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Cast:
Carter
Wong
Tien
Peng
Polly
Shang Kwan
Yee
Yuen
Action:
Cliff
Lok
Chan
Siu Pang
Producer:
Joseph
Kuo
Director:
Joseph
Kuo
Score:
 
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THE
18 BRONZEMEN
AKA:
The Eighteen Bronzemen
Year:
1976 Reviewer: Andrew
Saroch
The
much-reviled Ching government decide to eradicate any
opposition to their rulership by attacking pro-Ming families
in the kingdom. One such attack sees an influential official
killed, though his wife and son manage to escape thanks to the
intervention of a close ally. While on the run, the son,
Shaolung, is aided by his father's close friend (Jack Long)
who teaches the young boy the basics of kung-fu. As time
passes, the renegades must once again move on and evade
capture by the Ching army. However, it is decided that the
safest place for Shaolung to hide would be in the
Ming-friendly Shaolin Temple where he could also further his
knowledge of kung-fu. Once there, the boy finds the severe,
disciplined lifestyle hard to cope with and, despite his best
efforts, he lags behind his fellow pupils. Over time he does
make a couple of close friends and it is their encouragement
that drives him to reach his goals. Now a young man, Shaolung
(Tien Peng) gradually develops into a formidable fighter and
concentrates his sights on leaving Shaolin to avenge his
father's death. However, to 'graduate' from Shaolin means to
defeat the Shaolin bronzemen and a series of similarly
fiendish tests. The first attempt to conquer these trials is
unsuccessful, but Shaolung is spurred on by his
straight-talking friend (Wong) and finally leaves through
Shaolin's hallowed gates after a final tremendous effort.
Of
independent maestro Joseph Kuo's many kung-fu hits, '18
Bronzemen' is perhaps the one that has had the most influence
throughout the latter years of the genre. Since its creation
in 1976, this relatively lavish production has seen many of
its elements creep into a number of other films, ranging from
the Shaw Brothers hits to low-budget attempts to feed of the
popularity of the concept. Thankfully, even though the themes
and situations are mercilessly etched in the minds of all
fans, this still retains an excellent entertainment quality.
Kuo's makes good use of a fairly generous budget, splashing
the money on the above-average set design and utilising a
small army of extras. The cinematography is also slightly more
polished than the usual independent fare and shows the kind of
spark that sadly wasn't present in all of Joseph Kuo's films,
while the action holds its own today after over twenty-five
years.
Kuo
deserves recognition as a director within the martial arts
cinema world, though his abilities are limited. His qualities
are clearly seen here i.e. the innovation without a major
studio behind him and that extra touch of class that lifts him
above the many other directors who toiled in the independent
field. Nonetheless, '18 Bronzemen' does give way to the
weakness that have often hamstrung the director - namely the
definitive sense of control that makes the difference between
the great and the good. Importantly, Kuo lets the odd moment
of peculiar editing affect an otherwise slick kung-fu drama;
the final twenty minutes in particular seems far too rushed in
comparison to the majority of the film. Perhaps the pressure
to mold this potentially epic movie into a convenient
90-minute chunk means that '18 Bronzemen' doesn't have the
courage of its convictions and squanders its chance to be a
landmark film. 'The 36th Chamber Of
Shaolin' remains the
seminal Shaolin-training epic, but '18 Bronzemen' has much to
help it stand out from the crowd and is by all means a
recommendation.
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