Shaw Brothers Studio: Difference between revisions
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==Popular films== |
==Popular films== |
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{{main|List of Shaw Brothers Films}} |
{{main|List of Shaw Brothers Films}} |
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* ''[[2 Champions Of Kung Fu]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[3 Evil Masters]]'' aka ''The Master'' - Chen Kuan Tai, Johnny Wang Lung-Wei |
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* ''[[Five Fingers of Death|5 Fingers Of Death]]'' - Lo Lieh |
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* ''[[5 Super Fighters]]'' - Ku Kuan Chung |
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* ''[[5 Masters of Death]]'' - Ti Lung, Fu Sheng, David Chiang, Lo Lieh, Chiang Tao |
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* ''[[7 Blows Of The Dragon]]'' - David Chiang, Ti Lung |
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* ''[[8 Diagram Pole Fighter]]'' aka ''Invincible Polefighter'' - Gordon Lui, Fu Sheng, Wong Yu |
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* ''[[10 Tigers From Kwangtung]]'' - Venoms, Ti Lung, Fu Sheng |
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* ''[[All Men Are Brothers (Shaw Brothers film)|All Men Are Brothers]]'' - David Chiang |
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* ''[[Ambitious Kung Fu Girl]]'' - Chen Kuan Tai |
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* ''[[Angry Guest]]'' - David Chiang, Ti Lung |
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* ''[[Avenging Eagle]]'' - Ti Lung, Fu Sheng |
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* ''[[The Blood Brothers (Shaw Brothers movie)|The Blood Brothers]]'' - Ti Lung, David Chiang, Chen Kwan Tai, Chang Cheh |
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* ''[[Brave Archer]]'' - Fu Sheng, Venoms, Ku Kuan Chung |
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* ''[[Brave Archer 2]]'' - Fu Sheng, Venoms, Ku Kuan Chung, Kara Hui |
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* ''[[Brave Archer 3]]'' aka ''Blast Of The Iron Palm'' - Fu Sheng, Venoms, Ti Lung |
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* ''[[Brave Archer 4]]'' aka ''Brave Archer and His Mate'' - Fu Sheng, Venoms (Considered more of a Venoms film than a Brave Archer film) |
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* ''[[Clan Of The White Lotus]]'' aka ''Fist Of The White Lotus'' - Gordon Lui, Kara Hui, Lo Lieh, Johnny Wang Lung-Wei |
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* ''[[Challenge Of The Masters]]'' - Gordon Lui, Chen Kuan Tai, Chiang Tao |
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* ''[[Chinatown Kid]]'' - Fu Sheng, Venoms, Ku Kuan Chung |
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* ''[[Come Drink With Me]]'' - Cheng Pei Pei, Wang Yu |
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* ''[[Crippled Avengers]]'' aka ''Mortal Combat'' aka ''Return Of the 5 Venoms'' - Venoms, Chen Kuan Tai |
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* ''[[Death Chambers]]'' - Ti Lung, Fu Sheng, David Chiang, Lo Lieh, Venoms |
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* ''[[Destroyers (Shaw Brothers film)|Destroyers]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Disciples of Death]]'' - Ti Lung, Fu Sheng, David Chiang, Lo Lieh, Chiang Tao |
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* ''[[Disciples of the 36th Chamber]]'' - Gordon Lui |
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* ''[[Dirty Ho]]'' - Gordon Lui, Wong Yu, Kara Hui, Lo Lieh |
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* ''[[Duel Of Fist]]'' - Ti Lung, David Chiang |
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* ''[[Executioner From Shaolin]]'' - Gordon Lui, Chen Kuan Tai, Lo Lieh, Wong Yu |
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* ''[[Five Deadly Venoms]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Flag Of Iron]]'' - Venoms, Lung Tung-Sheng |
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* ''[[Flying Guillotine]]'' - Chen Kuan Tai |
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* ''[[Golden Swallow]]'' - Cheng Pei Pei, Wang Yu |
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* ''[[He Has Nothing But Kung Fu]]'' - Gordon Lui, Wong Yu, Lo Lieh |
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* ''[[Heaven and Hell (Shaw Brothers film)|Heaven and Hell]]'' - Fu Sheng, Venoms |
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* ''[[Heroes Two]]'' - Fu Sheng, Chen Kuan Tai |
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* ''[[Heroes Shed No Tears (Shaw Brothers film)|Heroes Shed No Tears]]'' (1978) - Fu Sheng, Derek Yee |
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* ''[[The Heroic Ones]]'' - Ti Lung, David Chiang, Chang Cheh |
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* ''[[House Of Traps]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Instructors Of Death]]'' aka ''Martial Club'' - Gordon Lui, Kara Hui, Johnny Wang Lung-Wei |
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* ''[[Kid With The Golden Arm]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Killer Army]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Lady is Boss]]'' - Kara Hui, Gordon Lui, Venoms, Lau Kar Leung |
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* ''[[Legend Of A Fox]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Legendary Weapons Of China]]'' - Gordon Lui, Kara Hui, Lau Kar Leung, Hsiao Ho |
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* ''[[Life's Gambles]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Lion Vs. Lion]]'' aka ''Roar Of The Lion'' - Johnny Wang Lung-Wei, Wong Yu, Lo Mang |
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* ''[[Long Road To Gallantry]]'' - Kara Hui, Lung Tung-Sheng |
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* ''[[Mad Monkey Kung Fu]]'' - Lau Kar Leung, Hsiao Ho , Lo Lieh, Kara Hui |
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* ''[[Magnificent Ruffians]]'' aka ''Daredevils of Kung Fu''- Venoms |
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* ''[[Masked Avengers (1981 film)|Masked Avengers]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Master Killer]]'' - Gordon Lui |
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* ''[[My Young Auntie]]'' aka ''Fangs Of The Tigress'' - Gordon Lui, Kara Hui, Lau Kar Leung, Hsiao Ho |
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* ''[[Naval Commandos]]'' - Fu Sheng, David Chiang, Venoms |
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* ''[[Ode To Gallantry]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[One Armed Swordsman]]'' - David Chiang |
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* ''[[Return of The Sentimental Swordsman]]'' - Ti Lung, Fu Sheng, Derek Yee |
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* ''[[Return to the 36th Chamber]]'' - Gordon Lui, Johnny Wang Lung-Wei |
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* ''[[Sentimental Swordsman]]'' - Ti Lung, Ku Kuan Chung |
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* ''[[Shaolin Abbott]]'' - David Chiang, Lo Lieh |
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* ''[[Shaolin Handlock]]'' - David Chiang, Lo Lieh |
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* ''[[Shaolin Intruders]]'' - Derek Yee, Jason Pai Piao |
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* ''[[Shaolin Mantis]]'' - David Chiang |
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* ''[[Shaolin Prince]]'' aka ''Iron Fingers of Death'' - Ti Lung, Derek Yee, Jason Pai Piao |
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* ''[[Shaolin Rescuers]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Shaolin Challenges Ninja]]'' - Gordon Lui |
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* ''[[Shaolin Vs Wu-Tang]]'' - Gordon Lui, Johnny Wang Lung-Wei, Adam Cheng |
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* ''[[Super Ninjas]]'' aka ''5 Element Ninjas'' - Lo Mang |
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* ''[[Sword Stained With Royal Blood(Shaw)|Sword Stained With Royal Blood]]'' - Venoms, Lung Tung-Sheng |
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* ''[[The Super Inframan]]'' - Danny Lee, Bruce Le |
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* ''[[Treasure Hunters]]'' - Gordon Lui, Fu Sheng |
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* ''[[Unbeatable Dragon]]'' - Venoms |
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* ''[[Vengeful Beauty]]'' - Lo Lieh |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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Revision as of 20:53, 12 February 2007
The Shaw Studio (邵氏片場), owned by Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. SEHK: 80, is the forerunner and the largest movie production company of Hong Kong movies[citation needed].
From their distribution base in Singapore and as a strategic development of their movie distribution business in Southeast Asia, Sir Run Run Shaw (邵逸夫) and his third brother Runme Shaw (邵仁枚) founded South Sea Film (南洋影片) in 1930. It was later renamed Shaw Brothers Studio. The studio released Hong Kong's first movie with sound 《白金龍》 (which translates as "platinum dragon", or one of the slang terms for a pistol) in 1934.
Legacy
Directors
The Shaw Brothers studio is noted for directors King Hu, Lau Kar-leung and Chang Cheh. King Hu was an early director who is best remembered for his film Come Drink with Me, a martial arts film which differed from those of Chang Cheh in that it featured a capable female protagonist and revolved around romance in the martial arts world, rather than fast paced action and the tales of brotherhood which Chang Cheh would later popularize. Chang Cheh, who was more fond of the latter components, would go on to be Shaw Studios' best known director, with such films as the Five Deadly Venoms, the Brave Archer (based on the works of Jin Yong), the One Armed Swordsman, and other classics of Wuxia and Wushu film. Almost equally as famous was fight choreographer turned director Lau Kar-leung, who would produce such highly regarded kung fu films as The 36th Chamber of Shaolin and Eight-Diagram Pole Fighter.
Actors
The stable with which the Shaw Brothers worked became one of their trademarks. While other studios rotated a good number of cast members, Run Run and Runme Shaw almost always had a familiar face in their films. The group from the Five Deadly Venoms - who would become known by that namesake - were among the most popular. These five were Lo Mang, Lu Feng, Sun Chien, Chiang Sheng and Kuo Chui, who had been stars in the Shaw studio for years, but did not become memorable faces until the Five Deadly Venoms. The "sixth Venom", Wei Pai, who played the Snake in Five Deadly Venoms was also part of the Venom Mob which numbered over 15 actors which appeared in almost all of the Venom movies.
Two other stars were particularly well known and favoured by Chang Cheh in his movies: Ti Lung and Alexander Fu Sheng. Ti Lung is considered one of the most, if not the most handsome martial arts actor to grace Shaw Studios, but is also accredited as a capable actor who reinforced his physical glamour with strong characterisation over his many films. Alexander Fu Sheng, who starred with Ti Lung on many occasions, was killed in 1983 in a car accident, ending what had been a short career.
Shaw Studios was not well known for female actors however, largely due to Chang Cheh's preference for brotherhood tales, and producer Mona Fong's alleged hatred for beautiful actresses. Nonetheless, actresses like Betty Loh Ti, Cheng Pei Pei, and Tien Niu appeared in Shaw films. Cheng Pei Pei in particular is relatively well known for her starring role in King Hu's Come Drink With Me, and more recently in Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as Jade Fox.
Celestial Pictures acquisition and beyond
Although many of their classic films have become subject to bootlegging over the years due to copyright disputes in the international market, Celestial Pictures acquired rights to the studio's legacy, and is releasing 760 out of the nearly 1,000 films on DVD, with restored picture and sound quality. Many landmarks in Hong Kong and Singapore are named especially after Sir Run Run Shaw for his generous contributions to charity and medicare.
The Shaw Organisation remains a major distribution network in Singapore today.
List of actors
Popular films
See also
External links
- Beijing Video, full Biographies of every major Kung Fu actor/actress, including Shaw Studios
- The Shaw Story - at the official company website.
- The Rise and Fall of the House of Shaw - scholarly essay by Tom Green.
- Shaw Brothers Movies - list of DVD releases
- ShawScope - Shaw Brothers kung fu movies fan site
- Shaolin Chamber - Reviews, extensive poster-art gallery