Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Temple
少林寺
Overview
"Set during the transition between the Sui and Tang dynasties, a young slave escapes a brutal warlord and is hidden by the monks of the Shaolin Temple. He trains tirelessly in their martial arts to avenge his father's death, eventually dragging the pacifist monks into a massive war against the warlord's army."
Iconic Tracked Scenes
- ▶
Jue Yuan trains obsessively through spring, summer, autumn, and winter, mastering various weapons and animal forms at the temple.
"shaolin seasons training""training through winter" - ▶
A comedic scene where the monks break their vegetarian vows by secretly capturing and cooking a dog, resulting in a drunken sparring session.
"monks eating meat""breaking vegetarian vows" - ▶
The desperate final stand outside the temple walls, where the monks unleash their full martial might against the warlord's invading army.
"shaolin temple defense""monks vs army"
Why It's Remembered
- ★The sprawling seasonal training montages spanning the four seasons.
- ★Jet Li's incredible spear and staff demonstrations.
- ★The massive, bloody final battle defending the temple gates.
Cultural Context
- ◈Jet Li's explosive debut film, made when he was only 19 and a reigning national wushu champion.
- ◈The first Hong Kong martial arts film actually shot on location at the real Shaolin Temple in Henan, China.
- ◈Sparked a massive resurgence in the popularity of martial arts across mainland China.
About the Action Elements
Shaolin Temple is widely celebrated among martial arts cinema fans for sequences involving training montage, seasons, winter, summer, wushu. One of the most memorable sequences features Jet Li naturally executing shaolin seasons training, where the choreography and unique set pieces become the unexpected highlight of the film.