Shaw Bothers Classics: Volume 5 | Blu-ray (Shout!)
On January 14, 2025, Shout! Factory will be releasing Shaw Bothers Classics: Volume 15, an 11-film Blu-ray (Region A) collection that will include 1967’s The Silent Swordsman, 1967’s Rape of the Sword, 1968’s The Fastest Sword, 1969’s Twin Blades of Doom, 1969’s Twelve Deadly Coins, 1969’s Vengeance Is a Golden Blade, 1970’s The Iron Buddha, 1970’s A Taste of Cold Steel, 1971’s The Jade Faced Assassin, 1971’s Mission Impossible and 1971’s Six Assassins.
Leap into action and adventure once again with another 11 classic martial arts films from the famous Shaw Brothers’ library. Focusing on the Shaws’ output from the late sixties and early seventies, this thrilling boxset includes many films appearing for the first time on Blu-ray. From swordplay to hand-to-hand combat, these films showcase the stylish and spectacular action and storytelling that made Shaw Brothers the gold standard in martial arts mayhem!
THE SILENT SWORDSMAN (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 99 min.)
During the Song Dynasty, a young martial arts student searches for his missing brother. When the student is recruited into a mysterious society, he finds himself taking on a nefarious warlord — and caught between two beautiful sisters in a battle for his affections.
RAPE OF THE SWORD (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 82 min.)
When a mystical, green-bladed weapon is stolen, two women are tasked with tracking it down, and soon cross paths with a master swordsman also in search of the fabled weapon. This exciting adventure is believed to be an unofficial, loose adaptation of the 1941 novel later brought to the screen in 2000’s smash hit, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
THE FASTEST SWORD (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 89 min.)
A warrior known as “The Fastest Sword Of The South” is taught lessons in humility and honor when he loses a battle to an elderly monk and becomes the old man’s servant for three years. Learning a more peaceful way of life, the swordsman’s evolution is interrupted by echoes from his past actions.
TWIN BLADES OF DOOM (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 92 min.)
A man seeking revenge for the murder of his parents goes on a mission to investigate the gang responsible … only to be brutally ambushed. Taken in by a family of street performers, he renews his valiant quest to not only avenge his parents but also to protect his new friends when the gang descends upon their village.
TWELVE DEADLY COINS (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 89 min.)
A treacherous ambush on a cargo team, the theft of a fortune’s worth of gold, and the quest to retrieve it have roots in a twenty-year-old feud between two brothers, and the seemingly unstoppable martial arts technique known as “Twelve Deadly Coins.”
VENGEANCE IS A GOLDEN BLADE (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 104 min.)
A man betrayed by his wife is attacked by the vicious Long Brothers, who steal his treasured Golden Dragon blade and leave him a broken man. Years later, the man’s daughter sets off to avenge her father and reclaim her family’s sword. This spectacular tale of vengeance was directed by Meng-Hua Ho (The Mighty Peking Man, The Flying Guillotine).
A TASTE OF COLD STEEL (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 84 min.)
A sequel to this boxset’s Rape Of The Sword, A Taste Of Cold Steel finds three sisters and their swordsman cousin taking on all comers to defend and secure their family’s most treasured heirloom … a powerful and mystical blade.
THE IRON BUDDHA (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 88 min.)
When a notorious and odious villain kills his master and entire clan, the stalwart warrior known as The Iron Buddha sets out on an unquenchable quest for revenge. This engrossing film features fight choreography from the legendary Sammo Hung, who also appears in a small role.
THE JADE FACED ASSASSIN (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 110 min.)
When a woman’s love is rejected by a master swordsman, it leads to an insidious and vengeful plot in which his two children are separated, raised by rival clans, and set up to kill each other in battle.
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 101 min.)
The daughter of a slain, respected hero embarks on a desperate, heroic odyssey to take the highly coveted Golden Dragon Sword, a weapon of immense spiritual power, back to the Capitol to keep it safe from those who would abuse its might.
SIX ASSASSINS (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Dual Mono / 83 min.)
A tyrannical feudal lord has ruled his domain with an iron fist and cold, hard steel. Determined to end his dark reign, a heroic swordsman enlists a band of warriors to join him in a last-ditch effort to take down the villain once and for all.
Features:
DISC ONE: THE SILENT SWORDSMAN (1967)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Silence is Golden: An Appreciation By Hong King Film Critic Andrew Heskins
- NEW Audio Commentary With Cult Film Critic Ian Jane
DISC TWO: RAPE OF THE SWORD (1967)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
- Image Gallery
DISC THREE: THE FASTEST SWORD (1968)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
- NEW Audio Commentary With Film Historian Brian Bankston
DISC FOUR: TWIN BLADES OF DOOM (1969)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
- Celestial Trailer
DISC FIVE: TWELVE DEADLY COINS (1969)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
- NEW Audio Commentary With Film Historian Brian Bankston
DISC SIX: VENGEANCE IS A GOLDEN BLADE (1969)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
- NEW Audio Commentary With Film Historian Brian Bankston
- Celestial Trailer
DISC SEVEN: A TASTE OF COLD STEEL (1970)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
- NEW Audio Commentary With Film Historian Brian Bankston
DISC EIGHT: THE IRON BUDDHA (1970)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
DISC NINE: THE JADE FACED ASSASSIN (1971)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With Cult Film Expert Ian Jane
- NEW Facing The Fury: Chinese History Academic Doctor Lars Laamann On The Period Provocations of The Jade Faced Assassin
DISC TEN: MISSION IMPOSSIBLE (1970)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
- NEW Audio Commentary With Film Historian Brian Bankston
- NEW Impossibly Awesome: An Extensive Interview With Mission Impossible Director Joseph Kuo, In His First Ever On-Camera Retrospective
DISC ELEVEN: SIX ASSASSINS (1971)
- Audio: Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Dual Mono
- NEW Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated For This Release
- NEW Audio Commentary With James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic At easternKicks
- Image Gallery
- NEW A Team Effort: Leon Hunt, Author of Kung Fu Masters, On Six Assassins
Enjoy a pack of Trailers from the set (some Trailers are currently not online):
That’s awesome, I haven’t seen many of these! Looking forward to this one.