Verdict
Summary
As per Eureka’s usually high standards, their two-disc Blu-ray set for these two titles is definitely one’s man’s trash or one man’s treasure. The visual quality is incredibly sharp and clear, and they’ve included a bunch of choice bonus features as well. For the martial arts fan’s collection, this is likely a must-buy, and if you’ve been collecting Eureka’s titles for the last few years, this one will go nicely on the shelf … and into your Blu-ray player.
Taoism Drunkard Plot:
A bumbling alcoholic tries atoning for a careless mistake, but his task is too overwhelming to do alone.
Review:
A red-nosed, buck-toothed wino (played by this film’s director Yuen Cheung-yan) with some dormant martial arts skills buried deep behind and within his unapproachable, buffoonish demeanor is in a Taoist temple when he accidentally damages a shrine that unleashes a wicked, wily sorcerer (played by Yuen Shun-yi). The wino now has a task imposed on him by the Taoist priest: Repair the shrine and defend the temple, but in order to do so, he must find a virgin boy that will enable the wino to harness the boy’s inner power (I’m a little unclear about this part of the plot) against the sorcerer. Cue the incredibly awkward interlude where the wino sets up a queue for all the boys in the village to drop their shorts so that he can inspect their genitals to see if they’re virgins. When he’s all but run out of the village for being a pervert (because yeah), the wino gets some help from a surprisingly agile granny (also played by Cheung-yan in a humorous dual role), and some wacky shenanigans ensue until the inevitable climax where the sorcerer finds himself overwhelmed by too many misfit heroes and loses his fight.
A virtual comic book or cartoon come to life, Taoism Drunkard is a zany comedic fantasy with a very, um, interesting ball creature that shows up a few times and has electronic antennae that seems incredibly out of place for a movie set hundreds of years ago, but whatever. I just went with the crazy parade on this one and enjoyed the wild elements. The whole thing is like a Donald Duck comic book, but with booze and some uncomfortably weird pedo vibes, but if you can get on its wavelength it’s a hoot.
The Young Taoism Fighter (1986) Plot:
A martial arts school that uses dark magic to reanimate the dead, and a young martial arts student whose soul takes on a life of its own becomes an unlikely hero.
Review:
An immature martial arts teenager (played by Yuen Yat-chor) disobeys every order and mandate by his teachers and two brothers, and he manages to find a sacred text that teaches a lost art of Taoist kung fu. This enables him to literally separate his soul from his body, and his soul is just as able-bodied and mischievous as he is. Together, they can basically perform miracles (one instance has him doing all kinds of weird magic in the kitchen), which is great because he’s going to need all the help he can get when he sides with a spurned young woman who has a grudge against an evil teacher whose school is harboring demons and witchcraft, which is causing the dead to reanimate.
Another absolutely off-the-wall cartoon / comic book come to life from “The Yuen Clan”, The Young Taoism Fighter offers all the head-smacking insanity you can’t possibly expect, including some more weird stuff that gives off aggravating pedo vibes. There’s one scene where a bunch of kids pee in a latrine, and the urine is collected and drunk by the evil teacher. I mean, seriously: I’m not making this up. The movie has dancing turtles, a challenge involving getting your face plastered with cow dung, and some other stuff that had me doing a double take. I guess it’s all in good “fun” if you can get on board with all the highly fantastical and stylish wackiness. Out of these two titles, I think I preferred this one because the action was easier to digest, but it’s a really wild time at the movies no matter what you’re smoking.
As per Eureka’s usually high standards, their two-disc Blu-ray set for these two titles is definitely one’s man’s trash or one man’s treasure. The visual quality is incredibly sharp and clear, and they’ve included a bunch of choice bonus features as well. For the martial arts fan’s collection, this is likely a must-buy, and if you’ve been collecting Eureka’s titles for the last few years, this one will go nicely on the shelf … and into your Blu-ray player.
Bonus Materials
- Limited edition O-Card slipcase featuring new artwork by Darren Wheeling
- Both films presented in 1080p HD from brand new 2K restorations
- Original Cantonese audio and optional English dub tracks (original mono presentations)
- Optional English subtitles, newly translated for this release
- Brand new audio commentaries on both films by East Asian film expert Frank Djeng (NY Asian Film Festival)
- Brand new audio commentaries on both films by action cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema
- Brand new interview with director and actor Yuen Cheung-yan
- Brand new interview with critic Andrew Heskins (easternKicks)
- Trailers
- PLUS: A limited edition collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Southeast Asian horror expert Dr. Katarzyna Ancuta, and Daniel O’Brien, author of Spooky Encounters: A Gwailo’s guide to Hong Kong Horror