2 comments about Duel of the 7 Tigers/Invincible From Hell.

1. This item (DVD)is defective, there is no audio (Duel of the 7 Tigers). If this defect is ever made correct, the movie has some very good action scenes. I have seen an English version on VHS and look forward to seeing better quality on DVD but there was no audio. Very disappointing and there was no English dub version. The second movie is very grainy and not good quality at all. Poor product at best.



2. 7 kung fu masters team up to train Cliff Lok hoping that Lok can defeat the evil karate master Phillip Ko Fei. Wait a second, that can't be right. It takes 7 kung fu masters to defeat a karate guy? Well, luckily Phillip Ko plays the part perfectly, because this movie would not be believable if a guy like Lo Lieh was the villain.
   
   
   After a 7 minute opening credits sequence where the actors show off their techniques, you only have to wait about 1 minute for the first fight to start. Chan Siu Pang (the director and co-star of Choi Lee Fut: Kung Fu) uses his crane fist against Chan Sau Chung's superb monkey style. Both of these guys are probably around 45 years old when this movie was made (1979) and both give great kung fu displays. They make 2 or 3 attacks with every step they make. Just plain awesome. It is a wonderful 3 minute fight and the camera work is brilliant.
   
   In the very next scene a tournament is being held and Phillip Ko takes on Chan Lau. This only lasts about 30 seconds, but still a good fight. After Chan Lau gets knocked out a big fat guy fights Ko and this fat guy can move pretty well. But we all know that Phillip Ko has unlimited moves in his arsenal, and this fight only lasts a little over a minute. San Kuai fights Ko next and this is another good fight, but only lasts for about 30 seconds. All 3 of the guys I just mentioned who fight Phillip Ko are comedic actors, so it was nice to see them giving such fierce fighting performances. But of course none of them can touch the almighty Phillip Ko.
   
   Next up is a kung fu display by Han Ying Chieh (the big boss from Bruce Lee's first movie) and the beautiful Sharon Yeung Pan Pan. They are street performers and are giving a kung fu demonstration. They challenge their audience to a contest. Yeung Pan Pan has 8 taels of gold around her neck and for 5 copper coins anyone can come up and try to take the gold from her. 2 contestants try and fail, and then super kicker Tony Leung Siu Hung makes a cameo. Some amazing stuff on display here. Tony Leung Siu Hung's kicks are up there with ANYBODY, and Yeung Pan Pan's skills are also very good. Too bad this fight is only a minute and a half long, but still a great fight.
   
   Next is a fight between Cliff Lok and the fastest kicker to ever hit the movie screen, Cassanova Wong. 2 minutes long, and Cassanova tears it up. Ground kicks, flying kicks, and his patented whirlwind kicks that nobody can do like him. An AWESOME kicking display. Your jaw will drop so far it may just fall off.
   
   The next major fight has Phillip Ko against some Choi Lee Fut guy and Chu Chi Ling (the guy with the brass rings around his wrists in Kung Fu Hustle). Phillip Ko looks invincible here. It is an above average fight scene but both are beaten easily. Pomson Shi jumps in and uses his awesome monkey style. Good fight, but Phillip Ko has no problem with Pomson, so Charlie Chan and a Wing Chun guy step in. Ko deals with these guys quite easily, and then Yeung Pan Pan and Cliff Lok show up. This is where the choreography really starts to get good. This scene has been going on for at least 5 minutes, but there is one more guy to mention. Han Ying Chieh shows up last and him and Ko have a great 2 minute fight. Amazing stuff. Han Ying Chieh is really on the top of his game in this movie.
   
   After that huge fight scene, all of Cliff Lok's teachers are crippled. Now comes a very long training sequence where Lok learns all of their styles. After learning all he needs to know Lok faces Phillip Ko in an 8 minute final fight. Everything Lok learned comes into play and it is a brilliant fight scene. A great way to end the movie.
   
   Rating- 4/5
   
   The picture quality on the Videoasia DVD is more than watchable, but full screened. The full screen presentation cuts out some of the action at least a few times. And the subtitles are hard to read. No biggie though, I was still very happy that I saw this movie. And the other reviewer of this DVD says the sound doesn't work. I had to turn the volume up pretty high, but the sound does work. If you can get this DVD for super cheap then get it, otherwise do yourself a favor and get a good widescreen version.
   
   
   
   The other movie in this 2-pack is called Invincible from Hell. It looks like a really bad Joseph Lai movie and I only watched the first 10 minutes. It the one of the worst movies I have ever seen. I may get to it on very rainy day.

No comments about Lessons for an Assassin.

2 comments about This Is Kendo.

1. This is an excellent DVD, but beware that it is actually 'This is Kendo Today' - identical to the other DVD for sale here at Amazon - I made the mistake of buying both...
   
   Having said that - this is one of the best Martial Arts Instructional DVDs I have seen.



2. The content of the instructional DVD is very good. George Alexander goes through the etiquette, forms, basic drills, and even some sparring. Great information for someone to get a better understanding of kendo before making the decision to start classes.
   
   That said, the quality of the presentation is poor. The sound quality is bad, the scenes have poor lighting, and the presenter stumbles through the scripted portions. Frankly, this DVD looks like it was made with the same care and attention to detail that one would apply to filming a child's birthday party.

No comments about The Shaolin Brothers.

2 comments about Snakefist of a Buddhist Dragon.

1. Just when I thought kung fu flicks couldn't get any worse, along comes "Snakefist of a Buddist Dragon." I thought there was nothing worse than "Yoga and the Kung Fu Girl", but I was wrong! This flick deserves less than a zero rating. Perhaps maybe Amazon.com may add that new feature one day to describe how we really feel about a movie.
   
   This one was totally horrible. Acting sucked! choreography sucked! fighting scenes sucked! Overdubs horrible! I tried three or four times to watch it all the way through and as of this entry I still can't do it. It's just that horrible. It's not worth the disc it was copied to. Instead of transferring this one from VHS to DVD they should have just burned the master copy. Yes, it's just that bad! If you watch this, you may laugh just to keep from crying - don't waste your time. Time is precious!



2. I admit that this is not a class A martial arts piece but I found it not be a real bad movie, I watch these films for fight content only. If you luck up on one that has a plot worth following then thats rare but the fight scenes here are not that bad remember the price sometimes that tells the story.

1 comments about Rumble In Hong Kong.

1. This is a poor bootleg of the 1974 movie called Police Woman. Though it is being marketed as a Jackie Chan film it is not. His role in it is only that of a cameo and his character is referred to as a "gang member".

2 comments about Legend of the Devil.

1. This is a funny movie! This movie is inspired by this anime that
   no one has ever seen Sword For Truth! Sword For Truth was this
   Ja-pornime with lots of sex and gruesome ninja and samurai
   action! The story was about this Ronin who is hired by a samurai
   clan to retrieve the kidnapped princess from some ninjas! But
   what was upsetting about that film was it that it never was
   completed! The anime finished with some guy makng a prophecy
   about some white tiger dead and you never hear about a sequel!
   Well for the few of you who ever saw that train wreck of a anime
   and was discouraged about the ending, this movie may fill in the
   blanks of Sword For Truth! This movie was fun! I was laughing so
   hard at the part when this huge black guy (like 800 pounds huge)
   comes walking through a Japanese village and terrorizing people!
   It was so damn funny! I felt a bit dissapointed that this film
   wasn't as gory or sexual like Sword for Truth but still this
   film was fun! Nothing special but fun!
   
   The DVD is released by Asian Pulp Cinema! Just to let you know,
   these guys release mostly independent, b-movie style films! Like
   $500 budget films! As far as I know their DVD's work and aren't
   broken! I also got Ninja Dragon and that worked! Alot of their
   stuff is either erotic, horror, or action! And picture quality
   for Legend of the Devil is tip-top and widescreen!



2. LEGEND OF THE DEVILLegend of the Devil is a live action version of Sword for Truth. It benefits from the extra 30 minutes. The producers use the extra time to explain who the various factions are and how they are intertwined in the storyline. The basic plot is the Hojo clans quest to regain two mystical swords which were taken from the clan after they lost a battle. A demon wants the swords so he can become immortal. A Christian samurai(I know that's a bit of a contradiction in terms) wants them to bring peace to the country to stop persecution of Christians. Go look up the history of Christianity in Japan. Sakaki winds caught between all these people. The actor playing Shuranosuke Sakaki is good. He has to play an extremely calm, almost Vulcan like character. I would like to read the original book or books by Takeshi Namuri.

5 comments about Sister Streetfighter.

1. Well, honestly I fell asleep about half way thru the movie. It was given to me as a present so I didn't waste my money. You are better of buying something else. This was the first time I've seen a Sonny Chiba movie, and I was not impressed.



2. Martial arts film is a beautiful genre. Seagal, Van Damme, they've ruined it, made it into the "action movie", which [is bad].

   Sister Street Fighter is a VERY good 70s martial arts film, starring Sue Shiomi. It is very stylish, with good cinematography, and well-choreographed fight scenes. This is some of the last and greatest kung-fu filmmaking. Sonny Chiba has about 3 fight scenes (he is not the star), all of which rock. Your basic kidnap/revenge plot... there are FIGHTING AMAZONS...!!!! Not a waste of money, despite what that narcoleptic guy said.




3. THIS GIRL CAN FIGHT, BUT FIRST OF ALL, WHY DID THEY SHORTEN CHIBA'S PRESENCE TO A CAMEO JUST TO DEVOTE A MOVIE TO A GIRL WHO CAN'T HOLD HER OWN AGAINST HALF THE MEN IN THE MARTIAL ARTS INDUSTRY? HERE'S THE WACK PLOT; A COP DISSAPEARS WHILE TRYING TO BUST A MAJOR DRUG CARTEL, AND IT'S UP TO HIS SISTER TO FIND HIM. DON'T BE FOOLED. DESPITE THE PRESENCE OF SONNY CHIBA'S PICTURE ON THE COVER, CHIBA VERY SELDOMLY APPEARS IN THIS ONE. LET'S FACE IT, THIS ONE RUINED WHAT COULD'VE BEEN A BETTER SERIES OF SEQUELS. NOW REALLY, I FIND IT STUPID THAT THIS GIRL CAN FIGHT HER WAY THROUGH ALL THESE MEN LIKE IT'S ALMOST NOTHING. THE FILMMAKERS REALLY SHOULD'VE THOUGHT LONG AND HARD BEFORE THEY DECIDED TO REPLACE SONNY CHIBA AS THE STAR FOR THIS LAME GIRL. HOPEFULLY, THEY WOULD LEARN FROM THEIR MISTAKES BY THE TIME ''THE STREET FIGHTER'S LAST REVENGE'' WAS RELEASED.



4. This was the first in a series of movies that went under the title of "Onna hissatsu-ken," or "Lethal Fist of the Woman," intended to showcase the talents of Shihomi Etsuko, a female Japanese martial artist trained in Shaolin Kenpo. It is not a Sonny Chiba film, and as other reviewers have pointed out, he only has a small part.

   That said, the movie is best enjoyed on its own campy terms. It takes itself perfectly seriously, although it's nothing more than a pastiche of elements swiped from contemporary Hong Kong films-- and pretty much every villain tries his level best to imitate Bruce Lee's deadpan fighting style. In true Japan style, however, the fights are over the top, extremely bloody, and sometimes just ridiculous. In short, it's hilarious. The fights get more and more brutal (and laughable) as the day-glo blood pours. This movie is sure to satisfy those looking for surreal, cheesy fun, but certainly won't appeal to people looking for a high-quality martial arts film. I really enjoy watching the star, since she always manages to appear so sincere in her roles and isn't a bad martial artist. Sadly, her talents were squandered in increasingly formulaic and silly movies.

   Please note that I can't vouch for the quality of this release, since I've only seen the Japanese original.




5. Great movie, terrible film to dvd transfer and not subtitled as listed.

1 comments about Drunken Tai Chi + A Fistful of Talons *Martial Arts Double Feature*.

1. This product comes in a very cheap and skinny case. It is dubbed really poorly and you loose some of the content during at least one scene. The sound quality fades in and out during the opening credits, but is steady throughout the rest of the film. Remember, you get what you pay for. Otherwise, a good movie.

4 comments about Sun Tzu's The Art Of War -d.

1. I have been a Martial Artist for almost 27 years and have trained for many years in TKD, Judo and American Kenpo Karate and am a Kenpo Instructor at a local school; I currently run a Martial Arts program for the United States Military. I have read several Versions of "Sun Tzu's The Art of War." and this DVD completely missed the mark, it really has almost nothing to do with Sun Tzu's work. Although the author seems to be a very Skilled Martial Artist in his own right, the DVD is basically a show case or perhaps an instructional video on his version of self defense techniques that I imagine he teaches in his Dojo to his students. The DVD really does not address Sun Tzu's work, it only makes references to some of Sun Tzu's statements and makes a very feeble attempt to apply their true meaning to a self defense technique of his choosing. The relationship of the Karate techniques to the sayings is what the DVD is all about; it is basically an instructional video in his system making vague references to a great work. The sound fades in and out, it uses very primitives editing, and the cinematography is of a very poor nature all adding up to a mediocre at best presentation with very minimal emphasis on the true nature of Sun Tzu's material. The DVD is not worth your while unless you are one of his students. If you want to learn what Sun Tzu had to say, buy one of the many books on the market, they are short, easy to read and of course unparalleled, Amazon.com carries many to choose from.



2. Dr. Alexander has taken Sun Tzu's lessons and made them easy to understand and use in your everyday life. This DVD has given me a new prospective on many aspects of my life. I'm very happy to have watched this video, as I have learned so much. I would recomend this DVD to any one interested in Japanese philosophy. It is well worth the time and cost.



3. Sun Tan's The Art of War with George Alexander breaks down this martial art into chapters. With detail and different view points of each technique, you will get a brife historical background of the technique and the reason it was developed.



4. I was looking for a DVD to clear up some things I didn't understand 100% in the book, but this was just a video about George Alexander and his ideas. What a let down!