The workers of a dye factory have their pay cut by 20% when the factory owner brings in some Manchu thugs to try and increase production. Desperate to reclaim their full wages, the workers hire an actor to impersonate a priest and kung-fu expert from the temple of Shaolin. The factory owner proves the actor a fraud, and punishes all those involved. The young actor feels he has let the workers down, and promises to atone. He sets out for Shaolin, determined to be accepted as a kung-fu pupil at the elite temple. This innovative follow-up to the classice The 36th Chamber of Shaolin shows the Liu brothers at their lethal best, with director Liu Chia-liang transporting Gordon Liu Chia-hui back to the Ching Dynasty with some new kung-fu tricks up his monk's sleeve. Return to the 36th Chamber is one of those classic Kung-Fu movies which Shaw produces back in the 70s and 80s, whose genre is equivalent to the spaghetti westerns of Hollywood, and the protagonist Gordon Liu, the counterpart to the western's Clint Eastwood. Digitally remastered and a new print made for the Fantastic Film Fest, this is "Presented in Shaw Scope", just like the good old days.<br/><br/>This film is a simple story of good versus evil, told in 3 acts, which more or less sums up the narrative of martial arts films in that era.<br/><br/>Act One sets up the premise. Workers in a dye-mill of a small village are unhappy with their lot, having their wages cut by 20% by incoming manchu gangsters. They can't do much about their exploitation because none of them are martial arts skilled to take on the gangsters, and their boss. At first they had a minor success in getting Liu to impersonate a highly skilled Shaolin monk (one of the best comedy sequences), but their rouse got exposed when they pushed the limit of credibility by impersonating one too many times.<br/><br/>Act Two shows the protagonist wanting to get back at the mob. However, without real martial arts, he embarks on a journey to Shaolin Temple, to try and infiltrate and learn martial arts on the sly. After some slapstick moments, he finally gets accepted by the abbot (whom he impersonated!) but is disappointed at the teaching methods - kinda like Mr Miyagi's style in Karate Kid, but instead of painting fences, he gets to erect scaffoldings all around the temple. Nothing can keep a good man down, and he unwittingly builds strength, endurance and learns kung-fu the unorthodox way.<br/><br/>Act Three is where the fight fest begins. With cheesy sound effects, each obvious non-contact on film is given the maximum impact treatment. But it is rather refreshing watching the fight scenes here, with its wide angled shots to highlight clarity and detail between the sparring partners, and the use of slow-motion only to showcase stunts in different angles. You may find the speed of fights a tad too slow, with some pause in between moves, but with Yuen Wo Ping and his style being used ad-nausem in Hollywood flicks, they sure don't make fight scenes like they used to! Return to the 36th chamber gets a repeat screening on Monday, so, if you're game for a nostalgic trip down memory lane, what are you waiting for? When the Republicans- sorry: the Manchus- take over a factory and promptly strip the workers of EVERYTHING but their undies, Jen Chieh (Gordon Liu) attempts to do good by standing up to the oppressors. He's a con man and he pretends to be a kung fu master come to set things right. The workers aid in his deception, but he's found out and has his *** handed to him. Determined to make good on his promise to DO good, he sneaks into a Shaolin temple in the hopes of learning a useful trade (i.e.; kung fu). There, too, he is quickly discovered (so much for being a good con man) and is promptly charged with building a scaffold. This he does for a full year. Unlike in THE 36th CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN, where he literally walked on water after some strenuous training, Liu here learns the less demanding "scaffolding kung fu." Among the techniques he masters is the use of bamboo cords (which comes in handy during the final showdown). More comedic than its predecessor, RETURN TO THE 36th CHAMBER is nonetheless worth a look.
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