The Crippled Masters (Blu-Ray)
**The Blu-Ray/DVD from Film Masters of “The Crippled Masters” will be available on July 23, 2024. This is a review of not just the feature, but the Blu-Ray edition. The grade for this will be for the main movie itself; the set grades will be featured in the body.
“The Crippled Masters” (1979)
A film like “The Crippled Masters” is a pure shot of martial arts filmmaking with a cool hook that is fun to watch. There are straightforward reasons for the film’s premise, and we buy it because they buy it. I enjoy discovering a film like this; it’s unlike anything I’ve seen before, and something I can see myself enjoying again.
Chi Lo’s fast, energetic exploitation film has two masters of kung fu betraying their respective partners, with the punishment for each one being bodily harm- one (Frankie Shum) has their arms chopped off, the other (Jackie Conn) has their legs doused in acid, paralyzing him from the waste down. Together, they train with a new master who maximizes their talents, and prepares them for revenge.
This is a film that doesn’t have any fat on its storyline. In 90 minutes, it tells us everything we need to know, and narrative complications exist. It sets up the dilemmas of the characters, the stakes and the vengeance. The movie ends abruptly, but not unexpectedly, since it’s followed its story to the end. It moves energetically, has charismatic leads, and has entertaining crescendos and decrescendos of dramatic tension. There’s not much more to say about it.
Blu-Ray Presentation
Film Masters are really thinking outside the box with the films they have released so far, and the variety is a big part of why this has been so much fun. Here, they did a 2K scan of a 35mm print of the film before they restored it, and this B-movie looks very good. The colors are natural and bright, and the english-dubbed soundtrack is clean and well-balanced. In terms of extras, we get a commentary by Will Sloan and Justin Decloux of The Important Cinema Club; a documentary entitled “Kings of Kung Fu: Releasing the Legends”; an original trailer from its 1982 release and a new re-cut trailer; a Mandarin language track, as well as a before- and after- restoration comparison. We also get a booklet with liners notes by Lawrence Carter-Long, as well as an archival collection of martial arts trailers.
Film Grade: A-
Audio & Video: A-
Bonus Features: A
There’s not really much to be said about “The Crippled Masters”- it’s rowdy, it’s fun and I’m glad I now have it in my collection, and I cannot wait to dig into those extras.
