will91XingYu
12-14-2007, 12:06 AM
This is my review for the Golden harvest 1983 Yuen clan film the Champions. The film stars Yuen Biao (Eastern Condors, Righting Wrongs), Sam Hiu (Dragon from Russia, Swordsman), Dick Wei (Project A, Winners, Rosa). This film is almost like a original to Stephen Chow's Shaolin Soccer. While i liked Shaolin Soccer as it mixed soccer, wire fu and comedy i love this because it features soccer, great comedy and grounded martial arts and did i mention Yuen Biao!
This film combines two things i love martial arts and soccer, this film is a great fun filled 90 minutes. The comedy is spot on (for people who find it funny when someone gets hit in the face with a football or falls over). The plot is about a young farmer played by Yuen Biao who was a opera veteran and classmate of Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung to name a few. He gets in trouble when he hurts a local gang leader (played by Tino Wong, Secret Rivals 2, Invincible Armour).
His uncle Eddy Ko (Heroes Shed no Tears, Miracle Fighters) sends Yuen Biao to the city to live with his friend, but when Yuen gets there he finds out from the mans daughter he has died, the daughter is played by a very young Moon Lee (Mr Vampire, Angel), she has a brother played by canto pop star Sam Hiu. Sam gets Yuen Biao into playing football and so the two join a team and eventually go up against the cruel and arrogant football star played by screen legend Dick Wei.
Not only does Yuen Biao show off his martial arts skills but his impressive soccer skills and so does Sam Hiu, the two make a really likeable duo. This film suprised me in the amount of fights it had in it as well, while they are good, the football scenes are just as exciting and great fun to watch Yuen flip and kick past opponents with a football at his feet. Dick Wei also shows off a lot of his skills in martial arts and with a football (he is doubled for a few scenes).
The fights in this mainly have lrge brawls so Yuen dosn't get to show off say in like Dragon's Forever or Knockabout but he really steals the show in this one. While Ching Siu Ting did the action coreography for Shaolin Soccer made 20 years later, here the Yuen clan (Yuen Woo Ping, Sun Yee, Yat Chor, Brandy Yuen, Yuen Ceung ect) they devise great fights, the stand out one is the dance floor one where Dick Wei and Sam Hiu fight using their dance partners.
The film was directed by Brandy Yuen who i believe now is a monk of some kind, his largest acting/fighting role i think is Shaolin Drunkard or Crystal Fist with Billy Chong. His direction is perfect and it goes along at great pace, those who are not interested in soccer should watch anyways because it's a great film and it had me smiling from begining to end, it's also refreshing to see Dick Wei and Yuen Biao in different kind of roles.
I have to mention the yeun clan really do get to show off here, not as much zanniness as their drunkard series but with their ideas and great comedy, Tino Wong and Eddy Ko who were part of their stable of actors they use have cool roles, Tino Wong's little scrap with Yuen Biao on this wooden structure in the town festival had me laughing so much. Very much an underated Yuen film and a very underated film for Yuen Biao. With a great mix of martial arts and soccer it really is fun to watch and with a weird and funny ending it really suprised me how much i loved this one.I guess because i'm a huge soccer fan as well it's great to see Yuen Biao show his martial art skills as well as his considerable soccer skills. Thanks for reading.:)
5/5
This film combines two things i love martial arts and soccer, this film is a great fun filled 90 minutes. The comedy is spot on (for people who find it funny when someone gets hit in the face with a football or falls over). The plot is about a young farmer played by Yuen Biao who was a opera veteran and classmate of Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung to name a few. He gets in trouble when he hurts a local gang leader (played by Tino Wong, Secret Rivals 2, Invincible Armour).
His uncle Eddy Ko (Heroes Shed no Tears, Miracle Fighters) sends Yuen Biao to the city to live with his friend, but when Yuen gets there he finds out from the mans daughter he has died, the daughter is played by a very young Moon Lee (Mr Vampire, Angel), she has a brother played by canto pop star Sam Hiu. Sam gets Yuen Biao into playing football and so the two join a team and eventually go up against the cruel and arrogant football star played by screen legend Dick Wei.
Not only does Yuen Biao show off his martial arts skills but his impressive soccer skills and so does Sam Hiu, the two make a really likeable duo. This film suprised me in the amount of fights it had in it as well, while they are good, the football scenes are just as exciting and great fun to watch Yuen flip and kick past opponents with a football at his feet. Dick Wei also shows off a lot of his skills in martial arts and with a football (he is doubled for a few scenes).
The fights in this mainly have lrge brawls so Yuen dosn't get to show off say in like Dragon's Forever or Knockabout but he really steals the show in this one. While Ching Siu Ting did the action coreography for Shaolin Soccer made 20 years later, here the Yuen clan (Yuen Woo Ping, Sun Yee, Yat Chor, Brandy Yuen, Yuen Ceung ect) they devise great fights, the stand out one is the dance floor one where Dick Wei and Sam Hiu fight using their dance partners.
The film was directed by Brandy Yuen who i believe now is a monk of some kind, his largest acting/fighting role i think is Shaolin Drunkard or Crystal Fist with Billy Chong. His direction is perfect and it goes along at great pace, those who are not interested in soccer should watch anyways because it's a great film and it had me smiling from begining to end, it's also refreshing to see Dick Wei and Yuen Biao in different kind of roles.
I have to mention the yeun clan really do get to show off here, not as much zanniness as their drunkard series but with their ideas and great comedy, Tino Wong and Eddy Ko who were part of their stable of actors they use have cool roles, Tino Wong's little scrap with Yuen Biao on this wooden structure in the town festival had me laughing so much. Very much an underated Yuen film and a very underated film for Yuen Biao. With a great mix of martial arts and soccer it really is fun to watch and with a weird and funny ending it really suprised me how much i loved this one.I guess because i'm a huge soccer fan as well it's great to see Yuen Biao show his martial art skills as well as his considerable soccer skills. Thanks for reading.:)
5/5