Shaolin Temple

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

I admit it. I've never seen Jet Li's first film. Crucify me with your scorn now. But for some reason I could never find it on Netflix. It seemed they had every Jet film but that one.

Now I know why.

First rule of American Films, never let the hero kill a dog. It just isn't done. Secondly, never have hero eat dog after killing him. I'm just glad the Queen wasn't around to watch this one.

But it was fun to see what the Temple looked like in the early eighties. It was much more open. A lot of the walls that surround it today weren't in existence back then. Which allowed the maruading army much easier access to the grounds. I also like how close the Longmen Caves is to Shaolin. At one point the female lead walks right by the big Buddha statue on her way to a nearby cave.

I barely recognized Jet without his acne scars. He either hadn't suffered those yet or they made him wear a ton of makeup. His face did look deceptively smooth.

there were plenty of fight scenes. There were plenty of gratuitous warrior monk training scenes. Plenty of sword fights that ended badly. And they the Pagoda forest.

But the bit about the dog. Yeah. Not so much.

[Drunk Monk]

It wasn't acne. Jet had a growth on his face. It blossomed on his nose, right before our eyes, for years until it was removed. The scarring came after the operation. It was never mentioned in the media, but you need only watch his films in order and you'll see it.

I've read that it was so hot when they filmed those movies that they actually fried an egg on the sidewalk. And they did kill that dog obviously. They probably ate it too. There wasn't a budget or a need for fakery there.

There were three Shaolin temple flicks - all by the same team and shot on location: the one you just saw which was the first one, North South Shaolin and Shaolin Little Kids. The other two are interesting too. No dog eating. No frog chopping. There's some snake eating - the skinning is very graphic, but quick. The funny thing is I actually saw a kid skin a frog like the snake is skinned in that film at Shaolin once. Apparently, with reptiles and amphibians, you can just take a corner and rip the skin off like peeling a banana.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

On one of the locations for the film Tremors, rattlesnakes were a big problem. It was in the Alabama Hills in the foothills of the Sierras. To give you an idea of the problem, there was a large mound that was known as rattlesnake rock. You had to check every piece of lumber you picked up to make sure a snake hadn't crawled underneath it.

There was a lot of snake killing. One of the locals wanted to show the best way to skin a snake. Like you say, he grabbed the flesh of the snake in one hand and the skin in the other and basically pulled the two apart. He stood there with his arm outstretched, flesh to one side, skin to the other and chomped down on the tale near the rattle to separate them. He was very proud of this demonstration. That skin was made into a belt.

Only in Lone Pine.

[cranefly]

I hope he let the snake go afterwards.

[Drunk Monk]

I think that was in North South Shaolin, not Shaolin Little Kids. I can't really remember as both films sort of blend into each other.

I do remember that Shaolin Little Kids had one of the best qigong fight scenes.

[Drunk Monk]

Ttting this to compile the trilogy for a piece I’m working on. Debating if there’s enough here to skip a rewatch.

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