Shaolin Iron Fist Collection: Shaolin vs. Manchu begins with an overview of the Shaolin Fighting Practices… all 72 of them! After this brief introduction, we learn that the Emperor of the Manchu Dynasty views the Shaolin Monks as rebels and send his Manchu warriors out to destroy them and their temple. At the temple, the Abbot has appointed young Rocky as his successor. This doesn't sit well with the four Shaolin elders, named Number One, Two, Three and Four, who have been assigned to train Rocky until he is the Champion of the Monastery. Throughout these early sequences at the temple, there is an annoying kid who is just painful to watch and even more painful to listen to thanks to the awful dub job.

The Emperor of the Manchu Dynasty views the Shaolin Monks as rebels and has commanded his Manchu Warriors to destroy them at all costs. When the Emperor learns that Rocky is to become the new Abbot, he devises a sinister plan. While Rocky is out gathering wood, he spots a peasant girl about to be raped by several Manchu soldiers. He stops the attack and gives the girl a pearl necklace for good luck. However, at Rocky's annunciation the girl appears accusing Rocky of raping her and using the pearl necklace as proof of the deed. Sensing something amiss, Rocky falsely admits guilt for the rape and is punished by the elders and banished from the temple. Rocky finds the girl left for dead along the road and brings her to his Aunt to be healed.

Number One is named the Abbot's successor in Rocky's place, but reveals himself to be Captain Lee of the Emperor's elite guard. Lee kills the Abbot and begins to destroy the temple from within. He sends away the remaining Elders and appoints new ones, promising them each additional responsibilities by pitting the monks against one another keeping them in disarray. With the monks' spirit broken, the Manchu Army has no fear of attacking the temple. During the ensuing massacre, one of the monks witnesses Number One's betrayal and eventually escapes to tell Rocky what has happened. Upon hearing the news of the monks defeat at the hands of the Manchu, Rocky proceeds to get drunk. While inebriated, he begins to experiment with a new form of Kung Fu… Drunken Boxing! Rounding up whatever monks have survived the temple's fall, Rocky heads back for the final showdown with Lee and the Manchu army.

The DVD:

Picture: The movie is presented in Full Screen. This transfer is passable, but like many of these releases suffers from a poor Source Print. The Print was badly scratched in places, had lots of wear throughout and even some debris visible.

Audio: The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono track was of the Dubbed English and sounded ok with decent levels.

Extras: Included as Extras on this DVD are previews of other Crash Cinema Releases including Ninja: The Final Duel, Story in Temple Red Lily and Shaolin Tiger Claw.

Conclusion: Shaolin Iron Fist Collection: Shaolin vs. Manchu certainly isn't going to win any awards, but the film was entertaining and contained some impressive displays of Kung Fu. Once you get past the video and audio shortcomings, Shaolin Iron Fist Collection: Shaolin vs. Manchu is a very watchable flick and probably one of the stronger entries in the Shaolin Iron Fist Collection.