Guest Agent Orange Posted September 4, 2007 Share Posted September 4, 2007 Could one of the senior members here or anyone else that is steeped in this sort of information reccomend some shaw dramas for me and educate the forum. Im into the Martial Arts sure but i would like to think myself open minded enough to show some interest in something else. Thanks heaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Steve Barr Posted September 4, 2007 Share Posted September 4, 2007 Some places to check for reviews: shawbros.typepad.com/shaw/ brns.com/pages/dramarev1.html moviereviewindex.com/ lovehkfilm.com/reviews.htm www.illuminatedlantern.co..._drama.php ----------------------- I've not seen many of the dramas yet, but here's what I wrote about a few: Hong Kong, Hong Kong -- Cherie Chung plays an illegal immigrant who gets by in a dystopian HK by sharing her body, first with fellow refugees, then with her husband who desperately wants a son and her boxer boyfriend. As bad as that sounds, the movie is more upbeat than down until the final OTT ending. Lo Lieh has a strong supporing role as an aging boxing trainer. The movie features an unflinching look at the conditions in HK at the time, which were pretty tough. The kickboxing matches are passable. When the Clouds Roll By ( 1968 ) -- Ching Li, distraught over her pilot boyfriend's death, becomes "schizophrenic", which in 60's HK movie reality leads to the mildest acting out ever seen on screen. We're talking driving off in a car to go sit by the side of the road and dancing in a night club. Young medical student Yang Fang thinks he can cure her, and fortunately doesn't use the methods he reserves for other mental patients, such as beating them over the head with a chair. Violette Pan Yingzi plays his mean fiance who want to keep the crazy lady and crazy doctor apart. Great cinematography (sadly the DVD is non-anamorphic), a nice theme song, and Ching Li before she became all pasty-faced (and before she'd learned how to act). Young People -- I guess I'm at least glad that someone else wrote a review for this film. Because not only was much of the movie bad, parts of it were physically painful to watch -- a film poorly converted from PAL to NTSC with lots of panning in it is likely to give you a headache. In addition, parts of the film are sped up for comic effect and parts are slowed down for dramatic effect. There are some nice moments in the film, mainly some of the cinematography, and some amusing bits, mainly stars suffering in 1970's outfits. But watching this film is really not recommended. The Generation Gap - Easily the worst SB I've seen so far (out of ~200). God-awful singing, David Chiang being annoying, painful dialog, etc. etc. The saving grace of the film is Ti Lung stopping by to take David's woman and give him a serious beating. It was like a diamond in a lump of crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest killer meteor Posted September 4, 2007 Share Posted September 4, 2007 Dead End, My Son and Too Late For Love are the Shaws dramas I've seen and they are good. My Son even has some good fights that are far superior to the fights in Shaws martial arts movies! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Chinatown Kid Posted September 4, 2007 Share Posted September 4, 2007 I'm definately gonna have to see My Son now, I've never heard much mention of this film, especially not the fights. Thanks for bringing it to my attention KM! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member KyFi Posted September 5, 2007 Member Share Posted September 5, 2007 Well, I guess technically it's more "horror" than "drama", but I would recommend The Enchanting Shadow. A very quaint, traditional Chinese, atmospheric ghost story. No martial arts and not much real horror, but I found it very enjoyable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tino Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 I 2nd Dead End and I also recommend River of Fury starring Danny Lee with Ku Feng. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peringaten Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 I honestly believe The Last Tempset one of the greatest films Shaw's ever made and in turn one of the greatest triumphs of '70s Hong Kong cinema (honestly can't think of a better made film; more fun ones - hell yes, loads, but better made, no). I turn to martials for my kicks, a lot more fun, but this film is an absolute triumph of period drama. Truly brilliant; an epic cut above the norm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest vengeanceofhumanlanterns Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 I third Dead End, Ti Lung's pretty entertaing here. The Singing Killer, contrary to what the title infers, does have it's moments (good and bad), but worth checkin out I guess. The Adventures Of Emperor Chien Lung, The Voyage Of Emperor Chien Lung, and there's one more to the sequel. The first two I've seen and they were pretty cool I must say. I did prefer them to The Emperess Dowager which I felt was a bit over-acted especially by David Chiang near the end, in fact everyone near the end everyone kinda over did it IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest venomchamber Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 Here, here! I concur 100% with THE LAST TEMPEST along with THE EMPRESS DOWAGER as well. Superb Hong Kong cinema at its finest down to the last detail. (literally!) Li Han-hsiang outdid himself with these two. THE LAST WOMAN OF SHANG and THE KING WITH MY FACE are both outstanding period dramas as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest venomchamber Posted September 5, 2007 Share Posted September 5, 2007 Many of the films mentioned above with David Chiang and Ti Lung are merely kung-fu movies in disguise. I wouldn't consider these Chang Cheh films as dramas because the action performed by its stars still takes the center stage. Chang Cheh's THE SINGING THIEF (1968 with Jimmy Lin Chong) is a cool Chang Cheh drama with very little or no martial-arts. If you want real dramatic films, definitely check out the two films mentioned above (The Empress Dowager and The Last Tempest) as they have no kung-fu fighting in them regardless of the cast! This was where Ti Lung cut his acting teeth. Without any spoilers this time, here are some of my personal favorites... PASSING FLICKERS Director Li Han-hsiang tells his accounts of what went on behind the scenes at the Shaw studios! I recommend this also just for the inside look back stage! THE BLUE AND THE BLACK I would consider a Chinese version of Gone With The Wind. It was so long they cut it in half and made two films out of it (much like KILL BILL was). THE PRICE OF LOVE is a heartwarming tearjerker about a hunchbacked musician (60s pop-star/producer/director Teddy Robin) who falls in love with a blind girl (Chin Ping in her last SB film) and uses his wealth for surgeries to restore her vision. I would also suggest the Shaw's leggy nightclub films as they are solid entertainment and as good as anything made by Paramount or Fox at the time... HONG KONG NOCTURNE HONG KONG RHAPSODY THE YELLOW MUFFLER (*The yellow muffler is a scarf, not the exhaust port under a car!) ...as well as these zany roadshow comedy-dramas THE MILLIONAIRE CHASE WE LOVE MILLIONAIRES or any other Inoue Umetsugu films like THE FIVE BILLION DOLLAR LEGACY a thriller where the cast is picked off one by one while staying in a mansion awaiting the titled inheritance. What's more, my favorite comedies from this period are: THE MERRY WIFE with the beautiful Li Ching, as well as David Chiang's sex comedy A MAD WORLD OF FOOLS (*where he met his future wife Maggie Li Lin-Lin from The Killer Snakes fame) which along with Li Han-Hsiang's SINFUL CONFESSIONS and THE HAPPIEST MOMENT play out like adult-themed episodes of the old Love American Style tv sitcom! But still, you really can't go wrong with anything starring Jenny Hu or Li Ching as they both made a string of highly entertaining films and I love them all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Steve Barr Posted September 6, 2007 Share Posted September 6, 2007 If you're going to mention musicals, then Blue Skies is a must-see for Cheng Pei-Pei fans. -- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Agent Orange Posted September 7, 2007 Share Posted September 7, 2007 i have to research and study this more. in the meantime thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Barsader Posted September 9, 2007 Member Share Posted September 9, 2007 Kidnap must go on your list Agent orange. Lo lieh stars in a very well acted,written,and directed modern drama involving crimes and an eventual Kidnap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Le Peril Jaune Posted September 12, 2007 Share Posted September 12, 2007 Another place for reviews: shawbros.typepad.com/shaw/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest thejadefacedassassin Posted September 12, 2007 Share Posted September 12, 2007 These are the best dramas : 1. Susanna - Li Ching at her best! 2. My Dreamboat - an excellent novel brought to the screen with Lily Ho, Ching Li, Chin Han, Yang Fan & Essie Lin Chia 3. Too Late For Love - Ivy Ling Po wins an acting award for best actress playing the neglected terminally-ill wife of Kwan Shan. Ouyang Sha Fei playing her abusive mother-in-law wins best supporting actress award too. 4. Till The End Of Time - Jenny Hu's debut is still her best! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest venomchamber Posted September 12, 2007 Share Posted September 12, 2007 KIDNAP! Yes! Excellent film! It is supposedly based on a true story and may have been the inspiration for THE CRIMINALS series of films a couple years later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Knetan Posted September 12, 2007 Share Posted September 12, 2007 hey, remade as SENTENCED TO HANG. Quite faithfully so....even to the point that scenes were remade shot by shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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