attacks even I have'nt seen, and I thought I'd seen it all. The whole DVD is full of suprises like that, and is also rather excellent about extending and evolving initial Nunchuck strikes into multitudes of combinations where you're sometimes glad that every technique is also demonstrated in slow motion so you don't miss how they otherwise twist and spin like a whirlwind in the hands of this extraordinary Master and Teacher. It is also very good that it is made clear that alhough Nunchaku is a *LETHAL Weapon*, it's dynamic power must not be used to bring harm to anyone, but also an ideal tool to sharpen one's coordinative skills and reflexes, builld strength and agility for your hands and fingers for empty hand Martial Arts and also enhances your gracefulness with Sword and other Weapon Arts. Looking forward now towards the Nunchaku Forms Video to apply and challenge myself in mastering the new techinques I learned here.




2. This instructional dvd is very abridged, even for a beginner, like me, it doesn't bring much help. It's way too basic, it doesn't show neither combat techniques using the weapon, nor more advanced techniques, only the essential of the essential. We never see the nunchaku being used on a man-to-man confrontation, or in action against other weapons, for instance.
   I guess this dvd only helps the absolute newcomer to martial arts, but the title should be rewritten: NUNCHAKU FOR ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS. ONLY THE ESSENTIALS. Along with this new classification, the price could also drop, let's say, to less than 10 bucks, because there's nothing in this dvd that justifies it being more expensive than many of the classic movies. So, dear friend, being a beginner or even a martial arts expert, save your money, I'm sure that there are better materials out there. As for the beginners, you would be much better off watching some good old master Bruce Lee's films than trying to learn from this video. I mean its philosophy is good, the movements are shown in slow motion and in a side angle, but that's not enough to make this dvd any good. Master Young seems tpo be tired and bored most of the time.
   I'm no artial marts expert, quite the opposite in fact, but I tell you this, I learned a lot more by only watching Lee's movements in his films and then trying to follow along than by the contents of this dvd. Any dvd which comprises less than 60 minutes (its total running time is approximately 70 minutes, but this is due to more than 10 minutes of propaganda of other martial arts) can't cost 30 bucks. Save your money. The extra star goes for the minimum amount of movements I could get from this dvd.



3. I'd fooled around with a pair of nunchuks on and off, but never had any formal instuction. I knew how to swing them and catch, but that was about it. Since buying this DVD (about 2 months ago) I've learned not just the basic strikes and catches, but some awesome looking combinations. The slow motion views really help you get the details down right (and avoid hitting yourself in the head!) while the full speed demonstrations give you something to work toward. Don't expect to just pick up a pair of chuks and pop this dvd in and go but with a lot of practice and repeated watching of the dvd to pick up the nuances, you'll be looking like a pro in no time. Next up on my list: the forms dvd by this same instructor, which has double chuks on it.



4. I bought this dvd because I hoped to learn more fundamental single-nunchaku drills. My school teaches nunchaku, but mainly for forms - hence, I wanted to build a general proficiency.
   
   This dvd provides very good coverage of basic techniques and progresses up to techniques of sufficient difficulty that a beginner will definitely get many hours of practice out of this course. Plus, if you are wondering "how flashy does this stuff get", rest assured that the later moves provide enough flash to look good in a demo or competition if done with sufficient speed and control.
   
   The format is very good: he describes the move, demonstrates at full speed, it's shown at slow speed, then he expects you to follow along for a few reps. Side-views are also shown as needed. Overall, I found the format to be easy to understand, and it's pretty easy to pause and "rewind" a dvd so you can watch the material as many times as you want.
   
   I only give it 4 stars though because his explanations are somewhat brief and not always clear. The instructor definitely teaches more by demonstration than explanation.

5 comments about U.S. Seals 2.

1. Okay, getting out of the way that we all know what kind of film we are watching, I will approach it from there....

   The film definately has some of the better fight scenes from the low budget (and even higher budget) American action films. The choreography, as well as the actors themselves, is all top notch. The only thing that kills it though is the VERY over thte yop sound effects. They work fine during a fight, but when someone moves a finger and we hear the same sound....that's a problem.

   Actor Michael Worth (Ghost Rock) carries the role well, even if he may seem a bit young to be a retired SEAL leader. The writing left him little to do with dialouge, but he makes it his own and remains charming. He seems to be one of those actors that has not quite been noticed by the studios yet but probably will be soon. His co stars Karen Kim and Marshall Teague all work well together and make a good team.

   The fights are very Hong Kong in style and should be the main point of interest for this film since the premise is all to set up the action.

   Not much gunning or SEAL tactics, but plenty of spin kicks and some battling babes if that is to your liking.




2. I've been a military historian for a long time and this movie disgusted me from start to finish. A few bones I had to pick with the tactical inaccuracies.
   
   1: While Navy SEALS are unconventional, they do NOT use two sidearms at once. Every law enforcement officer, Ranger, Green Beret, D-Boy, HRT guy or even an Air Force ROTC Cadet would tell you that using two sidearms at once is tactically stupid and dangerous.
   2: SEALs do not jump and flip around like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. SEALs use stealth, surprise, CQB and avoid open warfare. During the opening scene the "SEALS" were jumping all over the place doing Ninja-like moves... maybe the Navy was cutting back on 9mm ammo to save money.
   3: SEALS are almost always training on post, not some dojo in Japan unless it's on their own time during leave or whatever. There was more emphasis on martial arts then on UDT, CQB and all else that one would expect from a spec ops movie.
   
   There are countless other tactical inaccuracies that I could spend all day nit-picking. But onto the big stuff.
   
   Everyone else already hit it, but the whooshing sounds got to be very annoying. When one dude looked around I heard the whooshing sound. I was half-expecting the "SEALs" to pull out their little Power Ranger emblems and call forth their little dinos. Everyone also died in very interesting ways, one right off the bat, another after taking on like 3 people while his commander was kicking the hell out of like a whole platoon of ninjas.
   
   Then there's the whole thing to prevent the SEALs from using firearms, cause of the gas around the island. Well gee, since nuclear weapons can only explode if you detonate them, let's just bomb the place and be done with it.
   
   The whole movie was just a waste of time and my money. Avoid this crappy movie and get Navy SEALs. Charlie Sheen may not be the best actor in the world, but at least he acts better then the entire cast of the US SEALs II.



3. Prior to watching this, I thought that it would be like the Delta Force movies which involve a lot of machine gun action. U.S. Seals 2 is actually a Kung Fu movie with very little machine gun action. The fighting choreography is very well done. The fighting looked very realistic and exciting. I enjoyed this movie a lot.
   
   The plot is a little cheesy. It's a typical B movie situation where a scientist gets kidnapped by a madman who wants to extort the government for ransom money.



4. 'US Seals 2' is your ordinary direct to TV action movie. The story is about a US Seal turned traitor who plots to hold America hostage with a big missile. He wants a billion dollars or else America goes up in ashes. So, a group of elite soldiers are sent to take him down. Excuse me for giving away just about the entire movie, but that is seriously all that happens. There is no real character development, and the plot holes never end. What sets this movie apart is director Isaac Florentine. Florentine is pretty good at martial arts himself and his movies always feature outstanding action. The problem in this is the action scenes come in chunks 10 minutes long, but the plot doesn't even pretend to exist. When a fight scene starts, there is no telling when or if it will end.
   
   The fights are really the only thing to talk about. There is a point made early on that no guns are allowed since there is a gas leak or something at the bad guy's hideout. All I need to hear is "no guns" and I get excited. I was hoping for a lot of hand to hand and maybe some weapons combat, and I actually got more of the weapons. The most amazing part of the movie is all of the cast members appear to be good athletes, and 4 or 5 are incredible. The stunt work is top notch, and so is the editing. Unlike Hong Kong style action, there is a lot of rapid cuts. Actors are only shown doing up to 3 or 4 moves per shot, but the editing actually helps the fights flow together, unlike recent movies such as 'Bourne Identity' and 'Batman Begins'. I love those 2 movies, but it is a bit disturbing how hacked up the fight scenes are. Isaac Florentine is not a brilliant storyteller, but he makes sure the action looks as good as possible. This is something I wish American directors could comprehend, but maybe they will realize it when Florentine's movies hit the big screen.
   
   While the fights are tons of fun, there is no plot. 'The Marine' recently came out on DVD and is sort of a replica of this. No story, just action. The big difference is that 'US Seals 2' has good action. 2.5/5
   
   The DVD from City Heat Productions doesn't even have a chapter menu, but the picture quality is very good. Sound quality is fine, but the sound effects had way too much time spent on them. You'll see what I mean.



5. I am a huge Michael Worth fan. This was not just one of the best karate movies I have ever seen, but it also had a very good story to it. The only thing that would have made it better is if the nuke that exploded had caused casualties. The amount would not have mattered, but the point of the threat would have been better emphasized. The action sequences were very good. Excellent choreography. Mingling in a little more romance for Worth's character would have been nice. If you want action from beginning to end, with a very good storyline that keeps you on your toes , this is the movie for you. Yes, there are about a 75 people who get killed, but not grotesquely, expect for the main antagonist who deserves his manner of death. Would recommend to any karate, action fan.
   
   I have watched many karate movies. This one is one of the better among the best.

1 comments about The Master and the Boxer.

1. The north Korean superstar Dragon Lee is back and shock fans with his amazing fight choreography and stunning screen presence. Dragon Lee is the greatest kung fu movie star!

2 comments about Five Kung Fu Daredevil Heroes.

1. I have always been a fan of Leung Kar Yan and his fighting style but here he only fights at the end of the movie, this film has a lot of big stars in it like Lo Lieh, Fei Meng, Phillip Ko,and Kam Kong. But I found the action not to be well choragraphed.



2. This is your average kung fu movie with a mangled up story. Leung Kar Yan (Thundering Mantis) and Meng Fei (Kung Fu - The Punch of Death) are protecting a high government official. Trying to kill the official is Kam Kong (the Master of the Flying Guillotine), Phillip Ko (Invincible Pole Fighter), and another guy. They are a funny trio. Phillip Ko is a Tibetan Lama, Kam Kong is a Mongolian, and the other guy is a Muslim. Helping them out is a masked man played by Yu Tien Lung (the villain from Snake-Crane Secret). The legendary Lo Lieh also has a role and Yueh Hua has a small part.
   
   Basically the story involves traitors and a lot of assassination attempts. There is also a Russian army causing trouble.
   
   The fighting is only average which is kind of a shame with all these great stars on hand. There is plenty of action but it doesn't get good until the final fight. All of these actors have had much better performances.
   
   1.5/5
   
   Picture quality on the Videoasia DVD is decent.

No comments about Try Tai Chi.