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Is "The Avenging Eagle" the best...


Iron_Leopard

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Shaw Brothers film not directed by Chang Cheh or Lau Kar-Leung? And if not then what do you think is? Let's also exempt "Come Drink With Me" from the discussion.

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It's hard to think of a better one outside of the directors you mention.  From a story standpoint, I think The Flying Guillotine 1 & 2 are pretty great, though the action may not be as good a AE.  Also, Shaolin Prince, though weaker in story, has the action, enjoyment, and rewatch-ability in my mind that's comparable to Avenging Eagle.  

Good question!

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11 hours ago, massa_yoda said:

It's hard to think of a better one outside of the directors you mention.

I would propably put "jade tiger" and "soul of the sword" above Avenging Eagle. Maybe. AE is masterpiece and demands for being releasetd officially as uncut.

Maybe Bastard Swordsman too, and hard to ignome black tavern too. Not easy to put shaws into ranking order..There are so much great flicks around.

Edited by Tex Killer
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One Armed Boxer

Interesting question, although if I think about it, shouldn't it actually be - Are Sun Chung films the best Shaw Brothers productions not directed by Chang Cheh or Lau Kar-Leung?

I'd probably argue yes.  Both 'Human Lanterns' and 'The Avenging Eagle' are personal favourites, but again it's hard to judge objectively considering the sheer number of movies Chang Cheh directed, both in comparison to Sun Chung and Lau Kar Leung (who compared to both other directors, only sat in the directors chair for 17 productions at Shaw Brothers).  Combine both Chung and Kar Leung's filmographies at the studio, and Cheh is still miles ahead.

I also have a soft spot for Kuei Chih-Hung's 'Killer Constable', and Chor Yuen's 'The Magic Blade'.

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masterofoneinchpunch
9 hours ago, One Armed Boxer said:

Interesting question, although if I think about it, shouldn't it actually be - Are Sun Chung films the best Shaw Brothers productions not directed by Chang Cheh or Lau Kar-Leung?

I'd probably argue yes.  Both 'Human Lanterns' and 'The Avenging Eagle' are personal favourites, but again it's hard to judge objectively considering the sheer number of movies Chang Cheh directed, both in comparison to Sun Chung and Lau Kar Leung (who compared to both other directors, only sat in the directors chair for 17 productions at Shaw Brothers).  Combine both Chung and Kar Leung's filmographies at the studio, and Cheh is still miles ahead.

I also have a soft spot for Kuei Chih-Hung's 'Killer Constable', and Chor Yuen's 'The Magic Blade'.

Magic Blade is one of my top 50 favorite Hong Kong films so yeah I would include that movie.  Now Chor Yuen as a director is so up-and-down for me that he drives me crazy.  I have not liked one non-Shaw Brothers film of his and some of his non-martial art Shaw's like The Big Holdup are pretty low in my estimation.

I like Sun Chung, I just have not rewatched and studied him like Lau Kar-leung or Chang Cheh. And some films like Notorious Eight I was not too keen on.  I definitely need further study of the director as well as Li Han-Hsiang, Kuei Chih-Hung and a few others.

Bastard Swordsman I'm a pretty big fan of and I've liked all the Tony Liu Chun-Ku's films I've seen.

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Killer constable is quality film making but for sheer entertainment I would say five super fighters,but for me you will be hard pressed to better avenging eagle for story telling action and great direction.

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Five Fingers of Death is about as well rounded as any Shaw film, and the action holds up wonderfully for something made in the early 70s.

 

I also agree with the mention of Killer Constable. Some of Sun Chungs other films are close in Deadly Breaking Sword and Human Lanterns, but they have some tone problems IMO that keeps them from being as complete as Avenging Eagle.

 

@massa_yoda+1 on The Flying Guillotine. Very suspenseful movie, and a great acting performance from CKT.

 

Edited by paimeifist
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The Magic Blade is up there though. It just has an aura and mysticism about it. The first Chu Yuan movie I ever saw. So I started seeking out his films and came away disappointed with each movie of his I saw. Whoever designed his sets was on point though. All colorful and dreamlike. His studio backgrounds were eye-candy.

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Avenging Eagle definitely is a great film, but it's let down by a very rushed epilogue when it really needed a bit of time (though admittedly, the vast majority of Shaw Brothers films don't even have epilogues, though I'd argue many don't need them). Like several others in this thread, I think up for the title could also be Killer Constable and The Magic Blade which like Avenging Eagle are a bit more contemplative films that happen to be action films as well. I personally have a soft spot for some of the crazier ones out there like Super Inframan and Buddha's Palm just because of how much fun they are, but I doubt many would consider those two among the best of Shaw Brothers. Also, some of the early bashers are great stuff too like Five Fingers of Death and The Chinese Boxer. Jimmy Wang Yu might get some heat for being a very sub-par martial artist, but damn could he direct a movie and you won't see a better showcase of that directorial talent than in The Chinese Boxer.

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Iron_Leopard
On 2/20/2017 at 2:28 AM, Tex Killer said:

I would propably put "jade tiger" and "soul of the sword" above Avenging Eagle. Maybe. AE is masterpiece and demands for being releasetd officially as uncut.

Maybe Bastard Swordsman too, and hard to ignome black tavern too. Not easy to put shaws into ranking order..There are so much great flicks around.

Oh nice. Someone else who loves "The Jade Tiger" as much as I do.

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Tex Killer
3 hours ago, Iron_Leopard said:

Oh nice. Someone else who loves "The Jade Tiger" as much as I do.

It`s exceptionally good movie. Today though would say after had watched both flicks more times Avenging Eagle is better but by small margin.

Wish uncut release in germany is still happening...

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I'm biased so......YES DEFINITELY!!

 

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ShawAngela
On 5/30/2020 at 5:48 AM, Tex Killer said:

Wish uncut release in germany is still happening...

There is a German release planned ?

YESSSSS !! This movie is one of my favorite, for the plot and the action !

I love Avenging Eagle, but I think that Jade tiger is better.

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On 6/7/2020 at 12:31 AM, ShawAngela said:

There is a German release planned ?

YESSSSS !! This movie is one of my favorite, for the plot and the action !

I love Avenging Eagle, but I think that Jade tiger is better.

The only thing I was disappointed with in the Celestial release of Avenging Eagle was the missing footage.  It's not really critical, but its a nice little action sequence.  From what I have heard, the master recording was ruined beyond repair so it was omitted. 

Here it is: someone uploaded it.

 

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Chu Liu Hsiang

This is the fb post where Filmart announce to release AVENGING EAGLE (DER SCHREI DES GELBEN ADLERS).

Translation: We have a special surprise for our next Shaw Brothers Collector's Edition title! Our friends from TVP - The Vengeance Pack got a brand-new, magnificent Artwork for their upcoming release of DELIGHTFUL FOREST which we like so much that we got into contact with Robert O' Brien aka KUNG FU BOB immediately. Result: He will create a stunning Artwork for AVENGING EAGLE. We can't wait to see it! 

Filmart still "owe" us THE HEROES (TI LUNG, DIE TÖDLICHE KOBRA), too. Patience is a virtue :) 

Christmas Eve Waiting GIF

AVENGING EAGLE is among my favorite, most watched Shaw movies. It would be wonderful to get a Filmart mediabook with first-class Artwork. 

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Iron_Leopard

Quick question I just thought about. Would you classify this movie as Wuxia or Kung Fu?

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39 minutes ago, Iron_Leopard said:

Quick question I just thought about. Would you classify this movie as Wuxia or Kung Fu?

I would say more on the side of Wuxia.  I see the character of both of the main protagonists as the standout point.  Each was honorable in his own way; Fu Sheng being the hero that brings justice to his family and Ti Lung as the hero that brings back honor and respect to his name.  Looking at the film, I see Fu Sheng's Chou Yi-Fan as the one who truly changed.  Chi Min-Sing at this point already had a change of heart following an earlier incident with Wong-On.

 

Edited by morpheus
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Question: I used to have a bootleg of an English dub of the film. During the climax, there was a section of the fight where picture quality reverted to some low-quality res and the characters started speaking Mandarin, but then returned to normal when Ti Lung and Fu Sheng faced off with Ku Feng. When I watched the Brazilian release on Saturday evening (taken from the Celestial version), there wasn't any sudden change in quality. Does anyone know what I'm talking about? Are there alternate extended versions out there?

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Chu Liu Hsiang

The Celestial version sadly has a cut in the end fight. There are no official uncut versions that I know of. 

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7 minutes ago, Chu Liu Hsiang said:

The Celestial version sadly has a cut in the end fight. There are no official uncut versions that I know of. 

Does the cut explain while suddenly all of the spear fighters surrounding Ku Feng are dead?

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Chu Liu Hsiang

Oh that must be a different cut.  The one I mean happens after those spearfigthers have died. 

Edited by Chu Liu Hsiang
rephrased
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