The Shaolin Drunken Monk (1981) - A Review

 

The Shaolin Drunken Monk (also known as Drunken Martial Arts, Drunk 8 Blows, Crazy 8 Blows, or The 36th Chamber:The Final Encounter) is a Hong Kong/South Korean martial arts movie released in 1981. It stars Gordon Liu, Eagle Han Ying, Chang Mi-hee, Kim Jae Woo, Hyun Kil Soo, and Chin Yuet-Sang . The Shaolin Drunken Monk was directed by  Ulysses Au-Yeung Jun, with fight choreography by Chin Yuet-Sang.

The man himself, Gordon Liu.

In The Shaolin Drunken Monk, Gordon Liu plays Lau Chung, a young man who has had a pretty tragic life (as we find out through flashbacks) who kidnaps Ying Ying (played by Chang Mi-hee), the daughter of martial arts master Wong Kin Chung (played by Eagle Han Ying). He does this to lure Wong Kin Chung out, in order to get revenge for the things Wong and his henchmen have done to his family. We see Lau Chung's training in kung fu by a drunken master (played by Hyun Kil Soo) and we see another, unique form of training he goes through. Lau Chung fights through Wong's men, dealing with a ninja-like assassin (played by Chin Yuet-Sang) and a one-handed fighter (played by Kim Jae Woo) whose side he isn't sure of, before finally getting to Wong Kin Chung. Can he succeed and get revenge?

The bad guys in this movie are bastards.

First of all, I love The Shaolin Drunken Monk. I first found out about this movie from the documentary film, Top Fighter. This movie had some of the best action scenes in the documentary, and my brother and I really wanted to watch it after that. I finally found it at a specialty video store, and thankfully, it lived up to our expectations. Unfortunately, the VHS and DVD available in America was not in the correct aspect ratio and is only dubbed in English. So, this might not be the best representation of the movie available. 

The plot of the movie is the basic 'hero seeks revenge against those who have wronged him/her'. This is okay because the fight scenes are so good in this. Gordon Liu plays the stoic, driven hero who wants revenge, but has a moral compass. Because of the dubbing, you would think Gordon Liu is the villain of the movie at the start. His voice softens as the movie goes on, though. There is a bit of romance in this film as well, but I feel it's a bit unrealistic due to the situation (though, according to social media, women are very into what Ying Ying goes through in this movie...) Anyways... Eagle Han Ying plays a great villain. He plays a cool, collected bad guy determined to find the two fighters killing his men. The dubbing fails his performance, though. There is also a bit of comedy in this movie. During the flashback scenes of Lau Chung training with his master, there is some silly comedy. It may feel out of place in such a serious movie, but I appreciated it.

Eagle Han Ying plays a great villain. He also looks like Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson when he smiles.

I will admit, the low budget of this movie is very apparent. Gordon Liu's hair length changes quite a bit throughout the movie. The cinematography is basic (which is not a bad thing). There's even a scene where the camera's film is running out (there are red flashes on the screen). Still, it doesn't detract from the experience of the movie...unless you're not into low budget movies. There is great music in The Shaolin Drunken Monk. There is a piece of music from Jackie Chan's Drunken Master used in this...during a flashback with the drunken master in this movie! I thought that was cool (it's also my favorite piece of music from the Drunken Master soundtrack). The final fight takes place in a cool, picturesque location as well.

The fight scenes are so good in this movie!

The fight scenes in The Shaolin Drunken Monk are so good. Gordon Liu's fist forms are excellent, and they are put to good use in this movie. His drunken style is also very cool; it's a bit more rigid and powerful (when compared to Jackie Chan's more fluid drunken style). Eagle Han Ying is pretty incredible in this! He has powerful strikes and awesome kicks. A worthy final villain for sure. Kim Jae Woo as the one-handed fighter is really good. He show you can still kick butt despite any handicaps. Chin Yuet-Sang was the fight choreographer for this movie, and he really outdid himself in this one! All of the fights are fast, intricate, and hard-hitting. He also plays the ninja assassin in this movie, and of course his fights with Gordon Liu rock. There is not one weak fight in this movie!

In conclusion, The Shaolin Drunk Monk is a decently good martial arts movie. It's not the best kung fu movie in the world, but it is thoroughly entertaining. The fight scenes are top notch, and are the main reason to watch this movie. I mean, it stars Shaw Brothers superstar Gordon Liu! He never lets us down in a movie! Watch it, and hope a remastered version of it comes out some day.

The cover of the DVD I watched for this review. I really need this movie remastered on Blu-ray! I think it would look amazing remastered (and in the correct aspect ratio). The bottom scene on the cover is not in the movie, by the way.

The back cover. This DVD has audio commentary by Ric Myers. It is...not good. He makes fun of the low budget and gives rather dubious information about the movie, the actors, and Hong Kong cinema in general...

The DVD disc. Nice, simple design by Tai Seng.

Reviewed by David Williams