Purely Joyful Movie!

Don't Believe the Hype

Brilliant and touching

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

Maniacal Manchurian Pai Mei (Lo Lieh) is so adept at kung fu that he can even retract his meat and two veg at will to avoid being crippled by a swift crack to the goolies; so when he and his henchmen attack the Jiu Lian Shan Shaolin temple and kill priest Chih Shan (Lai Hai-Shen), the rest of the Shaolin disciples wisely opt to run for the hills. The Manchurians give chase and many Shaolin men are killed, including brave brother Tong (Chia-Hui Liu), who sacrifices his own life (taking about a dozen arrows to the torso) in order to enable brother Hong Xi-guan (Kuan Tai Chen) to lead a group to safety.These survivors take to the river on boats, posing as travelling performers. At a riverside village, Hong meets and falls for pretty martial artist Fang Yungchun (Lily Li) and the pair are wed. After an attack on the boats by Manchurian soldiers, Hong goes into hiding with his wife; the years pass and the couple have a son, Wending, who grows up learning his mother's style of kung fu: crane style. But when Hong eventually faces Pai Mei and is killed, Wending decides to learn Tiger style and uses it to avenge his father.Executioners From Shaolin starts off in fine style with the Manchurian slaughter of the Shaolin disciples, which is nice and bloody, after which things really start to drag: while Hong and his men are in hiding, the film focuses more on comedy and romance than action, which soon gets tiresome. Once Wending is born, there are some reasonably fun training scenes, including Hong practising his martial arts on a bizarre metal statue that drops ball bearings from its groin, but the film is still lacking in decent fight action. Things look set to pick up when Hong faces Pai Mei, but apart from the unforgettable sight of the old Manchurian trapping his foe's foot with his groin (having shifted his wedding tackle elsewhere), there isn't much worthy of mention.Sadly, the same goes for Wending's final smack-down with Pai Mei: after ascending the steps to the temple, knocking down numerous guards on the way (including Chia-Liang Liu reappearing as a fighter armed with a 3-sectional staff), Wending finally meets Pai Mei, killing him in one of the most abrupt endings I've ever seen in a martial arts film.

This was one of those films that I watched over and over, whenever I could. I've seen it on TV, usually in NYC on Channel 5 Saturday afternoons at 1pm, 3pm, or 5pm, on Drive-In Movie. I have also paid to see it repeatedly years ago in the old Times Square movie theaters. They used to specialize in Hong Kong martial arts films before Giuliani killed them all off. That's one thing I really miss about the old Times Sq...This movie had it all: great plot and writing, great acting and action, even great dubbing. I really wish it would come out on DVD or even VHS...

Kung Fu movies always seem to refer to a bewildering array of styles. this film highlights the Tiger and Crane styles and you really can see the difference in the 2 approaches.It gives a real insight into the idea of 1 style not being able to beat another because it's too rigid and inflexible and the practioner is not as good as his opponent, hence he WILL be beaten.Apparently this movie is about the evolution of the Huang Gar fiststyle but I'm no expert so don't know much more than that!Liu Chia Liang directs some great sequences, the earlier ones being better (the main fights between the father/son and the priest Pei Mei seem to automated to really flow smoothly)Some really good acting as well let down by the usual rushed dubbing.See it but would not buy it (go for Legendary weapons of kung fu/China for a classic movie)

I loved this film...I too saw it on TV in the early 80's, and have been looking for it almost ever since. A great display of varied styles of Kung Fu, and a lot of awesome action. If this one is on VHS I would love to know how to get hold of it. My favorite was the dude with the metal whip-thing.