Member Iron_Leopard Posted March 4, 2017 Member Share Posted March 4, 2017 I might be wrong but I have this theory that when it comes to Shaw Brothers any Director not named Chang Cheh only has maybe five really good or must watch films to their credit. This of course is based off of how many films they were making at a time so quality was going to decline no matter what. So what do you feel are Chor Yuen top 5 must see films? So far I've only seen "The Magic Blade" which was freaking awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member reason108 Posted March 4, 2017 Member Share Posted March 4, 2017 Lau Kar-leung probably had 10 or 11 great SB movies in him; pretty much everything he did while working for them. But, Chor Yuen certainly directed more films than Lau Kar-leung. Not sure that I can pick just 5. I will just list the ones that I really like. I`m not good at math, anyways! Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan The Magic Blade Clans of Intrigue The Sentimental Swordsman Return of the Sentimental Swordsman Perils of the Sentimental Swordsman - (a part of the Sentimental Swordsman saga in name only) Pursuit of Vengeance Legend of the Bat Swordsman and Enchantress Heroes Shed No Tears Bat without Wings The Emperor and His Brother The Enchantress Full Moon Scimitar That was my list of 5. Also, the runners-up, for me, are: Clan of Amazons, Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre (series), Murder Plot, The Proud Twins, The Convict Killer, The Spirit of the Sword, The Duel of the Century, The Jade Tiger and Descendant of the Sun. ps - did you ever get The Jade Tiger yet? What did you think of it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Iron_Leopard Posted March 4, 2017 Author Member Share Posted March 4, 2017 26 minutes ago, reason108 said: Lau Kar-leung probably had 10 or 11 great SB movies in him; pretty much everything he did while working for them. But, Chor Yuen certainly directed more films than Lau Kar-leung. Not sure that I can pick just 5. I will just list the ones that I really like. I`m not good at math, anyways! Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan The Magic Blade Clans of Intrigue The Sentimental Swordsman Return of the Sentimental Swordsman Perils of the Sentimental Swordsman - (a part of the Sentimental Swordsman saga in name only) Pursuit of Vengeance Legend of the Bat Swordsman and Enchantress Heroes Shed No Tears Bat without Wings The Emperor and His Brother The Enchantress Full Moon Scimitar That was my list of 5. Also, the runners-up, for me, are: Clan of Amazons, Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre (series), Murder Plot, The Proud Twins, The Convict Killer, The Spirit of the Sword, The Duel of the Century, The Jade Tiger and Descendant of the Sun. ps - did you ever get The Jade Tiger yet? What did you think of it? Whoa did you just list his entire filmography lol. I'm still waiting on The Jade Tiger to be delivered. It's been over a week and it's still not here. Getting frustrated waiting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member reason108 Posted March 5, 2017 Member Share Posted March 5, 2017 1 hour ago, Iron_Leopard said: Whoa did you just list his entire filmography lol. I'm still waiting on The Jade Tiger to be delivered. It's been over a week and it's still not here. Getting frustrated waiting. No. I think he made a lot more than that for the Shaws; something like 47 or so. Sucks that your movie has not arrived yet. Hoepfully you will get it soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Iron_Leopard Posted March 5, 2017 Author Member Share Posted March 5, 2017 Well I just finished watching "The Pursuit of Vengeance" on youtube and I have to say... I've never been so confused in my life lol. What did I just watch? who was who? what was happening? why was it happening? why so many people needed to die? who was suppose to die? did the people who were suppose to die actually die? why did the last scene end on a moon shot? why did it hold that moon shot 10 seconds longer than most final shots? why do i have so many questions for a martial arts movie thats just suppose to entertain me with great fights? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member reason108 Posted March 5, 2017 Member Share Posted March 5, 2017 Should we say that Chor Yuen is the "thinking" man`s martial art director or the director of insane plot lines that confuse the hell out of you? I would guess that the less confusing movies that he has made are The Sentimental Swordsman (and the sequel), The Enchantress and Heroes Shed No Tears. A lot of his movies are based on novels so, yeah, those movies tend to move through a lot of characters and plot that probably only make sense if you have read the works. I love his visual style. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Iron_Leopard Posted March 5, 2017 Author Member Share Posted March 5, 2017 The movie was still worth watching. Like you mentioned I love the look of his films so far. He uses the best costume and sets. I will watch every single one of his movies if i can find them. Even if they are weak films overall the visuals are so good that it makes the viewing experience not a comeplete waste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Tex Killer Posted March 5, 2017 Member Share Posted March 5, 2017 7 hours ago, reason108 said: Should we say that Chor Yuen is the "thinking" man`s martial art director or the director of insane plot lines that confuse the hell out of you? I would guess that the less confusing movies that he has made are The Sentimental Swordsman (and the sequel), The Enchantress and Heroes Shed No Tears. Intimate confessions and convict killer are even less confusing than ones you mentioned. I haven`t watched "proud twins" yet but suspect that applies to it also. But yes, his movies have often complicated plots and (too)many characters so often needs 2 viewings to catch all things. Sometimes even that is not enough and in few cases never figure out all, something which propably happened in novel is missing from movie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member reason108 Posted March 5, 2017 Member Share Posted March 5, 2017 10 hours ago, Tex Killer said: Intimate confessions and convict killer are even less confusing than ones you mentioned. I haven`t watched "proud twins" yet but suspect that applies to it also. But yes, his movies have often complicated plots and (too)many characters so often needs 2 viewings to catch all things. Sometimes even that is not enough and in few cases never figure out all, something which propably happened in novel is missing from movie. I forgot to mention Intimate Confessions. But, I have not finished watching Convict Killer yet. Probably got about 5 or 10 minutes into the movie, but, that was probably 6 months ago. Really need to go back and finish that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member AgriWuxia Posted March 6, 2017 Member Share Posted March 6, 2017 On 05/03/2017 at 3:42 PM, Iron_Leopard said: Well I just finished watching "The Pursuit of Vengeance" on youtube and I have to say... I've never been so confused in my life lol. What did I just watch? who was who? what was happening? why was it happening? why so many people needed to die? who was suppose to die? did the people who were suppose to die actually die? why did the last scene end on a moon shot? why did it hold that moon shot 10 seconds longer than most final shots? why do i have so many questions for a martial arts movie thats just suppose to entertain me with great fights? So many questions!!! Congratulations! The director's work has weaved its magic. You are well on the way to becoming hooked on these films. On 05/03/2017 at 7:30 PM, Iron_Leopard said: The movie was still worth watching. Like you mentioned I love the look of his films so far. He uses the best costume and sets. I will watch every single one of his movies if i can find them. Even if they are weak films overall the visuals are so good that it makes the viewing experience not a comeplete waste. But at least this form of addiction is not dangerous. The worst side effect is the sheer level of concentration required. I'm not sure if their is any cure, and I am probably beyond help anyway (I have over 30 of his Shaw films). However, I prescribe multiple viewings of the film to help ease any mental anguish! I understand how you feel at the moment, but I can assure you the films should make sense in time. And if they don't, well, at least you have had an enjoyable trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Iron_Leopard Posted March 7, 2017 Author Member Share Posted March 7, 2017 Two thumbs way up for "The Senimental Swordsman". Man this Chor Yuen guy is good. I just love the worlds he creates. And I have to admit he fooled me on the identity of the Plum Blossom Bandit. It wasn't who I thought it was going to be. If there was a Region 1 version of this dvd I would buy it in a heartbeat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Chu Liu Hsiang Posted March 8, 2017 Member Share Posted March 8, 2017 I kinda liked every Chu Yuan movie I saw so far, but my "true love" are his Gu Long adaptations. Really difficult to narrow down to just five ... I choose (in no specific order): PURSUIT OF VENGEANCE THE MAGIC BLADE CLANS OF INTRIGUE SWORDSMAN & ENCHANTRESS THE SENTIMENTAL SWORDSMAN If I had to choose a #1, it would be THE MAGIC BLADE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member ShawAngela Posted March 8, 2017 Member Share Posted March 8, 2017 On 05/03/2017 at 3:42 AM, Iron_Leopard said: Well I just finished watching "The Pursuit of Vengeance" on youtube and I have to say... I've never been so confused in my life lol. What did I just watch? who was who? what was happening? why was it happening? why so many people needed to die? who was suppose to die? did the people who were suppose to die actually die? why did the last scene end on a moon shot? why did it hold that moon shot 10 seconds longer than most final shots? why do i have so many questions for a martial arts movie thats just suppose to entertain me with great fights? Did you watch The Magic Blade before watching Pursuit of vengeance ? This latter is also known as Magic Blade II, so, maybe it's a sequel. I watched these movies too long ago to remember, so, I can't be absolutely sure of that, but the fact is that Ti Lung plays the hero Fu Hung Xue in both movies, so, maybe I'm not mistaken at all regarding the sequel of Magic Blade... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Chu Liu Hsiang Posted March 8, 2017 Member Share Posted March 8, 2017 Fu Hung Xue also has a cameo in DEATH DUEL, where he helps the 3rd Master/ Derek Yee in a tight situation, and mentions that he left the Martial Arts World for good. He seems to be in a good mood, so I appreciate that development. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Iron_Leopard Posted March 11, 2017 Author Member Share Posted March 11, 2017 I've noticed a flaw with Chor Yuen films. And "Killer Clans" is the ultimate example of this. In every one of his movies you have these three problems. 1. Nobody can trust anybody. 2. Everybody alreadys knows everything about everything. 3. Nobody is ever dead when you think they are. This is prevelant in every one of his films I've seen but "Killer Clans" takes it to the next level to where it starts to get a little annoying. It gets to a point where it's predictable and not fun anymore when there is a major plot twist every five minuets. I enjoyed this film but I doubt I'll ever revisit it again since it relies so heavily on this structure. Does anyone else agree he tends to overdo it at times? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member masterofoneinchpunch Posted March 13, 2017 Member Share Posted March 13, 2017 On 3/11/2017 at 10:58 AM, Iron_Leopard said: ... In every one of his movies you have these three problems. 1. Nobody can trust anybody. 2. Everybody alreadys knows everything about everything. 3. Nobody is ever dead when you think they are. This is prevelant in every one of his films I've seen but "Killer Clans" takes it to the next level to where it starts to get a little annoying. It gets to a point where it's predictable and not fun anymore when there is a major plot twist every five minuets. I enjoyed this film but I doubt I'll ever revisit it again since it relies so heavily on this structure. Does anyone else agree he tends to overdo it at times? Now Chor Yuen as a director is so up-and-down for me that he drives me crazy like he has certain faults like bringing in too many characters and plot ideas (no I am really in disguise) without fully utilizing them.* 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. But I always see something I like in his wuxia films and he has great scenes and weaponry. Typical scenerio: Ha ha I am number one fighter (even gets Chinese characters telling him who he/she is) Fights with another Dies Enter another number one fighter with Chinese characters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Tex Killer Posted March 16, 2017 Member Share Posted March 16, 2017 On 11.3.2017 at 1:58 PM, Iron_Leopard said: I've noticed a flaw with Chor Yuen films. And "Killer Clans" is the ultimate example of this. In every one of his movies you have these three problems. 1. Nobody can trust anybody. 2. Everybody alreadys knows everything about everything. 3. Nobody is ever dead when you think they are. This is prevelant in every one of his films I've seen but "Killer Clans" takes it to the next level to where it starts to get a little annoying. It gets to a point where it's predictable and not fun anymore when there is a major plot twist every five minuets. I enjoyed this film but I doubt I'll ever revisit it again since it relies so heavily on this structure. Does anyone else agree he tends to overdo it at times? Not to mention poisons kill lesser people instantly but if it`s one of major characters there is always several days time to get antidote. Spoiler except in end of "intimate confessions" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member AgriWuxia Posted March 22, 2017 Member Share Posted March 22, 2017 On 12/03/2017 at 7:58 AM, Iron_Leopard said: I've noticed a flaw with Chor Yuen films. And "Killer Clans" is the ultimate example of this. In every one of his movies you have these three problems. 1. Nobody can trust anybody. 2. Everybody alreadys knows everything about everything. 3. Nobody is ever dead when you think they are. This is prevelant in every one of his films I've seen but "Killer Clans" takes it to the next level to where it starts to get a little annoying. It gets to a point where it's predictable and not fun anymore when there is a major plot twist every five minuets. I enjoyed this film but I doubt I'll ever revisit it again since it relies so heavily on this structure. Does anyone else agree he tends to overdo it at times? A proliferation of characters and a complex web of subplots seems to be a consistent constraint to the viewers enjoyment of Chu Yuan's Wuxia films. I can understand this situation. After a hard days work the viewer may simply desire to relax with an entertaining action film based on a straightforward story that is not too taxing on tired brain cells. In cases such as this, I would eschew any Chu Yuan film adapted from lengthy novels, favouring instead many of the earlier Wuxia of the Shaw catalogue by other directors. By the time Chu Yuan joined Shaw Brothers as a director he had an impressive filmography, though I have never seen any of these films. I believe The Black Rose (1965) is the most well known. In any case his film making style would have been well established. Westerners are at a significant disadvantage when viewing his adaptations of prodigious novels simply because we are unfamiliar with the source material. As I understand, these novels were quite popular at the time, so the director probably correctly assumed a familiarity with the story among his target native audience when deciding what content to include. Condensing a particularly large literary work into a 100 minute film titled Killer Clans is an ambitious undertaking anyway, and despite the constraints of a limited running time I still admire the results. Yes, the attempt to faithfully portray the literary source risks too many characters being introduced yet not fully developed and their motives remaining unclear, and a complex if not downright confusing story. Yet, I still found Killer Clans to be an entertaining action film with a more down to earth reality than some of the directors more fanciful works. And if nothing else, the directors films really do reflect the benefits of the Celestial restoration process. Given the Yin emphasis inherent to his films, they likely broaden the appeal of the genre to female viewers as well. In reality, adaptations of these novels probably better lend themselves towards a miniseries format or some form of serialisation, though this was beyond the scope of a general theatrical release. Nevertheless, the director did pursue this concept with the two part release of Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre (1978). The end result of adapting these novels to a theatrical film may be variable, but I appreciate the directors efforts to enrich the Shaw catalogue with their presence. I may never experience these works in any other format. @Iron_Leopard, I'm not sure if you are aware of the following website, for the reviewer touches on many of the issues you have raised about these films, yet still remains a devoted fan of the director. He has reviewed many of his Shaw films, including screen captures among a very readable often lighthearted commentary. The link to his review of Killer Clans is below. http://www.gotterdammerung.org/film/reviews/k/killer-clans.html I would also recommend the directors first Wuxia film for Shaw Brothers, Duel For Gold (1971) as something a little different. From memory this is not as complex, but the story is entertaining and is presented with an interesting circular structure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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