La mante religieuse

SHAOLIN MANTIS (1978, aka THE DEADLY MANTIS) ranks among the best work of premier kung fu director Lau Kar Leung (aka Liu Chia Liang), who's better known for THE 36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN, 8-DIAGRAM POLE FIGHTER, HEROES OF THE EAST, and LEGENDARY WEAPONS OF CHINA. For the first three-quarters of its 102-minute length, MANTIS is more of a drama with kung fu scenes than a traditional martial arts film, as it builds up the tensions among a clan that learns of a traitor in its midst, but one they must tolerate in order to keep the clan patriarch's granddaughter happy. It's a complex story, slowly and deliberately crafted, that, for the most part, avoids casting anyone as good guy or bad guy. Every character has clearly understandable motives and the impending clash of loyalties is inevitable, but no less heartbreaking for being so.

David Chiang plays Wei Fung, a young scholar recruited by the Emperor to infiltrate the Tien Clan in order to get evidence of the clan's connection to Ming loyalists and anti-Ching activities. If Wei fails in his mission, his own well-connected family will be punished. He infiltrates the clan by serving as tutor to Chi-Chi (Cecilia Wong Hang-Sau, aka Huang Hsin-Hsiu), the spoiled teenaged granddaughter of Tien (Lau Kar Wing). When Tien investigates Wei's background and finds out who he really is, lovestruck Chi-Chi saves Wei's life by marrying him and promising Tien that Wei will never leave the village. Eventually, Wei must get the information he has gathered back to the Emperor or his own family will suffer. This puts Chi-Chi in a difficult position and forces her to have to choose between husband and family. Although they are slow in coming, just after the midway point there are a number of intense fight scenes--a mix of straight kung fu and sword- and spear-play--featuring six major kung fu performers: Chiang, Lau, Lily Li, Wilson Tong, Norman Chu and John Chang.

However, at the ¾ point, the film sharply shifts gears into more traditional kung fu territory, sending David's character alone into the wild to observe a praying mantis and develop the mantis style of fighting. He then returns to continue the fight. After some typically furious Lau Kar Leung-staged fights in the last 20 minutes, there is a genuinely surprising twist ending. The problem here is that the dramatic momentum built up by the interplay of moral obligations and family dynamics is somewhat dissipated, replacing intricate and complex character interaction with a final half-hour of more conventional kung fu practice and combat, albeit superbly done.

The film is beautifully crafted and staged on lavish sets at the Shaw Bros. studio. The screenplay is by Szeto An (evidently filling in for regular Shaw Bros. scribe I Kuang and doing a great job). The fights are not quite as intricate as Lau's best fights (see 8-DIAGRAM POLE FIGHTER, HEROES OF THE EAST, and LEGENDARY WEAPONS OF CHINA), but they still rank among the best of the genre, particularly the final fight between David Chiang and Lau Kar Wing. Chiang may not have been as skilled a fighting star as Gordon Liu and Alexander Fu Sheng, but he was a fine actor and, when guided by the best fight directors, could put on a good show amidst better fighters.

The real discovery in this film is actress Huang Hsin-Hsiu (aka Wong Hang Sau), who plays Chi-Chi. She's not only a competent fighter, but a powerful actress, mixing playful moments with strong dramatic scenes. For the first three-quarters, the film is really hers. Also in the cast are the great fighting femme Lily Li (as Chi-Chi's mother), Lau Kar Wing (aka Liu Chia-Yung, the director's brother), Norman Chu, and Wilson Tong (who also served as co-fight choreographer with the director). Gordon Liu makes a cameo appearance as (what else?) a monk who fights David briefly in the opening sequence. Special mention should also be given to the praying mantis that shares a few scenes with David. Either this is an expertly crafted moveable model or an incredibly well-trained mantis! (Truth to tell, it looks real to me.)

While the film's structural flaw is not fatal, it does keep it from being one of the absolute best of the kung fu genre. Still, fans of Shaw Bros. films who don't mind drama and characterization mixed in with martial arts will be amply rewarded.

The plot of Shaolin Mantis makes it sound pretty serious, given that the main character's family is essentially held hostage while he goes to commit an act of espionage. But then he falls for a young woman and finds his loyalties tested, and that's when the film becomes kind of comedic.

There's a long section where he has to battle the family's various kung fu masters, maybe to prove his love I guess? It almost feels like a video game, with every stage being a new family member (and that's similar to Scott Pilgrim Vs The World, in a way - the whole fighting for the one you love and stuff). That being said, the fights get a little more violent and heated as they go on... but for a while it felt kind of funny.

That strange tone makes Shaolin Mantis feel a little off in parts, but it's still entertaining and kind of charming because of that weirdness. And when the action kicks in during the second half (there's not much in the first half), it's really well choreographed and fun to watch.

I guess the main bit of an action is a fight between Gordon Liu (who I don't think had had his breakout role in The 36th Chamber of Shaolin yet) and David Chiang. It's always fun to see two big Shaw Brothers stars in a one on one fight, even if Liu was almost (but not quite) a star at this point.

This is an unusual and interesting story of the often conflicting, or even contradictory obligations in certain situations in a Confucian society. It is also quite bleak in its conclusion, which often occurs in Shaw Brothers, revenge-driven Kungfu movies, but more so given the conflict of family, romantic and social ties in this film. An oft-recurring theme in Shaw Brothers' films is the lingering Ming resentment of Qing rule, which also is prominent in this one.

There are historic inaccuracies, such as a romantic lead, Chi-chi, who happens not to have bound feet, which would never have occurred in a noble family circa early Qing dynasty, and this would have precluded any martial arts study for women. But the dominant story plot is the hero's conflicting obligations to family, political loyalties and the intimate affairs of the heart.

None of this becomes clear until the second half of the movie, although it is clearly outlined early in the film. Some of the romantic elements develop slowly, perhaps a bit tediously, in the first part of the movie, but conflict deepens quickly with the resultant tragedy and grim conclusion of the film. The "mantis" element in the film seems slightly contrived, and unessential to the broader thrust of the movie, and some of the early fight scenes in the movie lack the luster of other Shaw Brothers' efforts. But the movie is still worth a look!

I like this movie. Mind you I watch a lot of shaw bros movie during this pandemic & I watch most of em with my phone in hand & this movie actually managed to make me concentrate on movie rather than my phone.

1st of all I don't like the main actor but somehow he's good in this film (he usually play as some1 cocky playboy confident but really good at everything he does) Kinda overwhelm that gordon liu in here is just for opening scene few minutes. That's it just minor character that isn't important at all I would have give this movie 9-10 out of 10 because the story & action is better than most shaw bros movie but that ending is just ugh. All that fight are for nothing. Maybe this is based on true story? Man all those trains undercover spy 💩 is for bad king & that ending just minus the rating of this good movie anyway 6-7 out of 10 aint that bad. I wish it end differently tho.