Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

The Shaolin Kids Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 18, 2022

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Cinematic Vengeance: 8 Kung Fu Classics from Director Joseph Kuo.

The hits (and/or kicks, smacks and whacks) keep on comin', with this set from Eureka! Entertainment following releases like Shawscope Volume One from Arrow and a number of offerings from 88 Films like The Chinese Boxer and Disciples of Shaolin in my review queue. The big difference between those films and the ones featured in this huge collection is that these were the handiwork of one Joseph Kuo, a name which may frankly not be all that familiar even to lovers of the "kung fu" genre. Kuo was, as they say, a "multi-hyphenate" who frequently wrote, produced and directed his films, which tended to be independently financed far, far away from the riches and "studio system" of facilities like the Shaw Brothers. As commentator Frank Djenge mentions on more than one disc, that meant Kuo often tried to film outside, where he didn't have to pay for things like sets, which can give these films a kind of distinctive ambience at times. According to the press sheet Eureka! sent with the (check) discs, seven of the eight films in this set are making their worldwide debuts on Blu-ray.

Many of the films in this set are not exactly models of narrative intricacy, and in fact some of them, notably outings like The 7 Grandmasters, seem to want to offer barely enough "story" to get things to whatever the next fight is going to be. A somewhat convoluted plot is one of Shaloin Kids' more interesting elements, but it also may provide interest in that one of the main combatants in this story is a woman, Xin-er (Polly Ling-Feng Shang-Kuan, billed as Lingfeng Shangguan). This is yet another tale revolving around revenge, though this time it's Xin-er who's out for vengeance, with political intrigue in ancient China playing out in the background.

In that regard, commentators Mike Leeder and Arne Venema may demur slightly from even categorizing this film as a "kung fu" outing, since it's the political angle that really seems to drive the plot forward, and since there is not a nonstop array of fighting scenes. There are some narrative issues perhaps inherent in a story that involves not just the typical warring between fighting style factions, but things like political assassinations and errant government actors, and perhaps due to the relative lack of fighting set pieces, the pacing here may seem slow to fans of more action oriented fare. Certain aspects of this story would seem to almost presage some elements in play in better remembered fare like Mulan.

The Shaolin Kids Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Shaolin Kids is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka! Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. This is one of my favorite looking presentations in this set, one that benefits from (once again) an almost spectacularly suffused palette and some appealing fine detail levels on things like fabrics and even the dense foliage in the many outdoor scenes. A number of other films in this set tend to emphasize some bold primaries like reds and yellows, and while those are certainly on display here, it was the almost shockingly vivid yellows that really stood out to me. This presentation also has fewer of the anamorphic anomalies that I note in some of the reviews of the other films in this set. Grain resolves naturally throughout. My score is 4.25.

The Shaolin Kids Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Shaolin Kids features LPCM Mono tracks in either Mandarin or English. This is the rare feature in this set where I could see liking both tracks for different reasons, though on the whole I'd still give the edge to the Mandarin track. Both tracks can actually vary in amplitude when compared to the other one, in either direction (i.e., the music on the Mandarin track at the opening sounds louder than on the English track, whereas later in the film, other music sounds louder on the English track than on the Mandarin track). The English track sounds more "compact", for want of a better word, with a narrower, shallower sound, but with still quite forceful midrange. The Mandarin track has arguably more consistent fidelity. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Shaolin Kids Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary with Mike Leeder and Arne Venema

The Shaolin Kids Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Shaolin Kids has more on its mind than simply getting to the next fight sequence, which will probably be seen as either a boon or bust, depending on how much nonstop action you want. Technical merits are generally solid, and The Shaolin Kids comes Recommended.