Half A Loaf of Kung Fu - 88 Films

[Nocheduro]

How does this compare to To Kill With Intrigue? I find that to be the worst of the Lo Wei/Jackie films that 88 have released so far.

[ShawDonkey]

Originally Posted by Nocheduro

How does this compare to To Kill With Intrigue? I find that to be the worst of the Lo Wei/Jackie films that 88 have released so far.

I would not compare then. Too different style in movies, where TKWI is serious (superb) martial arts adventure, half a loaf is exhaustingly goofy(tho in end there is some great stuff in kung fu department). If you get kicks from such thing, you are in for a treat with half a loaf.

[Drunken+Master]

For those who haven’t pre-ordered yet, the release date has moved forward two weeks to the 16th May 2022.

[Killer Meteor]

Originally Posted by Nocheduro

How does this compare to To Kill With Intrigue? I find that to be the worst of the Lo Wei/Jackie films that 88 have released so far.

Half a Loaf is a prototype for what would be become Jackie Chan's standard persona. To Kill With Intrigue is very much Jackie miscast in someone else's persona...but ironically, it's a funnier film!

[WaverBoy]

Preordered from Diabolik. After decades of garbage transfers, I’m really glad to be able to finally give all these early Jackie films a proper spin at last, in excellent quality uncropped widescreen with proper subtitles, multiple soundtrack choices, Kung Fu Bob cover art, and loaded with extras for fun and context. The films may not be Jackie’s best, but I’ve found all of them, even the lowly NEW FIST OF FURY, to be worthwhile viewing, certainly valuable as a study of his formative years, all of them containing some good stuff, and a few are just really good and entertaining films in their own right, like SHAOLIN WOODEN MEN, SNAKE AND CRANE ARTS OF SHAOLIN, DRAGON FIST, THE FEARLESS HYAENA, BATTLE CREEK BRAWL, and DRAGON LORD. Happily, 88 Films is a far cry from All Seasons Entertainment, and has enlisted the knowledgeable and loving fan community in order to help make these releases the very best they can be. Now that KILLER METEORS has been announced, I really hope there’s some hope for CUB TIGER FROM KWANG TUNG and especially MAGNIFICENT BODYGUARDS 3D.

Hats off and boundless thanks to 88 Films and Eureka for finally giving us long-suffering Chan fans the lovingly produced video releases his films have deserved all along but never got until they stepped up to the plate, and for all the other HK classics they’ve rescued for us as well.

[chen lung]

The film was likely intended for a Mandarin-language release (the lip-sync seems better overall) until it got shelved; it was later issued in Cantonese. Newly translated subtitle sets have been produced for each on account of differences (verified by Frank Djeng).

[Owenjohnston]

Originally Posted by WaverBoy

Now that KILLER METEORS has been announced, I really hope there’s some hope for CUB TIGER FROM KWANG TUNG and especially MAGNIFICENT BODYGUARDS 3D.

I'm hoping for the likes of Island of Fire and Twin Dragons. Twin Dragons was the first JC film I saw and that was on VHS. Hopefully the rights aren't in limbo with it.

[navydavey]

Originally Posted by Owenjohnston

I'm hoping for the likes of Island of Fire and Twin Dragons. Twin Dragons was the first JC film I saw and that was on VHS. Hopefully the rights aren't in limbo with it.

Me too, I had the UK pan and scan video of Twin Dragon transferred to dvd years ago (alongside the Biography channel episode on Jackie Chan) as it has a full English dub and thankfully isn't the shorter international version.

I've always wanted to see the extended Taiwanese cut of Island of Fire too so hopefully that gets a release at some point.

Outside of the Warner Brothers titles potentially available one day through the Warner Achive Collection (First Strike, Rumble in the Bronx, Thunderbolt, Who Am I?), I'd love both cuts of Gorgeous and My Story / My Stunts as extras somewhere (I assume there are no HD prints of those two so SD only extras would make do) from Chan's 90's output. Police Story 3 seems stuck in limbo for now.

I'll take any and all the Chans I can get!

[Markgway]

Originally Posted by chen lung

The film was likely intended for a Mandarin-language release (the lip-sync seems better overall) until it got shelved; it was later issued in Cantonese. Newly-translated subtitle sets have been produced for each on account of differences (verified by Frank Djeng).

I believe that to be correct.

The only one of Jackie's Lo Wei's films that might have been shot for Cantonese is Fearless Hyena as I think that one was the last to be made in 1978. But I never cared enough about the film to check the lipsync... LOL

[Killer Meteor]

Originally Posted by Markgway

I believe that to be correct.

The only one of Jackie's Lo Wei's films that might have been shot for Cantonese is Fearless Hyena as I think that one was the last to be made in 1978. But I never cared enough about the film to check the lipsync... LOL

FH...I think it's safe to say Jackie and Dean Shek are speaking Cantonese, though most of the cast are Taiwanese or Korean. But since Jackie is in charge, I consider it Cantonese. Same for FHII, even though probably only Jackie and Shek again were speaking Cantonese.

[WaverBoy]

Originally Posted by Owenjohnston

I'm hoping for the likes of Island of Fire and Twin Dragons. Twin Dragons was the first JC film I saw and that was on VHS. Hopefully the rights aren't in limbo with it.

Those too of course; I was focusing on the early titles in my post but we desperately need a full-blown special edition of TWIN DRAGONS especially, a sadly underrated Jackie film that I’d almost put up right up there with his acknowledged classics. Bok Min and Tarzan are a hilarious team. Fabulous action comedy.

[grim_tales]

I haven't seen Island of Fire, isn't that one a much more serious kind of movie?
With Magnificent Bodyguards, there's bound to be trouble with the Star Wars music and stuff isn't there?

[WaverBoy]

Originally Posted by Markgway

I believe that to be correct.

The only one of Jackie's Lo Wei's films that might have been shot for Cantonese is Fearless Hyena as I think that one was the last to be made in 1978. But I never cared enough about the film to check the lipsync... LOL

I think FEARLESS HYENA is right up there with SNAKE IN THE EAGLE’S SHADOW. Really good kung fu comedy.

[WaverBoy]

Originally Posted by grim_tales

I haven't seen Island of Fire, isn't that one a much more serious kind of movie?
With Magnificent Bodyguards, there's bound to be trouble with the Star Wars music and stuff isn't there?

There hasn’t been trouble with borrowed soundtracks in any of the other recent old-school HK releases, has there? They’re all present and correct as far as I know, but please correct me if I’m wrong!

[alexrinse]

Originally Posted by grim_tales

I haven't seen Island of Fire, isn't that one a much more serious kind of movie?

Yes, he's in it only as a "favour" to Wang Yu. It's not a Jackie Chan film by any stretch.

I really hope we get Twin Dragons as well. I saw it at the time on a dreadful pirate VHS, but I got a lot of mileage out of it. Some great action in the garage scene.

I seem to recall that film was made for charity/as a fundraiser for something. Anyone remember the details?

[Killer Meteor]

Originally Posted by WaverBoy

There hasn’t been trouble with borrowed soundtracks in any of the other recent old-school HK releases, has there? They’re all present and correct as far as I know, but please correct me if I’m wrong!

The only one I'm aware of is the removal of the Pink Floyd music on the Cantonese track for The Big Boss.

[TheGrimReaper]

Twin Dragons was made in effort to support or establish a Director's Guild or something similar, hence two prolific directors involved in Twin Dragons. It didn't help. But the movie was quite entertaining in its own right tbh. As for the worst movies in Jackie's Lo Wai period for me it would be Killer Meteors and Fearless Hyena 2 (Jackie was barely involved in the latter). All the others are fine for what they are, and there was progress in Jackie's career from New fist of fury to Fearless Hyena. You can see how his screen persona was being developed through these early screen efforts, which were no masterpieces, but provided him with enough experience, confidence and skills to move forward and reach new heights with Golden Harvest after that. Despite the will of Lo Wei to make him the new Bruce Lee this never materialised and for the better. Every person has to find his own Path and walk on it as each step will carry him closer to his goals and his place under the sun.

[Killer Meteor]

To his credit, Lo Wei didn't really do that much "New Bruce Lee" stuff with Jackie, even New Fist of Fury has Jackie mostly playing a prototype of his starmaking role of a lazy comical character who is foreced to learn kung fu.

And most of the other films have Jackie trying on different wu xia and Shaolin roles, the Bruce Lee influence is minimal at best. Can you imagine Bruce ever being in something as bonkers as To Kill With Intrigue?

[WaverBoy]

Originally Posted by TheGrimReaper

As for the worst movies in Jackie's Lo Wai period for me it would be Killer Meteors and Fearless Hyena 2 (Jackie was barely involved in the latter).

I dunno, the trailer for KILLER METEORS looks pretty good. I’m really looking forward to it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8sxbcxUBec

[drush9999]

Originally Posted by WaverBoy

I dunno, the trailer for KILLER METEORS looks pretty good. I’m really looking forward to it.

https://youtu.be/C8sxbcxUBec

Your link was broken for me

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8sxbcxUBec