Eureka Entertainment
Blu-ray Release: September 24, 2024
Video: 2.35:1/1080p/Color (both films)
Audio: Cantonese and English LPCM 2.0 Mono (both films)
Subtitles: English (both films)
Run Time: 94:47 (Taoism Drunkard), 99:39 (The Young Taoism Fighter)
Director: Yuen Cheung-Yan (Taoism Drunkard), Hwa Chen-Chi (The Young Taoism Fighter)
Following the seismic cultural impacts of the Wachowski’s The Matrix (1999), Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), and Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill movies (2003-’04), choreographer Yuen Woo-ping became the face of a short-lived boom in Hollywood wire stunt martial arts. He didn’t manage to leverage this later fame into jobs as a Hollywood first-unit director, like John Woo, but he did have a substantial career renaissance stunt-coordinating blockbusters and the attention sparked interest in his earlier work.
Yuen came from a line of martial arts performers. His father, Yuen Siu-tin, was a Peking Opera veteran who started acting on film in the late ‘40s and appeared in a popular series of movies about the historical folk hero Wong Fei-hung in the 1950s. Six of Siu-tin’s eleven children went on to work in the industry, including regular Woo-ping collaborators Yuen Cheung-yan, Yuen Yat-chor, Yuen Shun-yi, Yuen Jan-yeung (aka: Brandy Yuen), and Yuen Cheung-yan. Following years of performance and choreography, Woo-ping graduated to direction and, while most fans would probably nominate The Magnificent Butcher (1979), Iron Monkey (1993), or Tai Chi Master (1993) as his best film as director, there’s still plenty of love for his oddball fantasy-comedy The Miracle Fighters (1982).
The Miracle Fighters is a uniquely pure exercise, beginning with the fact that it’s a thoroughly Yuen Clan family affair. Yat-chor plays the lead, Shun-yi plays the main villain, Jan-yeung plays a clown-like urn spirit, Cheung-yan plays the female Taoist priest, and Siu-tien, who had passed away a few years prior in 1979, has a cameo as an animated painting of the original Taoist master. Despite its convoluted preamble, familiar tropes, and period setting, it’s more of a vaudevillian revue that celebrates Peking Opera traditions, acrobatic artistry, sleight of hand, magic tricks, and Looney Tunes slapstick. It was followed by two thematic sequels that are rarely seen outside of Hong Kong, Taoism Drunkard (1984), directed by Yuen Cheung-yan, and The Young Taoism Fighter (1986), directed by Hwa Chen-chi.
Woo-ping directed the related film Shaolin Drunkard in 1983, which is sometimes referred to as Miracle Fighters 2, but it wasn’t included with this collection, so we’ll just ignore it for now.
Disc 1: Taoism Drunkard
When a drunken Taoist (Yuen Cheung-yan) accidentally damages a sacred statue, he is ordered by an enraged priest (Hsiao Hou-tao) to atone by finding a virginal boy (Yuen Yat-chor) to aid in defending his temple from a demonic sorcerer (Yuen Shun-yi). (From Eureka’s official synopsis)
As stated, the third film in the series, Taoism Drunkard, was directed byYuen Cheung-yan, who also dons giant buck teeth to play the title character and reprises his Miracle Fighters role as the Old Crone. Yuen Yat-chor plays another boyish lead and Yuen Shun-yi plays another demonic villain, though these roles, as well as the Old Crone, are, technically, different characters, as became regular practice for the franchise. Additionally, while actor Mai Kei (seen throughout the In the Line of Duty films) earns his one and only screenwriting credit, here, the entire Yuen Clan is credited with the story. The final film is such a mish-mash of subplots, schemes, and vignettes that I can’t imagine that the script was more than a collection of roughly sketched suggestions.
Miracle Fighters was a borderline spoof of the already silly Taoist magic comedies, but Shaolin Drunkard takes that to the next level by spoofing the spoof – as if a troupe of Earnest P. Laurels stumbled into Close Encounters of the Spooky Kind (1980) as directed by Zucker/Abrahams/Zucker. This wall-to-wall barrage of scatological jokes, cultural references, and loud, googly-eyed performances is an acquired taste and Shaolin Drunkard is so overloaded that even those that have acquired it might be a bit nauseous after an hour. Some might be disappointed by the fight choreography, because the stunts don’t have quite the same circus act appeal as those seen in Miracle Fighters. Personally, I enjoyed the creative effects and magic tricks, in spite of their lack of ‘fidelity.’ They reminded me of Chen Chun-Liang’s exceedingly weird, unofficial Dragon Ball adaptation, Dragon Ball: The Magic Begins (1991).
Disc 2: The Young Taoism Fighter
The adventures of a young Taoism student (Yuen Yat-chor), who manages to separate his soul from his body, before teaming up with a vengeful young woman (Hilda Liu Hao-yi) to take on a sinister sorcerer (Kwan Chung) and the evil leader of a rival kung fu school (Yen Shi-kwan). (From Eureka’s official synopsis)
The Young Taoism Fighter (referred to as Miracle Fighters 4 on IMDb.com) is made in the same Taoist slapstick vein as the other Miracle Fighter semi-sequels, but built around the general school rivalry dynamics of a Lau Kar-leung method training movie or a Chang Cheh ensemble picture. The comparatively leisurely pace and familiar backdrop are honestly kind of a relief following the ceaseless joke barrage of Taoism Drunkard. Don’t worry, writer/actor Hsieh Chi-sheng’s more coherent screenplay still finds plenty of time for piss and shit jokes. The Clan is represented onscreen by Yat-chor, who portrays another (unrelated) impish Taoist trainee, and share credit as choreographers. A lot of their work is still irreverent and effects-heavy, but the serious fights (which are often revealed to be dreams) highlight speed, impact, and danger in the classic Yuen tradition. The climactic battle is fantastic and fans of Sam Raimi’s Army of Darkness (1993) should enjoy the multiple sequences where Yat-chor does battle with a tiny mirror version of himself, in particular.
As you may have assumed based on his name, director Chen Chi-hwa was not a member of the Yuen Clan. His biggest claims to fame are tied to Jackie Chan, including early hit Shaolin Wooden Men (1976), Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin (1978), Half a Loaf of Kung Fu (1978), and the original Police Story (1985), which he co-directed with Chan. Chen emphasizes atmosphere, whereas Yuen emphasizes gags. This might have been an effort to emulate the look of Tsui Hark’s supernatural blockbuster Zu Warriors of the Mystic Mountain (1983), from which The Young Taoism Fighter also borrows a few effects techniques. Either that or he was trying to disguise what appears to be the smallest budget of the franchise. The look is a little extreme at times (see the Video section below), but smokey sets and lush outdoor locations definitely make for a more satisfyingly cinematic experience. That said, Miracle Fighters, which splits the difference between the two styles, is still the superior movie.
Bibliography:
Chinese Martial Arts Cinema: The Wuxia Tradition by Stephen Teo (Edinburgh University Press, 2009)
The Doxology of Yuen Woo-Ping by Roger Garcia, from A Study of the Hong Kong Martial Arts Film (printed and released at the 4th Hong Kong International Film Festival in April of 1980)
Video
Like The Miracle Fighters, neither Taoism Drunkard nor Young Taoism Fighter were officially released on VHS tape or DVD in North America. Fans could import discs from Hong Kong or find bootlegs, but the image quality was always going to be iffy at best. Eureka has coupled the films for their worldwide Blu-ray debut on separate 2.35:1, 1080p discs (all three Miracle Fighters sequels, including Shaolin Drunkard, are or have been available in HD on various streaming sites, while the original film is physical release only). Eureka’s ad copy refers to a new 2K restoration and, though they don’t specify the process, it’s easy enough to assume that the scanning and restoration was done by Fortune Star and handed off directly to the UK-based studio.
Both transfers match expectations for other 2K Fortune Star Blu-ray discs from Eureka, 88 Films, and Arrow. The color quality of each film is bright and eclectic, creating a nice contrast between set and location-shot sequences. This is where the similarities end, however, because Taoism Drunkard cinematographer Ma Kuan-Hua largely matches the crisp comic book look of Miracle Fighters (which he also shot), while Young Toaism Fighter cinematographer Chen Ching-Chu slathers the frame in diffusion and soft focus (as I mentioned above, I think this might have been an attempt to emulate Zu Warriors). It’s such an extreme, Vaseline-on-the-lens style look that it’s honestly difficult to judge the disc’s clarity, but there’s still plenty of texture to be found in the otherwise fuzzy and occasionally dusty compositions.
Audio
Both movies are presented with original Cantonese and English dub options in mono and uncompressed LPCM. As per usual, these films were shot without sound, then dubbed in post, often in Cantonese, Mandarin, and English to appeal to the widest Hong Kong-based audience. I assume that this cast was speaking Cantonese, not Mandarin, on set, but the lip sync will appear a little strange, no matter which track you choose.
I often default to English when watching kung fu movies, especially comedies, but the Shaolin Drunkard dub is particularly subpar. The vast majority of music and effects (including the grunts and shouts) are recycled directly from the Cantonese track, then, whenever the characters speak, the audio flips to music-only background track, creating large volume inconsistencies and some echo effects, On top of this, the English performances are amateur Rifftrax quality. The Young Taoism Fighter dub pulls the same trick, but is closer in quality to a Golden Harvest dub. The issue here is that the track is pretty muffled and condensed compared to the more consistent Cantonese track. While composer Tang Siu-lam takes a music credit on The Young Taoism Fighter, the two scores are made up of plenty of ‘borrowed’ and library material.
Extras
Disc 1: Taoism Drunkard
Commentary with Frank Djeng – Everyone’s favorite and busiest Hong Kong film expert swings by with two more in-depth, information-packed commentary tracks. He explores the history of the Yuen Clan, the production histories of both films (and Miracle Fighters), cultural in-jokes, Cantonese puns, the wider careers of the cast & crew, and the Taoist and supernatural kung fu traditions, including descriptions of the real-world rituals and folklore that the films are based on.
Commentary with Mike Leeder and Arne Venema – The second tracks on each disc features casting director/stunt coordinator/producer Leeder and Venema, the critic and director/co-writer (with Leeder) of the upcoming doc Neon Grindhouse: Hong Kong. As typically happens with discs that feature overlapping Frank Djeng and Leeder/Venema tracks, the subject matter is similar, but the tone is different and Leeder & Venema tend to share more personal anecdotes about the locations and industry.
James Mudge on Taoism Drunkard (17:53, HD) – The critic, filmmaker, and festival programmer discusses producer Lo Wei’s career, the supernatural kung fu comedy trend, the Miracle Fighters franchise, and the Yuen Clan style.
Hong Kong theatrical trailer
Disc 2: The Young Taoism Fighter
Commentary with Frank Djeng
Commentary with Mike Leeder and Arne Venema
James Mudge on Young Taoism Fighter (10:35, HD) – Mudge closes things out praising Young Taoism Fighter’s cavalier attitude and looking at its disappointing box office take (including the bigger films it opened against), Chen Chi-hwa’s work, and possible division of labor between him and the Yuens.
Hong Kong theatrical trailer
The images on this page are taken from the BDs and sized for the page. Larger versions can be viewed by clicking the images. Note that there will be some JPG compression.
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