Shaolin Boxers, newly released on Blu-ray from Eureka, is a delightfully entertaining piece of old-school martial arts mayhem made by Golden Harvest Studios shortly after Bruce Lee’s death. It stars Lee’s Big Boss and Fist of Fury co-star James Tien, who is himself no slouch with his high-kicking skills, which are plentifully displayed in the 78 minutes it takes to tell this exciting story of revenge and retribution.
This splendid new 2K restoration will delight fans, young and old, who enjoy the typical thrills and spills of these breathless kung fu romps that were so prevalent in ’70s cinema. This release not only includes the original Mandarin language version of the film but also an English dubbed version, which truly enhances the nostalgic pleasure of the heady days that led to this reviewer’s love of the martial arts genre, a love which endures to this day.
The combat scenes in Shaolin Boxers are superbly choreographed and culminate in an incredibly long and brutal battle between our hero Tien and the colourful villain Chu Mu. This provides a satisfying ending and leaves us begging for more Eastern action from this prolific era. Hopefully, Eureka Entertainment will not disappoint us in this respect.
Special features include two audio commentaries from experts in Hong Kong cinema and a short featurette called Shaolin Style from journalist Wayne Wang. A limited edition collectors booklet about the movie provides the icing on the cake. Overall a treat.
SHAOLIN BOXERS is released on Blu-ray by Eureka Entertainment on March 25th.
