Five Shaolin Masters a.k.a. ''5 Masters Of Death'' (Chinese: 少林五祖) is a 1974

Shaw Brothers Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. () was the largest film production company in Hong Kong, and operated from 1925 to 2011. In 1925, three Shaw brothers— Runje, Runme, and Runde—founded Tianyi Film Company (also called "Unique") in Shangh ...

kung fu film Kung fu film () is a subgenre of martial arts films and Hong Kong action cinema set in the contemporary period and featuring realistic martial arts. It lacks the fantasy elements seen in ''wuxia'', a related martial arts genre that uses historica ...

directed by

Chang Cheh Chang Cheh (; 10 February 1923 – 22 June 2002) was a Chinese filmmaker, screenwriter, lyricist and producer active in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Chang Cheh directed more than 90 films in Greater China, the majority of them with the Shaw ...

, with action choreography by

Lau Kar Leung Lau Kar-leung (28 July 1934 – 25 June 2013), was a Chinese actor, filmmaker, choreographer, and martial artist from Hong Kong. Lau is best known for the films he made in the 1970s and 1980s for the Shaw Brothers Studio. His most famous wor ...

and Lau Kar Wing. The film focuses on Shaolin's historic rivalries with the

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

Plot

Five young fighters survive to escape the burning Shaolin temple after the Qing soldiers destroyed it in ''

Shaolin Temple Shaolin Monastery (少林寺 ''Shàolínsì''), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a renowned monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin Kung Fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak of the So ...

''. The five regroup and establish secret codes to identify themselves and fellow patriots. They swear vengeance and decide to enlist other patriots, then reunite to escape from the Qing forces. They also commit to uncovering the identity of the traitorous insider who had sold out the Shaolin temple. The traitor, Ma Fu-Yi, joins with top Qing fighters to eliminate the rebels, but he is exposed by Ma Chao-Tsing, one of the five Shaolin escapees, who gets captured. Hu Te-Ti meets up with a group of Shaolin fighters secretly posing as bandits and recruits them to help rescue Ma Chao-Tsing. Their bandit leader is killed in the process, so the bandits join the rest of the Shaolin patriots to fight the Qing invaders. Suffering successive defeats at the hands of the Qing kung fu experts, the five young fighters return to the Shaolin temple ruins to perfect their kung fu and prepare to take revenge for their destroyed temple and murdered comrades. Each of the five must face a more seasoned master in single combat, so each trains to master fighting forms and techniques to counter the specific skills and weaponry of each individual enemy, man-to-man.

Cast

The five Shaolin patriots: *

Ti Lung Ti Lung (born 19 August 1946) is a Hong Kong actor, known for his numerous starring roles in a string of Shaw Brothers Studio's films, particularly '' The Blood Brothers'', ''The Avenging Eagle'', '' Clans of Intrigue'', '' The Duel'', '' The Sent ...

as Tsai Te-Chung () * Alexander Fu Sheng as Ma Chao-Hsing () * Meng Fei as Fang Ta-Hung () * Chi Kuan Chun as Li Shih-Kai () * David Chiang as Hu Te-Ti () Their five main adversaries: * Liang Chia Jen as Chien San () * Feng Ko An as Chang Chin-Chiu () * Chiang Tao as Chen Wen-Yao () * Tsai Hung as Pao Yu-Lung () * Wang Lung Wei as Ma Fu-Yi ()

External links

''Five Shaolin Masters''
at Hong Kong Cinemagic * * 1974 films 1974 martial arts films 1970s action films Films directed by Chang Cheh Films set in 18th-century Qing dynasty Hong Kong martial arts films Kung fu films Shaw Brothers Studio films 1970s Hong Kong films {{1970s-HongKong-film-stub