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Invincible Pole Fighter
List Price: $14.95
Our Price: $9.74
Your Save: $ 5.21 ( 35% )
Availability: N/A
Manufacturer: Red Sun
Starring: Lily Li, Alexander Fu-Sheng, Philip Ko, Hsiao Hou, Lau Kar-wing
Directed By: Lau Kar-Leung
Average Customer Rating: Average rating of 4.5/5Average rating of 4.5/5Average rating of 4.5/5Average rating of 4.5/5Average rating of 4.5/5

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Audience Rating: Unrated
Binding: DVD
EAN: 0876543225442
Format: Closed-captioned
Label: Red Sun
Manufacturer: Red Sun
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Red Sun
Release Date: 2007-02-07
Running Time: 90
Studio: Red Sun
Theatrical Release Date: 1984

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Editorial Reviews:



Spotlight customer reviews:

Customer Rating: Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5
Summary: Another great movie starring Gordan Liu!
Comment: Another classic! This movie is nearly perfect! The plot, action, and cinematography are excellent. The picture is extremely clear and the color is vivid. But, I have only one problem with the dvd that might be an issue for some of you. On this dvd, you can't remove the subtitles which of course is slightly different from the english dubbed dialogue. (One example is the actors are saying Mongols while the subtitles read Tartars.) If this doesn't bother you or if you can ignore the subtitles this dvd is for you.

Customer Rating: Average rating of 3/5Average rating of 3/5Average rating of 3/5Average rating of 3/5Average rating of 3/5
Summary: Great film, poor quality.
Comment: The first thing you should know is that Red Sun is a bootleg company. They steal the film's masters from its true owners and publish them on these discs. Red Sun discs come with essentially no bonus features, different audio tracks, or any bells or whistles.
But since most of the true releases of these DVDs are fairly impossible to get your hands on, the Red Sun releases are usually worthwhile. The release of Invincible Pole Fighter, however, isn't worth your time. It's a very good kung fu flick with some of Gordon Liu's best work, but the audio quality is simply terrible. My suggestion is to try to find it at a video rental place or somewhere so you get to see it, but this disc isn't worth adding to your collection.
Not to say Red Sun is terrible quality overall, most are fine. Return of the Master Killer, Five Deadly Venoms/Crippled Avengers, among others have the best quality picture and sound available...this one just didn't get it done.

Customer Rating: Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5
Summary: One of Liu Chia Liang's best!!!
Comment: I actually wanted to give this movie 4 1/2 stars. Liu Chia Liang aka Lau Kar Leung, actually plays two different roles in the movie. Guess they figured no one would notice...or care. Now that that's out of the way, let me get to the good stuff.

This movie is one of Shaw Brothers' best. It's one of Lau Kar Leung's best. It's one of Gordon Liu's best. Are you noticing a theme? In truth, it's not THE best. But the action in this movie is superb. The plot is good as well. Not as campy as most of these movies tend to be. Watching Fu Sheng was kind of surreal after realizing that this was his last role. But he was excellent and it's easy to see that he was on the verge of being a major star in Hong Kong.

I also gained a new appreciation of Lau. As a director, but even more so as a fight instructor and choreographer. Kara Hui shows off some excellent work with the sword as well as the Kwon Do. For someone who didnt study martial arts she really shows an incredible level of athleticism.

Overall this movie will not disappoint. If you love martial arts movies, then this is a must have. A classic!!

Customer Rating: Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5
Summary: will swing pole for atonement
Comment: This is a much better than average kung fu film from Shaw Bros. and Lau Kar Leung. After an attack by the Mongols that leaves 4 of his 5 brothers dead, Yang #5 (Gordon Liu) kind of bullies his way into a Buddhist temple to train for revenge. Meanwhile Yang #6 (Alexander Fu Sheng, who died in a car crash during production) returns home with little, if any, of his sanity intact.

When the Yang mother finds out about #5's err, uh... aliveness... and monastic residence, she sends Yang sister #8 (Kara Hui) to bring him home. She is, of course, captured by the Mongols and #5 must set out to rescue her. Luckily he has been studying zoological dentistry and is up to the task.

Part of the joy in watching these films is the sheer beauty of photography, and while this is no exception, it has a few exceptions. I love the use of sets in Shaw Bros. productions, but this movie has a couple that are rather blatant. Walls painted to look like exteriors are usually placed several yards behind the actors and other props to avoid obvious detection. We're talking about .02% of the movie so the complaint is minor. The fights are all with weapons, which is slightly disappointing, but they're all very good. My only other complaint is that whoever dubbed Fu Sheng's voice as he yells a lot of incoherent psychotic ramblings is terribly annoying, but we're talking like another .02% of the flick, so, no biggie.

1984. aka: 8 Diagram Pole Fighter; Invincible Pole Fighter


Customer Rating: Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5
Summary: Invincible is Incredible
Comment: I bought the 8 Diagram Pole Fighter not expecting much. It has shown on a few enthusiasts lists, but its limited availability left many newer kung fu enthusiasts not knowing its splendor. I literally tacked it onto my Amazon order as an afterthought from a marketplace vendor cheap.

What I was treated to was a super fast paced, superbly choreographed spear and pole movie that kept me absorbed until the last frame. The fights in this movie were like nothing I have seen. And it has a darker feel to it than most Shaw Bros. films (largely attributed to Fu Sheng's death during filming). It has battlefield spear fighting, fighting on a horse (that's two people, one horse), a fight on stacked coffins (has to be seen), and a one on one pole fight with the head monk that is among the best pole fights I have ever seen on film.

The acting is a bit melodramatic. Which works with Gordon Liu, but not some of the other characters. I think that is mainly because Liu has a great intense look, so he can pull off the quiet, intense, melodramatic. The particular edition I got (I believe a Red Sun edition) is ok, but not great. And it is in English dub only, even though it has an 'original language' option on the DVD. It's still English.

If you want this movie, have a bit more money to spend, and have a region free dvd player, expand your search. There are some remastered, original language versions out there. Otherwise, if you want to only spend a few bucks on this edition, go for it. It is definitely worth the money either route you go. This ranks as one of my favorite Shaw Bros., one of my favorite Gordon Liu, and heck, one of my favorite... period.


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