The best Philip Kwok Chun-Fung’s adventure movies

There is no place more hallowed in the martial art world than China's Shaolin Temple. This special place deserves a special epic, which is what the martial arts maestro delivers in this battle between a brave brand of Chinese boxers and literally thousands of Ching troops - complete with betrayals, intrigues, and such novel fighting machines as 108 wooden robots. The conflicts grow in complexity, intensity and even suspense as monks struggle to stay alive in the face of overwhelming odds.

Set at the time of Italian explorer Marco Polo's historic expedition to China ,during the reign of Monogol ruler Kublai Khan, it stars American actor Richard Harrison as Polo. Taking considerable liberties with the historic record, the film has Polo turning up as an Imperial Inspector assigned to root out Chinese rebles in the south, but eventually being won over to their cause.

This internationally popular tale of a brother and sister seeking vengeance for the death of their parents through the mythical yin/yang Holy Flame technique is an eye-filling epic. Kuo Chue (a.k.a. Philip Kwok), famous as the star of Chang Cheh's internationally famous "Venom" film series, both co-stars and choreographs this impressive tale - leading to a vaunted "action director" career with both the 007 thriller Tomorrow Never Dies and the cult classic Brotherhood of the Wolf to his credit.

In BOXER REBELLION, three young martial arts brothers, played by Chi Kuan-chun, Alexander Fu Sheng and Leung Kar-yan, go in search of fellow patriots dissatisfied with Imperialist foreigners and wind up joining a rising sect of the Boxers, led by an opportunistic conman (Johnny Wang Lung-wei). Named as such for their use of martial arts, these boxers are revolutionaries who believe that spirits protect their bodies from foreign guns. They even dupe the Empress Dowager (Li Lihua), who gives them her royal blessing to fight the foreigners.

Chin Siu Ho plays a young man who believes himself to be an orphan. Until one rainy night when he and three different men find themselves taking shelter from the storm in the same place. Here the man who raised him tells him at last the story of who his parents were. His father (Lu Feng) was a great swordsman trying to dispel rumors of a wrongdoing and return a lost sword to its rightful owner. Kuo Choi and Chiang Sheng (also master swordsmen) are the parties that Lu Feng is trying to rectify things with. Through cowardly trickery on Chiang's part, a duel ensues and it all winds up with Lu's death. His son is taken to safety by a servant (the man who since raised him). Now with the truth told, Chin Siu Ho seeks out Kuo Choi's aid and seeks vengeance for the wrongful death of his father.

Millionaire Chu Te-Sa (Chiang) invests his considerable wealth into the rebel movement who are intent on usurping the ruling Mongol powers. His goals are impeded by a lack of support though and the supposed allies he has made in the town are merely eager to get their hands on his money. During an attack where these craven 'comrades' flee, Chu befriends three con-artists who relish the chance to show off their fighting skills. The trio subsequently agree to help Chu in his quest to end Mongol rule and hatch a plan to destroy a major munitions dump