More Shaw Brothers titles invade Netflix with a vengeance!

"Five Element Ninjas" Chinese Theatrical Poster

We have some great news for martial arts movie fans with a Netflix account. A couple of months ago, the popular streaming service added a pack of classic Shaw Brothers titles to their digital library – and just recently, they’ve added a fistful more!

The following is a full list of Shaw brothers titles that are currently streaming on Netflix. All movies are in Chinese with English subtitles:

Avenging Eagle (1978): Sun Chung’s Avenging Eagle proves that the Shaw Brothers were still at the top of their game, even toward the end of their movie-making empire. With its charismatic leading actors (Ti Lung and Alexander Fu Sheng), witty rapport, hateful villains, and out-of-this-world weaponry, this one is a definite source of delight for the old-school kung fu fan.

Come Drink with Me (1966): Come Drink With Me is one entertaining film. King Hu’s direction is top notch. The cinematography is beautiful. The sets are visually lavish. Its innovation and influence reflects many popular martial arts movies of today. Cheng Pei Pei is the real deal – we’re not sure what it is about her, but she pulls off a believable kung fu fighting babe with grace and style!

NEW! Cripped Avengers (1987): This Chang Cheh flick is often considered the Venoms’ best movie: It has action, cool characters, crazy special effects, and intricate choreography. The skill and physical prowess of the performers will make you curse the day that “martial arts” movies decided to depend more on pretty faces, wires, and camera tricks than on genuine talent.

Disciples of the 36th Chamber (1985): Disciples Of The 36th Chamber is one of the all time best films of the genre! This was essentially the last of the fantastic films to come from director Lau Kar Leung and the amazing cast (Hsiao Ho, Gordon Liu and Lily Li Li Li just to name a few…) from the Shaw Brothers. If the time had to come to an end for the most talented cast, this film is an excellent way to say goodbye to the viewers.

Executioners From Shaolin (1977): Executioner From Shaolin is one of the quirkier Shaw Brothers movies. What begins as a tale of blood-thirsty revenge slows down to become at times a romantic comedy and domestic drama. But it still has the classic training sequences that you expect from director Lau Kar-leung and one of hell of a bad guy in Pai Mei (Lo Lieh). One of Chen Kuan Tai’s best!

Five Shaolin Masters (1974): Chang Cheh’s Five Shaolin Masters (David Chiang, Ti Lung, Alexander Fu Sheng, Chi Kuan Chun and Meng Fei) is action-packed from beginning to end. It features the occasional artsy dash, livens up the narrative by splitting up into different storylines, and features great choreography – all of which was overseen by Lau Kar Leung himself.

NEW! Five Deadly Venoms (1978): Director Chang Cheh hit upon an extremely successful formula for this landmark kung fu film featuring a very talented cast and a genuinely involving story that goes far beyond the threadbare “I must avenge Teacher” and “kill the Japs” stuff that gives the old school martial arts genre a bad name. In fact, the plot overshadows the action to a certain extent; fight scenes in this movie are not particularly long, intense, or numerous. As it is, it’s very good fun, and its impact on the genre is tremendous.

NEW! Five Element Ninjas (1982): No need to spend $100+ for the out-of-print Blu-ray on Ebay or Amazon. It’s on Netflix right now for you to drool over! Chang Cheh’s pacing of the narrative is perfect. You might think this is just a schlocky fight-fest, but there’s emotional content here. When it comes to Shaw flicks, Five Element Ninjas would rank in the number one position. That’s about the highest praise we can give it.

NEW! Hero (1997): Although it’s not “old school,” Corey Yuen’s (No Retreat No Surrender II) Hero is technically a Shaw Brothers movie. Hero is a great film worthy of great praise. There are a few slow spots but that just gives you time to take a breath before the next savage, take no prisoner fight. The film does wander a bit but the performers are interesting, the fighting is top notch, violent, bloody and fierce. Hero stars Takeshi Kaneshiro, Yuen Biao, Valerie Chow, Yuen Wah, Yuen Tak, Jessica Hester and Corey Yuen himself.

Heroes of the East (1978): You can almost call it The War of the Roses meets Kung Fu with its silly, but smart, plot that revolves around a newlywed couple – a Japanese woman (Yuko Mizuno) and Chinese man (Gordon Liu) – who are constantly challenging each other to prove which is better: Chinese Kung Fu or Japanese Karate/Ninjitsu. A classic from Lau Kar Leung!

NEW! Invincible Shaolin (1978): Invincible Shaolin is a 90-minutes spectacle of deceit, annihilation and kung fu; and talk about a climax where all bloody hell breaks loose. In between the crisp choreography lies some great interaction between the fighters and their social surroundings. Unlike most kung fu movies, the characters (again, featuring the Venoms) are gleaming with personality. They’re smooth with women, honest to their friends, but naive when it comes to their enemies. To simply put it, Invincible Shaolin is one slick flick. You can thank Chang Cheh for this

Kid With The Golden Arm (1978): A fast-paced adventure from director Chang Cheh. There’s not a single dull minute. Insane plotting and many lead characters guarantee you’ll never know who’s going to be killed next, and by who. The spectacular battles are absolutely stunning, especially impressive being of course the final showdown between drunk master Hai To (Kuo Chui) and the high-kicking Iron Feet (not going to tell you who he is…).

Martial Arts of Shaolin (1986): Lau Kar Leung’s Martial Arts of Shaolin is worth a watch for Jet Li fans since you get to see the actor when he was first emerging as a star, fresh-faced and lightning fast. After about 30 minutes of training sequences, the excellently-choreographed battles kick in and rarely let up. Jet gives an earnest, wide-eyed performance and shows off his incredible martial arts skills.

NEW! Masked Avengers (1981): Another Venoms feature from the legendary Chang Cheh. If you’ve ever watched a Shaw Brothers kung fu film and found yourself thinking: “This flick is good and all, but what it REALLY needs is a bunch of blood-drinking, Satan-worshiping, mask-wearing villains and a whole lot more violence,” then Masked Avengers is the movie for you. This is a dark, dark movie, and those who require comedic antics with their kung fu need not apply.

NEW! Return to the 36th Chamber (1980): Also known as Return of the Master Killer, this innovative follow-up to the classice The 36th Chamber of Shaolin shows the Liu brothers at their lethal best, with director Liu Chia-liang transporting Gordon Liu Chia-hui back to the Ching Dynasty with some new kung fu tricks up his monk’s sleeve.

Shaolin Martial Arts (1974): In Chang Cheh’s Shaolin Martial Arts, two Shaolin practioners (Alexander Fu Sheng and Chi Kuan Chung) perfect their kung fu skills to seek revenge on the baddies responsible for wiping out their clan. One of Fu Sheng’s earliest projects for the Shaw Brothers!

We’ll do our best to keep this list updated as more Shaw Brothers titles are added. If you’re not subscribed to Netflix, what are you waiting for? You get all of these movies, plus more, for the monthly price of a Panda Express combo meal.