Item #: 4666 Category: MARTIAL ARTS Format: VHS MPAA Rating: PG

Woolly Rating: 5/10 (117 votes)

MEMBER COMMENTS ON THIS VIDEO

Matt	Mar 19, 2002 @ 15:18:39

MUST SEE - AWESOME!! Yu Rong Guang!
(real title) HOLY ROBE OF SHAOLIN Now this is a fine fine martial arts production. Is there anyone out there who has seen this and would disagree? I'm gonna yammer here, so please pardon any gross errors. This movie stars Yu Rong Guang (well, you've seen Iron Monkey haven't you? He played the excellent character of Dr. Yang/Iron Monkey, who absolutely kept pace with Donnie Yen. He has been in a lot of movies I haven't seen yet, but I thought he was also great in "My Father is Hero", which is hardly a favorite film of mine). In Holy Robe, Guang is the main villain, and a great one at that. As opposed to the stereotypical white-haired master, Yu Rong plays a bald-headed renegade wu-tang master. You may recall I recently raved about Ninja vs Shaolin Guards. I should note that whereas Chang Yi's character in NVSG was never developed (the villains, alas, seldom are), Yu Rong has an inherent complexity to him that just makes him interesting. The upshot is that this movie is of a higher caliber, and in fact reaches epic proportions (not to take away from NVSG). Synopsis: A 'corrupt official', Lord Huang (baddie) wants Shaolin Temple destroyed. But as the Emperor favors the monks, Lord Huang decides to hire Liao Kong (Yu Rong) to infiltrate the Shaolin Temple, posing as a senior member of the Golden Lotus/Flower (?). Once there he will simply challenge the temple abbot and continue to destroy the Temple from inside. But the abbot and his monks, full of integrity and loyalty, don't fall for Kong's cruelty and foil the plan, though at a price (note: see ass kicking fight between Abbot and Yu Rong! To cement any take over of the Temple however, one must also be in possession of the Holy (cotton) Robe [yup, that's in the title!!]. A small band of monks [six of the 18 remaining chief disciples] is commissioned to get the Holy Robe to another Temple, and this is chiefly entrusted to an adept and righteous monk named Hui Neng [who later adopts the name Ding Ho. As an aside, the lead villain and hero take on multiple identities]. After Neng escapes, the Boom is lowered on the Temple's residents by Lord Huang. Hundreds of monks are rounded up and a systematic 'courtyard culling' is threatened: WAIT TIL YOU SEE THIS SCENE: Tears will come to your eyes! A high pitch in poignancy is reached here that is seldom encountered in Kung Fu movies. Off the hook kool. In his travels Neng meets up with a family of horse traders who raises horses especially for Governor Lui (who I don't think we ever actually see, he's just a good guy who's name is mentioned. It doesn't matter). There are excellent panoramic scenes here and some snazzy horse corralling. Also, Neng meets a female [sorry! Can't recall her name. Damn!] who is one of four sisters and an excellent fighter. This movie boasts an incredible and highly aesthetic use of the out-doors. And not just the panoramic exteriors were highlights - even the close-up camera work was excellent. Cinematography was a concern for those who made this flick and it really shows [if only a pristine print would surface]. One touch I liked was how the monks, dressed in white, often appeared luminescent, as if the camera wanted to comment on their virtue. I don't mean to sound corny, but it works. Though I could go on and on, I'll only mention my other favorite scene. Yu Rong knows that Neng, whom he had pursued across the dessert, is hiding in (what I take to be, since the subs say so) a Taoist monastery. These guys are NOT punks, but you can tell Yu Rong thought so when he walked in. He knows the High Priest there, so perhaps they were WuTang, but there is no sword fighting and the master of the place does wushu forms so I'm thinking the subs were right - ah, it's a bit confusing. Anyway, the master knows his sh*t and shows Yu Rong the door!! Bad ass alert! Alright, I'll stop there. The ending is good, but a bit sad. Crash Cinema put this out on VHS and as far as I know there is no DVD available. I had wanted this movie for a while and settled for Xenon's Widescreen / subtitled version, which is decent, though not great. Still, as Widescreen/ Subs are an asset to me, I didn't complain. [You should be able to find this under the title Shaolin and Wu Tang II]. The quality is not great, but if its the only one I'll take it. In concluding I'll say that the pacing in this movie is consistent, professional, and action packed. Should you get this? Hell yeah, if you like quality martial arts, Yu Rong, and better-than-average story etc. Hands down, this will be a contender the top 10 movies I will have viewed in 2002. I wouldn't have wrote all this if it weren't worth it. I giveit 8.5 out of 10 stars. For another review [and pictures] go to: www.neo-modus.com/stuntpe...haolin.htm The review here is not nearly so kind as mine, and though there is some good information (mixed with complaints), some comments on the quality of the fighting are quite inaccurate. The Martial Artists Guide to Hong Kong Films gave it 5 stars for Pure martial arts, and they don't just do that for any kung-fu film. Matt

• GOODBYE UNCLE TOM
Snuff Film... (Tim)

• TAMPOPO
Awesome... (CMH)

• ROMERO
... (Sue)

• VAMPIRES VS ZOMBIES
horrible... (beachmonkey)

• PULP FICTION (COL ED)
a thrill ride... (Alan Hall)

• PERFUME
KINKY, DISTURBING... (DKB)

• BLACK MASK 2: CITY IF MASKS
not bad... (Dedeals)

• ELVIS ON TOUR
Elvis in Concert. ... (elvisandmeatloaf@aol.com)

• BORN YESTERDAY
A great performance... (micca)

• WONDERWALL
Why this film dserves more than a one star rating.... (Eric)

• PIT STOP (LTBX)
... (pike)

• BEWARE OF A HOLY WHORE
... (pike)

• BIG BAD MAMA
... ()

• GOODBYE UNCLE TOM
MISUNDERSTOOD... (Caribba)

• MONKEY KUNG FU
the best... (melo70)

• PANTERA 3 WATCH IT GO
WATCH IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!... (leo)

• HOUSE OF STRANGERS
FINE 1949 NOIR/DRAMA... (DKB)

• KEEP YOUR DISTANCE
LOCALLY SHOT DRAMA... (DKB)

• GOODBYE UNCLE TOM
a genius reality check 4 our race we may live in the white mans land & call it hme bt in doing that we deny the truth of our being. All brown skin people nomatta hw light r african rayalty ... (lady swirl)