Last night Wu-Tang’s iconic member RZA, brought his highly anticipated re-scored version of the classic kung fu film, The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, to a sold out crowd of hip-hop fanatics inside the Royal Cinema in downtown Toronto.
The opening credits, which includes Gordon Liu’s high-kicking martial arts exercises mixed in with some of Wu’s classic tracks, immediately grabs your attention and quickly sets the tone for the remainder of the film.
With songs like “C.R.E.A.M.,” “Protect Your Neck,” “Bring The Ruckus,” and many more enforcing the sentiments of certain scenes, RZA’s re-scored version of The 36th Chamber of Shaolin will have you going through a plethora of emotions as well as hanging on to the edge of your seat.
RZA originally became a fan of martial arts cinema around the age of 12 after viewing the The 36th Chamber of Shaolin. He saw the parallels between the plight of the Chinese villagers and his own experiences growing up in New York City.
“Beyond the kung fu, it was the reality of the situation that hit me,” RZA said in a statement to Billboard.”
“Growing up as a black kid in America, I didn’t know that that kind of story had existed anywhere else.”
If you haven’t had a chance to watch the re-scored film, then make sure you catch RZA on October 9th in Vancouver inside the Rio Theatre (1660 E Broadway).
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Written by Remi Louis Harris for HipHopCanada
You can follow @RZA on Instagram.