An old blind martial master living in a cave teaches a young swordsman the secret of the Buddha's Palm, a legendary martial arts technique, which propels him into a whole new world of evil knights, hidden temples, dragon dogs, and magical objects.
Ru lai shen zhang, 如来神掌, 여래신장, Golpes de Buda, La palma de Buda - Ru lai shen zhang, ฤทธิ์ฝ่ามืออรหันต์
Hong Kong Hong Kong
I love that Shaw Brothers’ response to their declining popularity was to amp up the insanity in their movies. This is a studio whose output was already pretty crazy to begin with..
⚡ What a (laser) blast! ⚡
This movie contains a Kung Fu teenybopper who attacks people with acid by squeezing a giant nasty pimple on his face, lightsabers, 2 martial art sisters fighting a roll of silver paper, and lots and lots of lasers. It is bonkers enough alright. I just wished I could follow the story a little bit. The only character I could relate to was Dopey, the kirin*. I am pretty sure it also didn't know what was going on.
*A Chinese breed of dog
Glorious goofy goodness.
The brush of Buddha’s touch, scorching enough to set anyone ablaze brave or crazed enough to attempt such an unfathomable feat.
The cackles of the grandmasters echo throughout the valley, alerting any and all who believe themselves to be on par or superior to them of their arrival.
Yet another excellent example of unrelenting kineticism incarnate, the intangible imagination of that ever prolific clan of absolutely mad movie lads plastered and smeared all across a cinematic canvas, the only rhyme or reason to grasp onto within its ethereal euphoria is that of is that of a Dameng the dragon.
Its films like this that continue to conceive me in further prolonging my departure from this world in a futile effort to uncover more just like it. This is my cinematic cocaine
You really haven't experienced kung fu until you've seen a climactic battle between our heroes (armed with jets of flame, finger lasers, infinite throwing knives and a lightsaber) and a villain equipped with a 30' leg and a 10' foot (named Monster Foot, to be fair).
LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS
LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS
LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS
LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS
LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS
LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS
LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LASERS LA
I have a deep-founded appreciation, you might even call it “love” for the later era of Shaw Brothers movies. When things went wild and wacky and they started throwing everything (including the kitchen sink) at the screen. Buddha’s Palm is a movie I owned on DVD but the quality was not that great. I’ll be forever grateful to Arrow Video for restoring it and including it in their Shawscope Vol.3 Box-set. I truly thought I’d never see the day.
Buddha’s Palm is a crazy and very silly fantasy Wuxia with plenty of special effects, Wire-Fu and funky ideas like laser swastikas, extended legs and giant acid-spraying pimples. It’s a wild ride, nonsensical from a story perspective but always entertaining. I…
Sometimes the answer to "what should I put in my movie?" is better followed by a swift "what, in fact, shouldn't I put in my movie?"
Exhibit A...:
Oof, where do I even begin??? There really is no crazy like Shaw Brothers crazy. Lightsabers, a golden Neverending Story dog, exploding heads, lasers, a guy called Monster Foot who can extend/enlarge his foot at will like Dhalsim, a duo of fighters called the "Dragon Tumor Duo" comprised of a big guy and a kid with a massive tumor on his cheek filled with acid... Yeah.
What about the plot? I mean I'm sure there was one but I'll be damned if I know what it was.
70
The Shaw Brothers Studio - the real reason movies were invented.
Dopey the big flying beast is my friend.
Lots of cool stuff, not least the little fella who shoots green acid out of his enormous goiter. One day I’ll find a movie like this with a plot I can follow.
Hey! It’s future upper-middlebrow Hong Kong auteur Derek Yee!
So much better than any other Taylor Wong movie I've seen. I assume that's indicative of the Shaw-Mona Fong machine at work.
Like a parody version of the Cheng Cheh and Chor Yuen Louis Cha adaptations that were popular in the late 70s (the Brave Archer series, Heroes Shed No Tears, etc). Like those movies: a bewildering array of characters and clans and motivations and fighting styles and famous actors. Unlike those movies: a narrator to help explain what's going on that makes the whole thing both more clear and much, much funnier. Also unlike them, some of the most ingeniously, goofily lurid special effects of the 1980s. It's a short step from here to Wakaliwood.
Where have you been all my life? Another life-changing year of movie watching is almost over. Buddhas Palm is one of the best experiences I’ve had since Holy Flame of the Martial World.
Just about every trope, set piece, practical wizardry, and genuine insanity that is so prevalent through this era of Shaw Bros.
