Magnificent Bodyguards

1978
5.5| 1h41m| R| en| More Info
Released: 27 April 1978 Released
Producted By: Lo Wei Motion Picture Company
Country: Hong Kong
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

Chan is asked by a young, wealthy lady to take her sick brother to a particular doctor in order to be cured. To reach this doctor, Chan and a handful of travelling companions must pass through bandit-infested wild country. They meet and kung-fu-fight several gangs of thugs along the way.

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Reviews

Karry Best movie of this year hands down!
Bereamic Awesome Movie
Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.
Sharkflei Your blood may run cold, but you now find yourself pinioned to the story.
lost-in-limbo Odd, but fascinating and likable early Jackie Chan martial arts vehicle. Well I might just be stretching calling it a vehicle though he's the name seller (outside director Lo Wei), but at times Chan (who plays it cocky, but can back it up) was overshadowed by his co-stars (James Tien and Bruce Liang). Nonetheless the thing that does stand out and this is probably why he doesn't charismatically standout (well not from the crisply choreographed action sequences though) was that the comical elements are played down with a more straight-laced vibe winning out. Lord Ting Chung the fastest fists in the East (Chan) is hired along with some other partners to protect a women and her ill-brother while transporting them through the Stormy Mountains that's infested with robbers. The story might seem basic, but it's anything but. It's quite an eventful plot, which does become somewhat of a mess with its dramatic twists and silly turns. Therefore its busily conceived structure consisting of a variety of characters, situations and challenges lets the pace briskly move through moving from one set-piece to another. Quick, lively and fun sums it up. What more could you ask for. The fluidly diverse martial arts come in spades with flexibility, creativity and exuberance in its flashy and flighty execution of one-on-one or group ambushes. Namely the stirringly long-winded climax, which would come back down to earth with a thud with its abrupt ending (which filled many films of its genre). A novelty that comes to the foreground is that it was obviously made for 3D with its intrusive framing and tricky jolts. I was kind of surprised how much of those occurrences did pop up and another interesting note would be the use of the "Star Wars" theme score for one particular scene. It might not be held up alongside Chan's other efforts, but this raw venture is a neat little kung-fu showcase.
mars-14 Cool movie! Features a long-haired 24-year old Jackie Chan, great costumes, an improbably complicated plot, a bizarre song in the middle, American-Indian Mongol hordes, pre-Matrix "bullet time" fx, and much more.Basically, Jackie and cohorts - the magnificent bodyguards of the title - are hired to guard and transport a valuable cargo over some dangerous, bandit-infested mountains. Of course, nothing is what it seems, no-one can be trusted and there appears to be a lost tribe of American Indians wandering the hills.The version I saw was subtitled - it was fun hearing the original Chinese. Maybe that let the humour come out more. The movie doesn't take itself too seriously and only gets serious at the very end.Well worth a watch.
Aidy This movie was made during the pre-humour stage of Jackie Chan's career, and is one of the relatively few serious movies that Jackie did. I like his humorous films as well but I find they can slow down the pace a little. Not so with this movie as it's action from start to finish.This is one of the more interesting Jackie Chan movie that I've seen. Jackie plays a bodyguard who is hired to accompany a woman through a dangerous stretch of countryside. Jackie is hired yet agrees to do the job for free...this is just the start of a complicated story line.Unlike his more humorous movies this movie is out-and-out action from the very start. The fighting scenes are good and frequent. The story line has a few twists and isn't just the standard `I will revenge my father/brother' plot. Interesting things to note are the 3D effects, at one point they enter a monastery that has swastikas on the wall, then when the team are trying to pass through a valley they start to play the Star Wars theme!!!Overall this is quite different from most Jackie movies in that the story line is rich, the action is frequent, and the twists rival Fight Club.Not the best movie he's ever done, but well worth a look.
Ricardo-36 I have seen a lot of (bad) chinese, and I am a big fan of Jackie Chan and Jet Li, but this movie is probably the WORSE movie ever made. Let me explain why:1 - The acting is very, very, very bad. The actors in the "nazi" monk scene were laughing during the fight. The fighting scene is very bad.2 - As this movie was shot in 3D you'll see some knives, rocks and even snakes flying over the camera, to create that 3D effect. If you are watching this movie in a TV, this will look silly.3 - The fight scenes are quite bizarre. The make up and the fake blood are very odd. The final fight scene is indoor and outdoor almost at the same time (watch carefully the final fight scene and prepare to laugh with the final "the end" scene) If you want to see this movie, I must say: May the force be with you! You'll need it.