Shaolin Temple (1982)

Original title

少林寺

Directed by

Cheung Sing-Yim

Genre

action film, martial arts film, historical film

Country

British Hong Kong, People's Republic of China

Runtime

1h 35m

Rated

16

Rating

7.0 of 10 from 142 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A young man trains at the Shaolin Monastery to master kung fu. He falls in love and gets caught up in conflicts while fighting with his skills.

energeticnostalgiclight-heartedaction-packedhistoriccomedicromanticepisodicfast-paced

What happens

The Shaolin Temple (少林寺) is a 1982 martial arts film directed by Chang Hsin Yen and starring Jet Li in his debut role (credited as Jet Lee in the film) along with Ding Lan and Yu Hai in supporting roles. A Hong Kong-Chinese co-production, the film is based on the Shaolin Monastery in China and depicts Shaolin Kung Fu. The film was among the first major co-productions between Hong Kong and mainland China, and the first to be filmed in mainland China with a mostly mainland cast. The film's plot has an episodic storytelling structure while combining action, comedy and romance elements. It was the first martial arts film to be made in mainland China after the founding of the People's Republic of China; up until then, kung fu films and wuxia films were mostly made in Hong Kong and Taiwan. It was also the first film to be shot at the Shaolin Monastery. It sold an estimated 500 million tickets at the Chinese box office, and is estimated to be China's highest-grossing film ever when adjusted for inflation. The film's success established Jet Li as the first Mainland Chinese star of Hong Kong, and later Hollywood. It was also largely responsible for turning the Shaolin Monastery into a major tourist destination, both within China and internationally. A remake of the film was released in 2011 titled Shaolin and starred Andy Lau, Nicholas Tse and Jackie Chan. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

More like this

• Shaolin Prince (1982)
• Dragon Lord (1982)
• Cat vs. Rat (1982)
• Ninja in the Dragon's Den (1982)
• Ode to Gallantry (1982)
• The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978)
• Dragon Force (1982)
• The Miracle Fighters (1982)