This 1983 actioner marks kung fu superstar Gordon Liu's directorial debut. Unfortunately, it also commemorates the moment at which the Shaolin trend in Hong Kong cinema became a schtick. Several of the training sequences from "The Thirty-Sixth Chamber of Shaolin" are re-enacted (Li Hai-sheng even returns as the contentious monk who, with his butterfly swords, challenges Gordon Liu's character), but they're divorced from the emotional impact they had in the earlier film. "Thirty-Sixth Chamber" was a martial arts movie, yes, but also a story about the triumph of the human spirit; "Shaolin and Wu Tang" is just a series of fight scenes woven together by a thin plot. Great fight scenes, certainly, but only that.
Gordon Liu plays the senior pupil of a Shaolin-style master. His best friend, the senior pupil of a master of the Wu Tang sword, is portrayed by Adam Cheng. A treacherous Manchu lord (Wang Lung-wei) pits the young friends against one another: Liu's resolve takes him to Shaolin Temple, where he becomes a monk, trains in the Buddhist fighting arts (first-hand this time) and vows to wipe out the Wu Tang school; Cheng, meanwhile, is detained at a Taoist monastery and learns the finer points of his sword style from the priests there. Will the two friends realize that they have been manipulated by the Manchu lord before they injure or even kill each other?
Characterization is sketchy, the drama almost entirely unconvincing. People die, but no one ever seems particularly distraught about it. Because the tragic events in the film are handled so awkwardly, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was watching mediocre community theatre. Granted, this isn't going to bother most viewers...but, on the basis of its reputation, I expected something more from "Shaolin and Wu Tang." Six stars for the fight scenes, dazzlingly choreographed by Liu Chia-liang.
