I'll be completely honest here straight away.....although there is a plot of sorts present within this film, it really only serves as a superficial excuse for a showcase of one and a half hours worth of some truly awesome martial arts displays.
This is first and foremost a fighting movie, and as such I believe it most equitable to judge it predominantly upon those merits as opposed to acting, character development etc.
As such, and upon the proposed criteria, I must say that the film in question does come out as a top class act indeed.
There is some truly astonishing martial arts choreography in this, especially the weapons displays during the tournament between the Japanese stylists and the Shaolin Monks.
If there is one criticism I would launch against this film however - and it is a factor which does deduct from the overall entertainment value, it would have to be the rather tiresome stereotypical portrayal of the Japanese protagonists as villainous barbarians with inferior martial arts and moral values, an all too common and sad trend in many kung fu films.
Still, overlooking this factor, for those seeking to witness the veritable beauty of some of the orients fighting arts and the skills and dedication of the practitioners of them, this movie is definitely well worth a look.
This is first and foremost a fighting movie, and as such I believe it most equitable to judge it predominantly upon those merits as opposed to acting, character development etc.
As such, and upon the proposed criteria, I must say that the film in question does come out as a top class act indeed.
There is some truly astonishing martial arts choreography in this, especially the weapons displays during the tournament between the Japanese stylists and the Shaolin Monks.
If there is one criticism I would launch against this film however - and it is a factor which does deduct from the overall entertainment value, it would have to be the rather tiresome stereotypical portrayal of the Japanese protagonists as villainous barbarians with inferior martial arts and moral values, an all too common and sad trend in many kung fu films.
Still, overlooking this factor, for those seeking to witness the veritable beauty of some of the orients fighting arts and the skills and dedication of the practitioners of them, this movie is definitely well worth a look.