The Random Shaw Brothers Viewing Thread

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Martial Club coming from 88 Films in June.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

New English friendly German Blu-ray release of The Convict Killer is out.

https://www.diabolikdvd.com/product/...-ray-region-b/

[killer must kill again Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close killer must kill again]

yes, this came out of nowhere!

virgins of the seven seas - new 4k transfer, english-friendly blu-ray from filmart, coming in may

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Coming to Blu-ray 8/9/22 from 88 Films.

Flying Guillotine 2 (1978)
Limited Edition Slipcase with New aRtwork by 'Kung Fu' Bob O'Brien
Limited Edition Collectors Double Sided Poster
Limited Edition Booklet - Watch Out for the Flying Guillotines by Barry Forshaw
High Definition (1080p) Presentation in 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio
2.0 DTS-HD MA English Soundtrack
2.0 DTS-HD MA Mandarin Soundtrack with newly translated English Subtitles
Audio commentary with Asian cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema
Hong Kong Trailer
Reversible Sleeve

[Darcy Parker Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Darcy Parker]

I have never seen one, but I love the idea of putting up the one-sheet for Dirty Ho in my living room, just to say that I have done so.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Extras announced for the 7/9/22 88 Films Blu-ray release of Martial Club.

Bonus Materials
High Definition (1080p) Presentation in 2.35:1 Aspect Ratio
2.0 DTS-HD MA English Soundtrack
2.0 DTS-HD MA Mandarin Soundtrack with newly translated English Subtitles
Audio commentary with Asian cinema expert Frank Djeng
Instructors of Death - Grindhouse Presentation
‘Kung Fu and Dancing’ - An Interview with Robert Mak
‘Instructors of Death’ Trailer
Interview with Johnny Wang
Interviews with Hung San Nam and Tony Tam
Reversible Artwork
Limited Edition Slipcase with new Artwork by Kung Fu Bob O'Brien
Limited Edition Collectors Booklet with Behind the Scene Photos and writing by Critic and AuthorBarry Forshaw

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

More info on Martial Club.

https://88-films.myshopify.com/colle...40195829923882



A gloriously typical entry from Shaw Brothers, Martial Club starring Kara Wei (THE BRAVE ARCHER 2 and MAD MONKEY KUNG FU) and Gordon Liu (THE 36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN) and directed by Lau Kar-Leung (LEGENDARY WEAPONS OF CHINA), affords us a fast-paced, cleverly choreographed piece of martial arts fun combining many elements that lovers of this kind of cinema will be more than appreciative of. Rival fight schools, an old master and beautifully designed set pieces tumble together in a colourfully kinaesthetic unceasing parade of flying fists and action set pieces.


LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS - 3000 Only

Gloss O-Ring slipcase with brand-new artwork from R.P. "Kung Fu Bob" O'Brien
24 Page Booklet Notes - "From Martial Club to Instructors of Death" by Barry Forshaw
Double-sided foldout Poster

SPECIAL FEATURES

HD Transfer from the Original Negative in 2.35:1 Aspect Ratio
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
1.0 DTS-HD MA Mono Cantonese Audio with Newly Translated English Subtitles
1.0 DTS-HD MA Mono English Audio (Synced Best possible From Instructors of Death Print)
Commentary with Asian cinema expert Frank Djeng and Actor / Martial Artist Michael Worth
Supplemental Audio commentary with Asian cinema expert Frank Djeng
Instructors of Death - Grindhouse Presentation
Kung Fu and Dancing - An Interview with Actor Robert Mak
Born to Be Bad - An Interview with Actor Johnny Wang
Disciples of Shaolin - An Interview with Stuntmen Hung Sun-Nam and Tony Tam
The Right-Hand Man - An Interview with Producer Lawrence Wong
‘Instructors of Death’ Trailer
Hong Kong Trailer
Reversible sleeve featuring original Hong Kong poster artwork

TECHNICAL SPECS

Release Date: 16/05/2022
Region Code: AB
Audio: DTS-HD MA Mono
Picture: 1080p HD 2.35:1
Runtime: 108 mins approx
Language: Cantonese / English
Subtitles: English
Cert: 12


Sku: 88FB442
Vendor: 88 Films

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Arrow Shaw Brothers boxed set is on sale on Amazon for $101.20 shipped.

https://amzn.to/3OhKaxf

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Hopefully Arrow or 88 give this a domestic release.

[Spaghetti Monkey Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Spaghetti Monkey]

Arrow Shaw Brothers boxed set is on sale on Amazon for $101.20 shipped.

https://amzn.to/3OhKaxf

Now down to $89.99 and part of the 3 for 2 sale.

[Derrick King Waterfall Puncher Find all posts View Profile Close Derrick King]

Arrow's new 2K restorations of Kid with the Golden Arm and Mercenaries from Hong Kong are premiering at Fantasia.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Looks like Flying Guillotine 2 will be the last SB release from 88 Films.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

City On Fire says that the next Arrow Video Shawscope set will include Mercenaries From Hong Kong alongside Invincible Shaolin, Magnificent Ruffians, Kid with the Golden Arm, Ten Tiger of Kwangtung and The Boxer’s Omen.

https://cityonfire.com/the-boxers-omen-blu-ray-arrow/

[mjeon Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close mjeon]

I watched Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan on Saturday. There's only a little nudity, but the film makes up for that deficiency with exquisite cruelty and gore. The sets and costumes are sumptuous. The lesbian brothel-keeper Lady Chun (played by Betty Pei) is one of the most striking characters in any Shaw Brothers film. The IVL blu-ray is gorgeous.

[Derrick King Waterfall Puncher Find all posts View Profile Close Derrick King]

Specs for Arrow's ShawScope 2 leaked the other day (the official announcement is tomorrow):


Picking up where Volume One left off, this sophomore collection of Hong Kong cinema classics draws together many of the best films from the final years of the Shaw Brothers studio, proving that while the end was nigh, these merchants of martial arts mayhem weren’t going to go out without a fight! Armed with stunning special features and ravishing new restorations, this boxset is even bigger and bolder than the last one. We begin with kung fu master Lau Kar-leung’s instant classic The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, in which his adoptive brother Gordon Liu achieved overnight stardom as the young man who unexpectedly finds spiritual enlightenment on the path to vengeance; Lau and Liu followed the original with two comically inventive sequels, Return to the 36th Chamber and Disciples of the 36th Chamber, both included here. Already established as a genius at blending dazzling action with physical comedy, Lau himself plays the lead role in the hilarious Mad Monkey Kung Fu, coupled here with Lo Mar’s underrated Five Superfighters. Next, we once again meet Chang Cheh’s basher boy band the Venom Mob in no less than four of their best-loved team-ups: Invincible Shaolin, The Kid with the Golden Arm, Magnificent Ruffians and culminating in the all-star Ten Tigers of Kwangtung, co-starring Ti Lung and Fu Sheng. After Lau brings us perhaps his best high-kicking comedy with My Young Auntie, a playful star vehicle for his real-life muse Kara Hui, we see Shaw Brothers fully embracing Eighties excess in our strangest double feature yet: Wong Jing’s breathtakingly wild shoot-‘em-up Mercenaries from Hong Kong, and Kuei Chih-hung’s spectacularly unhinged black magic meltdown The Boxer’s Omen. Last but certainly not least, Lau Kar-leung directs the last major Shaw production, Martial Arts of Shaolin, filmed in mainland China with a hot new talent named Jet Li in the lead role; it is paired in this set with The Bare-Footed Kid, a reverent remake of a Chang Cheh classic with Johnnie To (Running Out of Time) in the director’s chair and Lau back on fight choreography duties, in arguably the ultimate filmed tribute to Shaws’ everlasting cinematic legacy.

LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY COLLECTION CONTENTS

• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentations of all fourteen films, including nine new 2K restorations by Arrow Films
• Illustrated 60-page collectors’ book featuring new writing by David Desser, Jonathan Clements, Lovely Jon and David West, plus cast and crew listings and notes on each film by Simon Abrams • New artwork by Mike Lee-Graham, Chris Malbon, Kagan McLeod, Colin Murdoch, “Kung Fu” Bob O’Brien, Lucas Peverill, Ilan Sheady, Tony Stella, Darren Wheeling and Jolyon Yates
• Hours of never-before-seen bonus features including several cast and crew interviews from the Frédéric Ambroisine Video Archive
• Two CDs of music from the De Wolfe Music library as heard in several of the films, exclusive to this collection

DISC ONE – THE 36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN

• Brand new 4K restoration by Celestial Pictures and L’Immagine Ritrovata
• Newly restored uncompressed Mandarin, Cantonese and English original mono audio
• Newly translated English subtitles, plus optional hard-of-hearing subtitles for the English dub
• Brand new feature commentary by critic Travis Crawford
• Brand new select-scene commentary by film critic and historian Tony Rayns • Interview with star Gordon Liu, filmed in 2003
• Interview with cinematographer Arthur Wong, filmed in 2006
• Shaolin: Birthplace of a Hero and Elegant Trails, two archive featurettes with Gordon Liu produced by Celestial Pictures in 2003
• Tiger Style: The Musical Impact of Martial Arts Cinema, a newly filmed overview of Shaw Brothers’ influence on hip hop and other music genres, featuring music historian Lovely Jon
• Cinema Hong Kong: Swordfighting, the second instalment in a three-part documentary produced by Celestial Pictures in 2003 and featuring interviews with Gordon Liu, Lau Kar-leung, Cheng Pei-pei, John Woo, Sammo Hung, Kara Hui, David Chiang and others
• Alternate opening credits from the American version titled Master Killer
• Hong Kong and German theatrical trailers, plus US TV spot
• Image gallery

DISC TWO – RETURN TO THE 36TH CHAMBER / DISCIPLES OF THE 36TH CHAMBER

• Uncompressed Cantonese, Mandarin and English original mono audio for both films
• Newly translated English subtitles for both films, plus optional hard-of-hearing subtitles for the English dubs
• Interview with star Gordon Liu, filmed in 2003
• Citizen Shaw, a French TV documentary from 1980 directed by Maurice Frydland, in which Sir Run Run Shaw gives an all-access tour of the Shaw Brothers backlot (including behind-the-scenes footage from Return to the 36th Chamber), remastered in high definition
• Hero on the Scaffolding, an archive featurette produced by Celestial Pictures in 2003 • Alternate opening credits sequences for both films • Hong Kong theatrical trailers for both films
• Image galleries for both films

DISC THREE – MAD MONKEY KUNG FU / FIVE SUPERFIGHTERS

• Brand new 2K restorations of both films from the original negatives by Arrow Films
• Uncompressed Cantonese, Mandarin and English original mono for both films
• Newly translated English subtitles for both films, plus optional hard-of-hearing subtitles for the English dubs
• Brand new commentary for Mad Monkey Kung Fu by martial arts cinema experts Frank Djeng and Michael Worth
• Newly filmed appreciation of Mad Monkey Kung Fu by film critic and historian Tony Rayns
• Interview with actor Hsiao Hou, filmed in 2004
• Shaw in the USA, a brand new featurette on how Shaw Brothers broke America featuring Grady Hendrix and Chris Poggiali, authors of These Fists Break Bricks
• Hong Kong and US theatrical trailers for Mad Monkey Kung Fu
• Hong Kong theatrical trailer and UK VHS promo for Five Superfighters
• Image galleries for both films

DISC FOUR – INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN / THE KID WITH THE GOLDEN ARM


• Brand new 2K restorations of both films from the original negatives by Arrow Films
• Uncompressed Mandarin and English original mono audio for both films, plus Cantonese mono for Invincible Shaolin
• Newly translated English subtitles for both films, plus optional hard-of-hearing subtitles for the English dubs
• Interview with action director Robert Tai, filmed in 2003
• Poison Clan Rocks The World, a brand new visual essay on the Venom Mob written and narrated by author Terrence J. Brady
• Alternate "continuity" cut of The Kid With The Golden Arm, presented via seamless branching
• Alternate and textless title sequences for The Kid with the Golden Arm
• Hong Kong theatrical trailer for Invincible Shaolin
• Hong Kong theatrical trailer (audio only) and US TV spot for The Kid with the Golden Arm
• Image galleries for both films

DISC FIVE – MAGNIFICENT RUFFIANS / TEN TIGERS OF KWANGTUNG

• Brand new 2K restorations of both films from the original negatives by Arrow Films
• Uncompressed Mandarin and English original mono audio for both films, plus Cantonese mono for Ten Tigers of Kwangtung
• Newly translated English subtitles for both films, plus optional hard-of-hearing subtitles for the English dubs
• Brand new audio commentary on Ten Tigers of Kwangtung by filmmaker Brandon Bentley
• Interview with star Chin Siu-ho, filmed in 2003
• Rivers and Lakes, a brand new video essay on Shaw Brothers’ depiction of Chinese myth and history, written and narrated by Jonathan Clements, author of A Brief History of China
• Hong Kong (audio only) and German theatrical trailers for Magnificent Ruffians
• Hong Kong trailers (Mandarin and Cantonese audio options) and US TV spot for Ten Tigers of Kwangtung
• Image galleries for both films

DISC SIX – MY YOUNG AUNTIE

• Uncompressed Cantonese, Mandarin and English original mono audio
• Newly translated English subtitles, plus optional hard-of-hearing subtitles for the English dub
• Brand new select-scene commentary by film critic and historian Tony Rayns
• Interview with star Kara Hui, filmed in 2003
• Cinema Hong Kong: The Beauties of the Shaw Studios, the final instalment in the three-part documentary produced by Celestial Pictures in 2003
• Alternate standard-definition VHS version
• Hong Kong theatrical trailer
• Image gallery

DISC SEVEN – MERCENARIES FROM HONG KONG / THE BOXER'S OMEN

• Brand new 2K restorations of both films from the original negatives by Arrow Films
• Uncompressed Cantonese and Mandarin original mono audio for both films plus English mono for Mercenaries from Hong Kong
• Newly translated English subtitles for both films, plus optional hard-of-hearing subtitles for the English dub
• Brand new commentary on The Boxer’s Omen by critic Travis Crawford
• Newly filmed appreciation of filmmaker Kuei Chih-hung by film critic and historian Tony Rayns
• Additional footage from Mandarin VHS version of The Boxer's Omen
• Interview with Mercenaries from Hong Kong action director Tong Kai, filmed in 2009
• Hong Kong theatrical trailers for both films
• Image galleries for both films

DISC EIGHT – MARTIAL ARTS OF SHAOLIN / THE BARE-FOOTED KID

• Uncompressed Cantonese, Mandarin and English original mono audio for both films
• Newly translated English subtitles, plus optional hard-of-hearing subtitles for the English dubs
• Brand new commentary on Martial Arts of Shaolin by Jonathan Clements
• Brand new commentary on The Bare-Footed Kid by Frank Djeng of the NY Asian Film Festival
• Newly filmed appreciations of both films by film critic and historian Tony Rayns
• Interview with Martial Arts of Shaolin screenwriter Sze Yeung-ping, filmed in 2004
• Alternate standard-definition version of Martial Arts of Shaolin
• Hong Kong and Japanese theatrical trailers for Martial Arts of Shaolin, plus trailers for the preceding Shaolin Temple films starring Jet Li
• Hong Kong theatrical trailer and UK VHS promo for The Bare-Footed Kid
• Image galleries for both films

DISC NINE – MUSIC FROM THE 36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN, FIVE SUPERFIGHTERS, INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN AND THE KID WITH THE GOLDEN ARM (CD)

DISC TEN – MUSIC FROM RETURN TO THE 36TH CHAMBER, MAGNIFICENT RUFFIANS, TEN TIGERS OF KWANGTUNG, MY YOUNG AUNTIE, MERCENARIES FROM HONG KONG AND DISCIPLES OF THE 36TH CHAMBER (CD)

Arrow's James Flower has posted on the Criterion Forum that they have picked up titles for two more volumes.

1) When we initially acquired the films, our plan was to restore all of them, since the picture quality issues on many of the existing HD masters were part of the reason we'd avoided the catalogue originally. It quickly became clear, however, that these would be much more involved and expensive than our usual restoration workflow, even just in 2K, so the original budgets we'd acquired the films under wouldn't work. So in order to stick to budget and release the films in enough time to make our money back given the relatively short license period, we decided to only restore a little over half of them. We went through the existing masters and decided which ones were the least-worst (especially with regards DNR and 'framecutting') that could be released as they were, and prioritised the ones that most needed improvement. A couple of titles got swapped around (e.g. so we could remaster the longer cut of Chinatown Kid), and it's a shame we couldn't restore all of them, but I think it's a pretty good balance overall. With the hard-won lessons and efficiencies learned from these two sets, we're hoping to be able to restore every film on future volumes - fingers crossed this works out.

2) I don't remember exactly, but as both of the first two sets were initially planned simultaneously - the original plan was one big 26-film box which, again, quickly proved unfeasible! - I think it was just as simple as David getting the list of titles and only wanting to do King Boxer, as well as the two booklet essays. We also wanted to mix up the contributors a bit on Volume 2, and hope to again with future volumes.

3) I wasn't involved with picking the titles for Volumes 1 & 2 but have been more involved with the new package we're acquiring for Volumes 3 & 4, which does indeed veer away from kung fu a lot more. I picked the name Shawscope for our boxsets specifically so we could go into new territory in the future, and that is indeed the strategy: hopefully by now we've hooked enough people with the kung fu sets that will now be willing to go on a journey into other kinds of Shaws films with us. Indeed, working on the extras gave me a whole other list of films I'm desperately keen to see! That said, I doubt you'll see us doing the operas, melodramas and comedies anytime soon - they just aren't commercially viable at the scale we're working to with the new restorations and collectable packaging, which means genre films inevitably become the key focus. (Indeed, I'm not convinced a huangmei diao set would fly off the shelves even with just the existing Celestial masters, basic packaging and minimal extras to keep production costs down.) I'm sure we'll release more Shaws kung fu films in the future too, but we're happy to go on a bit of a tangent for now - especially as we have plenty of Golden Harvest films from Fortune Star lined up too.

He mentioned a "relatively short license period," which is why I assume they opted for the big box sets instead of individual releases and, again I am assuming, the reason they aren't going to break these sets up.