Master Of The Flying Guillotine

Absolute 5 STARS!OK PEOPLE, LISTEN UP!: This dvd 'Ultimate Edition' of Master of the Flying Guillotine is in fact the ultimate edition. There is a reason for this: You are NOT purchasing/watching the shortened U.S. tv and Chinese/U.S. theater release of Master of the Flying Guillotine (MFG), you are getting the COMPLETE and ORIGINAL movie in it's ENTIRETY as it was produced in 1975. That is because the shortend MFG version, which they play here in the States on tv and cable and was shown in Chinese & U.S. movie theaters, has 12 minutes of scenes deleted for the Chinese Theater time tables (of under two hours). Then that shortened version was dubbed and released in the U.S., then later made available for tv. In fact the producers of this DVD format you see available here (the Ultimate Edition) have done Gung Fu movie history and fans a tremendously HUGE favor by FINDING the missing and deleted scenes and adding those sacred 12 minutes back into the film on this dvd. Those deleted scenes are ONLY available in original CHINESE language (Mandarin and/or Cantonese) formats and have not been dubbed. There are also some minor color and image issues in this dvd because, again, this dvd is pieced together from those Chinese portions of the film the dvd producers found and put back into the movie. They did not dub this movie, that is the American version. They also did not go and dub the 12 minutes into English. But it's dvd, so set your subtitles ON and you will be fine!!! And It's also letter boxed, so those subtilttles are mostly off the screen.MFG is a classic Gung Fu movie that takes place in the 1700's. It has the most inventive weapon ever created for the movies...a FLYING GUILLOTINE weileded by a blind assassin who seeks revenge! There are previous Flying Guillotine movie/s(haven't seen them) and One-arm Boxer(also starring Jimmy Wang Yu) movies as well but produced by the Shaw Brothers (and a different style of flying guillotine). This movie has some awesome fighting sequences (that may have influenced Mortal Kombat game makers?), bizzare special effects and interestingly evil music. Also excellent characters like the Blind Guillotine Assasin with twitchy ears, the Hindu Yoga Master with stretching arms and Indian accent, and Win-without-a-knife: who does have hidden knives in his weapons (who looks a lot like Kung Lao from MK3 the game) not to mention the One-armed Boxer with the Iron Fist fighting and punching technique, who can walk on the ceiling and later has to turn to wisdom and creative tactics to beat his foes in an ending that makes you want to jump up and cheer! It'll knock YOU through the roof!!!This movie is so kick-butt that I like to watch it again and again. This dvd is the complete package, I'm glad I bought it - I searched for it for years. Very excellent Kung Fu Theater-style movie, and a MUST BUY!!! Forget that some few moments are not dubbed and that the picture quality has it's moments and that you can see one 'one-armed' guy's other arm sticking out of his shirt at the 'tournament'. 5 STARS!!!! I also love "the Shaolin Master Killer" You may also like "5 Deadly Venoms". Of course Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan movies are awesome too, but this one is a cult classic!

Great old school kung-fu flix

Ok, this movie might not be the most realistic, smart, or emotionally deep movie ever made....but I can honestly say that it's one of the most entertaining films ever to be made. It's so over the top, and so crazy but yet somehow so interesting that I can't help but love it! So get this. The story is about a old blind man who is a master at using the flying guillotine weapon(a weapon that is sort of like a frisbee that when thrown at someone, can cut off their head), who goes out to a martial arts tournament in order to kill a one armed man(played by the very talented jimmy wang yu) who happens to one of the best fighters of all time. So basically the movie is about a blind man verses a one armed man, both of whom are master fighters. Like I said this movie is just crazy! It's something that has to be seen to be believed. This was directed by jimmy wang yu, and in my opinion, it's by far his most entertaining movie. The fight sequences are very well corioghraphed, and the stunt work is excellent. It's definitely one of my favorite guilty pleasures. If you want to see a a kind of dumb but incredibly entertaining movie with some very well shot fight sequences, then go ahead and buy this movie.

i got to see this film in a theater in pittsburgh a few months ago on a beautiflly restored 35mm print... it was amazing. definately one of the best old school kung fu flicks of all time, and this DVD version is very well transferred.i'll just say a few things about the DVD, since so many other people have really reviewed the film. the colors of the video transfer are only SLIGHTLY faded, and there are a few scratches here and there. the DVD provides both the original chinese language track (thankfully) and an english dubbed track (which actually isn't too awful). the subtitles are bold, yellow, and outlined and very easy to read. for some reason, when watching the film dubbed, it would occassionally pop into the chinese audio track and subtitles for half a scene here and there. i have no idea why it does that and my friend had the same problem on his DVD, but it's not a big drawback.overall, this is an amazingly preserved and transferred DVD version of this film, well worth it. it's a shame all classic kung fu films don't get this great treatment upon US release.

The one thing I like about this movie is that when the Emperor wanted some kind of weapon built that destroy the people there was someone who went undercover to learn this skill. No one knew who he was nor that he was undercover, but he Mastered this skill like no one else could imagine. Even from a far distance none of the other men could use this weapon on a target like him. I would love to be his friend, but HATE to be his ENEMY! He was finally noticed and hunted down, but he was just too skilled in Martial Arts for them. Great Movie!

Awesome movie

After one armed boxer Jimmy Wang Yu kills a couple of bad guys (see The One Armed Boxer), their psychopathic kung fu master gets wind of this and vows to destroy the one armed man that beat them. So the blind, evil, kung fu master disguises himself in shaolin robes and takes with him his hellish weapon of choice. . . The deadly flying guillotine, setting off on his trail of vengeance, murdering anyone he hears with only one arm..In the meantime the heroic one armed boxer has set up a kung fu school and is teaching his students all manner of nifty tricks, until he gets a message, inviting him to fight in a tournament organized by the rival but honourable, Eagle Claw school, and after much excited persuasion from his pupils, Jimmy agrees to take them, in order that they might watch and learn of the different techniques on display.The day of the tournament begins and many fighters attend, with many different styles facing off, often resulting in brutal outcomes, but as the first day is coming to a close, one man with a heart full of hatred and a fist full of flying guillotine crashes the party and smashes the place up looking for his one armed victim!!....This film is absolutely awesome and without question (well, according to me anyway), one of the greatest tournament flicks ever made!! Wang Yu writes, directs and stars in this superb kung fu spectacle. The action choreography is by brothers Lau Kar Leung and Lau Kar Wing and they pull out quite a few stops in order to give us some truly surreal and memorable moments of Hong Kong cinema. There's a ton of crazed violence and action, as Wang Yu tries to save his students, a kung fu chick and his own neck, from a few bad guys, who've now sided with team Psycho Monk and his flying guillotine. At times, Wang Yu having to prove that even heroes must cheat and be totally ruthless when necessary, in order to beat a potentially superior opponent.The action is totally out there, the opening score/scene rocks, and the bad guys come straight out of your worst kung fu nightmare!Yes it's silly, and disbelief must be suspended at all times, but boy is this some outrageous nonsense, and over the years, I'd forgotten just how much fun this is..!Master Wu Chang Sang: "You are a vicious bastard! You've killed innocent people in this tournament for no reason. I intend to make sure you won't do it again."Master of the flying guillotine: "You get out of my way! You old has~been! I want that One Armed Boxer and nobody is gonna stop me!"The dvd (Region 1 Ultimate Ed.) is a pretty good print. Both dubbed and subbed, with trailers and a fairly insightful commentary.5/5

A good high quality product with fast shipping. A good transaction.

Fantastic film, great action and amazing effects. The mandarin version gives a better explanation of the certain characters that is sorely needed which the english dub lacks, however it dose have decent voice acting.Great quality restoration which includes interviews with the director and actor Jimmy Wang Yu.The first DVD that arrived had an issue with one of the discs but was quickly replaced. Great communication with the seller and great service.

Good film with some great visuals of the legendary Flying Guillotine, a long range weapon not unlike a lampshade on a chain with some super sharp blades inside which are capable of decapitating a head! This weapon is a weapon of myth which no historians can prove actually existed let alone how it was used! However the action in this film is certainly realistic and believable. Jimmy Wang Yu stars as the One Armed Boxer who must defeat the Master of the Flying Guillotine who is pursuing him for believing him to be the killer of his two pupils. There is a great supporting cast including an Indian with extending limbs (not unlike Dhalsim off SFII). Wang Yu has some interesting strategies for defeating the villains and the finale is just great. The quality of the DVD is pretty good, widescreen in correct 2:35 ratio, not remastered or anything but this film is apparently pretty rare so this may be the best they could do. There is optional English dub or Mandarin with English subs, and also a commentary track. There is also the original trailer included for the grindhouse fanatics. Great atmospheric electronic soundtrack too which is unusual for a Kung Fu film.