Screening Log

This new site feature is a collective effort to summarize our viewing habits. Occasionally, you will find titles here that are coming to a theater near you, in addition to films viewed on television, and even films viewed in piecemeal. The screening log is archived each month; to view past entries select a month in the menu below.


January 2008 activity

Total Log Entries: 53

Total Comments: 41


Full Archive



The 36th Chamber of Shaolin / Master Killer / Shao Lin san shi liu fang / Hong Kong / 1978

The chambers of the title refer to different arenas within the Shaolin temple in which one concentrates on a virtue particular to the human body. Not all thirty-six are shown, and many of the ones that are are glossed over, but there are still several highlights. My favorite is the “eye” chamber, in which the monk-in-training places his head rigidly between two gigantic burning coals of incense and darts his eyes left-and-right, following the pendular movement of a candle set afore him. The composition encloses his eyes as they shift rapidly across the screen’s latitude. Later, engaged in battle, the monk finds himself among three or four foes—a splendid opportunity to put his laborious eye training to proper use, one that will also engage his wrists, legs, weaponry, et al.

by Rumsey Taylor | Source: Dragon Dynasty DVD
06 Jan 2008 5:08 PM | Submit Comment


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