Kevin's Watch

Ah, life is good!!!!! Circle of Iron came out in 1978. I didn't see it at the theater, and don't remember hearing about it being in them, but I couldn't have seen it more than a year or two later. It's simply the greatest martial arts/zen movie ever, and is finally on dvd!!!

It was Bruce Lee's idea, as was the original Kung Fu series. And like Kung Fu, David Carradine ended up with Lee's role. Four roles, actually. (Although with CoI, Lee couldn't do it, having died before he got to it.) The setting changed from Lee's original story. And that script, which he wrote with actor James Coburn and Stirling Silliphant (who got an Oscar for his screenplay of the old movie In the Heat of the Night), is on the dvd! It was originally in a somewhat contemporary Japan, Thailand, and Morocco, but the movie is in "a land that never was - and always is." It's about - and what I'm about to tell you is revealed in the first several minutes, so don't worry about spoilers - a martial artist named Cord (played by Jeff Cooper), who is attempting to find and read the Book of Zetan, which he has heard "...contains all the wisdom of the world." He goes through different trials, physical and non-, meeting a cast of odd and interesting folks, before finally attaining his goal.

Zetan is played by Christopher Lee. Roddy McDowall runs the martial arts tournament that opens the movie. Eli Wallach has a hilarious scene.

The movie is funny, great on the philosophy, was shot is some gorgeous settings, has music that is beautiful and atmospheric, and has some decent fights. Not great fights, but pretty good. It's also surreal at several points, which only adds to the whole package for me.

So go get it!

Yessir!

Finally, someone around here takes me seriously!!!

Oh, I definately take you seriously. I just read like 56 pages of a thread that you account for about 1/5 of the posts for. In effect, 10 pages of PURE FIST AND FAITH! 100% Guaranteed pure, best if read by 12/31/05, accept no substitutions!

I loves my Martial Arts films ... so I'll definitely be checking this one out when I find it!

All right MD!!

And Welcome to the Watch!

Thanks Fist and Faith ... I've been looking for "Circle of Iron", but can't seem to locate it anywhere.

I may have to order it ...

Let me know if you don't have any luck. As you're the first person I've ever known who has exhibited any interest in this movie, I want to make sure you get it!!! I got mine from the local Media Play. I don't know if all Media Plays are crap, but this one sure is. I can't imagine how it showed up there, but if it's restocked, I'd be more than pleased to send it to you.

There aren't any Media Play outlets here in Canada (that I'm aware of) ... I'm still looking though.

M-D, have you read Eric Lustbader's The Ninja?

No ... I can't say that I have. I recall reading "The Sunset Warrior" many, many years ago ... but that is my only exposure to any of Lustbader's material.

Ah. I read the original Sunset Warrior trilogy. (There's at least a 4th, and I think 5th, book in that series.) I read that first, and a girl I was telling about it said, "Oh, you mean this guy?" and showed me the copy of Ninja that she was reading at that moment. Sunset was fun, but it seemed to me that it was just a hint of Ninja, as though he was experimenting, preparing for Ninja. As I said in one of the "Favorite Books" threads, Ninja has extremely good fights, does a very good job of getting into the Eastern mind, and has touches of well-written magic. (And the sex scenes ain't too bad neither!:mrgreen:)

I'll definitely add it to my Book Wish List then! Thanks for the recommendation!

bump

You love the heck out of this movie, huh?

Yup! But I was just talking to MM about it in the chatroom, and he didn't know anything about it.

bump

I vaguely remember enjoying this movie a great deal. I loved the way the main character, Cord, would solemnly declare that "My name is Cord" to everyone he met.

I read the "Sunset Warrior" and also "The Ninja" years ago. IMHO Eric Van Lustbader has some serious sexual/misogyny issues and an unhealthy obsession with his word-of-the-day calendar, resulting in his use of the word "oblique" every second page. But they were entertaining books, and the setting of the "Sunset Warrior" (at least in the first book) was quite memorable.

Wow, Trapper brings it back almost exactly two years since the last post!

Couldn't you have said more about the movie though? jk

I think the sex in the The Ninja was great!

But it's true that there weren't many admirable female characters. The couple that spring to mind died.

Actually, the unadmirable ones died too...

OK martial art fans, tell me this!

A few years ago I was in a pub (surprise surprise!) in Bath. They had a giant screen on the wall and they were showing a martial arts (?) film (?).

It was basically a tumble-down arena and a winner-stays-on type martial arts free-for-all. There'd be a fight, someone new would appear to fight the winner, there might have been the occasional two on one. like a computer game, but real-life fighting. No plot or anything like that. When I say 'real-life' I don't mean a real-life competition, it was obviously just for entertainment of the masses, choreographed (you know what I mean) what the hell was it?