While 1979's Heroes of the East is a Shaw Brothers kung fu classic that provides great historical context and still really holds up, its sister release, Come Drink With Me (1966), does not. Both are now available from Genius Products and the Weinstein Company, in their latest additions to the Celestial Pictures/Dragon Dynasty Collection.

Now, don't get me wrong -- Come Drink With Me is a classic that helped invent the genre, and as a seminal "woman warrior" movie it's a great piece of history. It was an inspiration to many filmmakers and a bridge between the heyday of the American Western and the kung fu explosion of the 1970s. But Come Drink With Me as a film no longer fully impresses us with its Flying Crane stance.

That's not to say that it isn't worth a look. Like its companion release, this disc is loaded with tons of extras, including another great lecture giving a perfect look at the significance of this early entry. Most interesting is the fact that this was the film that first really bridged the gap between the hard kung fu movies, which were strictly focused on realism and authentic martial arts, and the fantasy films of the same time, which avoided using kung fu entirely. Come Drink With Me, however, uses both genres to full effect.

When a ruthless gang of bandits assaults and murders a caravan of nobles, they take a prominent politician captive and demand the release of their imprisoned leader. When the politician's sister, an assassin named Golden Swallow, hears of this, she rushes to overthrow the gang and restore her brother's freedom. Unfortunately for her, the gang proves far too tough, and she requires the help of the homeless, alcoholic beggar (and secret kung fu master) Drunken Cat. What Drunken Cat doesn't know is that the man sheltering the villains is an evil abbot who once trained with Drunken Cat and slew their master in hopes of bearing the staff that Drunken Cat now carries himself. You know what this all means, right? Yep. Showdown!

The incredibly beautiful actress playing Golden Swallow, Pei-Pei Cheng (Jade Fox in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), was at this time a dancer, not a martial artist, so the film very deliberately cuts around her fight scenes. Occasionally sloppy and never impressive, her fighting usually revolves around "mysterious" abilities that are all performed in-camera, using such classic techniques as editing or film reversal. She "throws" knives and catches coins on chopsticks, but it is never convincing for today's audiences.

Yueh Hua, the man behind Drunken Cat, proves much more convincing. But the movie lacks the kind of solid fight choreography that we expect out of a Shaw Brothers film. In the end, it offers more to Shaw Brothers history buffs than to casual audiences or kung fu fans. Not that it's a bad film. It's just one that history has not been particularly kind to.

The DVD delivers a slew of interviews, including sit-downs with Cheng Pei-Pei, Yueh Hau, and one really great one with Hong Kong directing genius Tsui Hark about Come Drink With Me director King Hu. For would-be Shaw Brothers historians, there are hours of useful info that can turn anyone willing into an expert.

These new Dragon Dynasty releases have been pretty sweet. They're making my mental kung fu strong. Definitely worth a look for collectors.

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