SHAOLIN TEMPLE is the ultimate Shaw Brothers epic about the life and methods of the Shaolin Temple. It's a long-winded and slowly-paced movie that's mainly concerned with training; you get at least an hour and a half of the main characters going through their various training routines with only minimal plotting to distract you. I reckon they could have cut twenty minutes out of this to make it a little snappier but nonetheless the slowness doesn't hide the sheer quality of the production.This is a film which may have the ultimate Shaw Brothers cast. Ti Lung and David Chiang are the heavyweight old timers who show up and join in with the various shenanigans at the temple, and alongside them are many of the up-and-coming stars who would go on to become the famous Venoms: Fu Sheng, Phillip Kwok, and my personal favourite, Chiang Sheng, whose role starts off very small but grows as the running time progresses. It's a delight to just be in the company of all these big hitters, but Chang Cheh's storytelling is gripping too.There's barely any action in the story at all right up until the climax, aside from a few sparring sequences. But the last half hour is made up of a massive battle in which the Shaolin Temple is besieged and those inside must fight it out to the death. It's incredible stuff, featuring all of the stars pairing off with skilled and dangerous opponents, and well worth the wait. For me, this is why cinema was invented: to show endless exciting spectacle and drama, all made by a cast and crew of consummate professionals. SHAOLIN TEMPLE is the bee's knees when it comes to kung fu cinema.

I wanted to rate this film higher for it's Kung-Fu fighting action. The story is good, except (as other reviewers may have noted) that the subplots and supporting characters get confusing and/or forgotten. A character early in the film gets introduced, and then never reappears despite becoming a plot focus of several other characters. A lot of time in this movie is spent on the training, which is good. But, often, this is at the sacrifice of telling the story. I struggled to keep in mind that this is a film from the 1970s, and so storytelling was different. I would have preferred that the training be condensed down in a montage in order to save time on film for the more important storytelling. This is the primary reason that I rated it a six-star film rather then rating it higher.

As did the pilot for the American teleseries KUNG FU, SHAOLIN TEMPLE gives us aspiring acolytes whose mettle is tested by secluded priests. Realizing that the Manchus are intent on destroying the temple and everyone inside it, the elder priest decides it's time to invite in some who might not otherwise be admitted. Among them are six soldiers, including Cai (Ti Lung), Hu (David Chiang), and Ma Fu Yi (Lung Wang). When upstart pupil Fang (Alexander Fu Sheng) laughs at Ma, he is pummeled- repeatedly- until he is discreetly taught Tiger and Crane kung fu by a masked master whose moves he copies at night after everyone else is asleep. Fang eventually exacts his revenge on Ma- whereupon the treacherous Heixien, one of the higher-ups in the temple, takes Ma under his wing and enlists his aid in bringing down the temple. Throughout the movie, we see some of the training methods used to toughen up the disciples, a la THE 36th CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN, and Che's sure-handed direction is seemingly effortless. The action is, of course, topnotch and the death of Kuo Chui during the flaming finale caught me by surprise.

The Only Kung Fu Epic worth watching. The best training ever. The main character spending a hundred day's on his knees outside the shaolin temple show how desperate he is to learn kung fu to fight the manchu dogs who have taken over china.