Rating: 4 out of 5
Director: Joseph Kuo
Year: 1977
Plot:
“The 8 Masters” is a movie that starts fast, and then builds
up to quite a revenge plot. The plot is about a young child that is rescued
from his home and is brought to the Shaolin Temple. When his uncle dies, the
temple takes the young child and teaches him kung fu. He masters the Shaolin
style of kung fu, gets older and passes the test of the Shaolin masters. He
wants to be a monk and not leave the temple, but the priests say he has other
duties to accomplish in the outside world first. That leads him on a quest to
visit his mother. However, things go awry when his mother is kidnapped, and he
must face off against 8 Masters of Kung Fu.
Thoughts:
The first thing I noticed was the transfer had some issues.
There were times when it was clear, and updated with a high definition look to
it, but then it would shift to low darkness and fading shadows like that of an
old VHS tape. That mixed bag knocked it down one point, even though the dub and
sound are good. The opening sequences of kung fu brings you into the movie, and
then we are thrown into the plot, which is cool to see because it features a
young boy learning kung fu and showing off skills. It’s always cool to see kids
doing kung fu in these movies.
The brawling is great, but before you get to that, you’re
treated to a true hero’s story. Our main hero has to pass the Shaolin masters’
test to graduate, and that has some really cool sets and brawling, that alone
makes this one worthwhile, with the set pieces set up like a maze.
Once our hero is out of the temple he does his best not to
get into trouble, but it finds him, and his brawling style is noticed as being
from Shaolin Temple, which causes opponents to run after seeing his tattoo of a
dragon on his arm. The story gets serious when his mom is kidnapped, after he
refuses to fight, and eventually dies. That leads our hero fight for a worthy cause.
The plot moves forward with a brisk pace, I liked that a
lot. You really get a sense for the purpose of our hero, and there’s no wasted
moments. The story draws you in, and you really root for the hero through the
brawling. There are several good fights, some with weapons, some with hand to
hand action, but overall the kung fu is grand here, and well worth your time. I
rate this movie 4 out of 5.
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