Hi, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab...
Awwwww... these were fun. It seems like it’s been too quick, like these can’t really be over yet. But according to Mark, this is it. Check out what he’s got to say:
Hi Harry,
My last report from SIFF and I want to cry because its almost over... maybe being out of money as a result of going to so many films also has something to do with it. Anyway, before I head off to see the last film of the fest, THE LEGEND OF SURIYOTHAI, I thought I'd send this in. Thanks for the 'air time.' I hope the AICN readers out there get a chance to see some of the films in the HEROIC GRACE series when it swings through or near their city. It hits New York on June 27th and your readers can find official information RIGHT HERE!!.
Regardless, anyone interested in these films should go out and get thyself an all-region player and start buying those Shaw Brothers DVD's from Hong Kong.
Cheers,
SIFF 2003 Martial Arts Film Report - Part 4
Scaffolding Kung Fu & Jackie Chan's Family History
by Mark Pollard
06.16.2003 - Introduction
All good things must come to an end and such is the case for this year's Seattle International Film Festival. For four glorious weeks, I have had the distinct pleasure of visiting local venues here in Seattle to watch some of the greatest, rarest, and most outrageous Chinese martial arts films ever produced. For a time, I will feel a certain void knowing that I can no longer watch Shaw Brothers movies at the theater on weekends, even though they are appearing as import DVD's. There is a big difference to watching these films home alone on a modestly sized screen compared with several hundred fellow fans on a huge screen. Speaking as a person who is constantly buried deep in martial arts film, its difficult to describe the feeling. I suppose there isn't much difference from reveling with comic book fans at an X-Men 2 or Hulk opening, except that many of these old classics offer sights that cannot be adequately replicated with even the most sophisticated technology. There is no better example of this than to look at a film from one of the genre's greatest filmmakers.
"Return to the 36th Chamber of Shaolin"
After watching several Shaw Brothers films earlier in the festival's Heroic Grace program that featured the expert kung fu choreography of Lau Kar-leung (AKA Liu Chia-liang), it was fitting to end the series with two classics that Master Lau directed himself. The first was The 36th Chamber of Shaolin. This 1978 feature is regarded by genre fans as one of the greatest classic kung fu movies of all time. Although I had once viewed a scratchy bootleg of this film, I had every intention of seeing it restored to its former glory on the big screen. But my plans fell through, so instead of drawing on hazy memories, I will proceed to report on the film's sequel which I did catch.
Although a sequel in name, Master Lau's Return to the 36th Chamber of Shaolin was more of a re-working of the original. The key was having Lau's adopted brother, Gordon Liu return as the hero. But to re-bottle the success of the first film, he had start out as the underdog. Anyone who has seen The 36th Chamber of Shaolin may recall that Liu played a lowly student named San Te who struggles through all of the 35 existing training halls within Shaolin Temple to become a full ranking monk. He then creates a '36th' chamber to train outsiders. Within kung fu lore, this forms the beginning of the dissemination of Chinese martial arts to the masses.
With 'San Te' having completed his trials, Lau's answer was to re-cast his brother in a light-hearted role of a conman who sneaks his way into Shaolin. With the success of Jackie Chan's films and in keeping with the public's growing demand for more comedy, Lau turned to slapstick. But far from being just another silly kung fu comedy, this film builds on Lau's knowledge of Shaolin kung fu and his creativity to create one of cinema's greatest plot devices, "Scaffolding kung fu." Scaffolding kung fu may seem like an odd highlight for a film, that is until you see it, from its inception. Once you do, you will understand why Lau Kar-leung is the Master.
The film begins slowly with dye workers having their wages cut after 'specialists' are hired to improve dye standards. These specialists also happen to be good at kung fu and they easily suppress a workers' revolt. In retaliation, the workers convince a local conman played by Gordon Liu to pose as Shaolin master San Te. What follows is a series of humorous events where Gordon lampoons his own portrayal in the previous film. The workers come up with a number of tricks to fool the outsiders into believing that Liu is a real kung fu expert. But the plan unravels when a real kung fu expert challenges Liu and the workers suffer for it. Liu vows to learn real kung fu and heads to Shaolin.
After several failed attempts, he finally sneaks into the temple by posing as a visiting apprentice from another temple. To do so, he's forced to wear a dyed wig since his hair is shaved and apprentices' hair should not be. After meeting the real San Te who immediately recognizes him as a fraud, Liu is given only two menial tasks during what turns out to be a three year stay. First, he must repeatedly drop a large rock into a deep well in order get water to splash up and rinse his wig clean of dye. In keeping with the kung fu mythos, no matter how difficult or potentially damaging a task may be, as long as its done often, you're guaranteed positive results. Sure enough, once the wig is cleaned, he's putting cracks in walls with his improved strength.
The second task is to single-handedly construct bamboo scaffolding around each of the temple walls. This task takes up most of his time at the temple, but he eventually completes it after becoming very proficient at tying off bamboo and quickly navigating in and around the narrow poles. Hoping he will finally be able to learn kung fu like the rest of the students, Liu's hopes are dashed when San Te tells him to tear down the entire structure. Furious, Gordon gets into a verbal and physical fight with his master before getting kicked out. He leaves believing his efforts were in vain, but the viewer and San Te see what Gordon cannot, that he moves with great agility and strength, and is thus capable of performing kung fu without further instruction.
Of course, Gordon eventually returns to the dye factory and takes on the villains of the film, but the way in which he does so is extraordinary. He adapts his quick tying ability to kung fu and begins tying baddies together with bamboo strips. The choreography for these scenes are phenomenal. You get a pitifully small taste of it in Romeo Must Die when Jet Li uses twist ties to subdue thugs. No disrespect to Corey Yuen or Jet Li, but the action in this film is in a completely different league. You see Gordon Liu and his fellow stunt actors perform finely-tuned and very creative choreography in long takes where a series of eight or ten movements follow one-another without a single edit. It simply must be seen to be fully appreciated.
Initially, Return to the 36th Chamber of Shaolin takes a little time to get into. You have to be willing to see past the silly buckteeth one character has or the limited amount of kung fu action in the first half of the film. Master Lau knows exactly what he's doing and devotes the first two-thirds of the film to winding up the action. Then he unleashes it with a vengeance and by that time you have complete appreciation for what it took to get there.
If you think kung fu movies are just about a bunch of sweaty men beating each other up for the hell of it while shouting random insults, then you're only half right. The rest includes the kind of filmmaking that cannot be manufactured or copied. The years of experience and training Lau Kar-leung adds to his own brilliant ideas have produced films like Return of the 36th Chamber of Shaolin that will live forever as a testament to his genius.
Well into his 60s, Lau Kar-leung is still directing and starring in kung fu movies. Released in Asia last month, Drunken Monkey is Lau's bowshot to the world that the Chinese can still make the best martial arts movies, old school kung fu is not dead, and neither is he. Long live Master Lau Kar-leung!
"Traces of the Dragon: Jackie Chan and His Lost Family"
Now here is a documentary about Jackie Chan I never would have expected to see, but emerged from the viewing sad, joyous, educated, and enlightened. It came about after Jackie recently discovered the fascinating history of his family that had been kept from him until last year when his elderly mother succumbed to illness and passed away.
Jackie is well known for his outspokenness. In his biography and countless interviews he has discussed his early childhood growing up with his parents and later spending ten years enduring harsh opera school training, away from his parents. His career from lowly stuntman to international superstar is common knowledge among his millions of fans around the world. But what of his family? Jackie's own wife and children are a topic that remains off limits, but his parents are another story. He simply didn't know such things as the fact that his real sir name is "Fang" or that he has two step-brothers in China that he never met.
Because of his father's connection with a Nationalist general and his brief stint as a spy during the tenuous struggle for control of modern China that began in the 1920s, the documentary essentially captures the history of China and Hong Kong in the years surrounding World War II.
Archival footage from China, some of which was somewhat disturbing is offset by recent footage of Jackie and his father being interviewed and discussing their family history together. Earlier footage included scenes of Jackie with his ailing mother. This is a very intimate look at a side of Jackie Chan that we rarely see. As a viewer I almost felt like I was intruding beyond the boundaries usually set by celebrities, but both Jackie and his father seemed at ease discussing these things and sharing their lives with a camera crew.
I was pleased to note that the film was narrated by Ti Lung, who is one of the most popular kung fu stars from the Shaw Brothers era. Years later, he co-starred with Jackie in Drunken Master II, playing his father despite a negligible difference in years.
This is an excellent documentary that goes far beyond Jackie Chan, yet manages to remain tied to his legacy. The suffering that Jackie's family and the Chinese people endured in World War II and subsequently with the Communist revolution is put into perspective. Yet, the film always draws us back to the carefree spirit that Jackie still possesses with humor and grace.
Thanks for all the hard work, Mark, and I’ll be sure to come lurk on your site now. It’s been fun.
"Moriarty" out.
