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Watching
instructors of the caliber of Morio Higaonna and Shinyu Gushi I am constantly
amazed by
their ability, and awed by the physical and spiritual sacrifices they must
have made to reach this level of performance. How can men who are no longer
young retain this much speed, power, and flexibility! How can their
students kick through thick timber and bundles of baseball bats with their
shins! How were these arts developed, and by whom! Some, if not all
of these questions are answered in this new DVD from the acclaimed Tsunami
studio. And the way they do it by cramming so much footage, imagery, and music
into the program that the viewer is overwhelmed by the sight, sound, and fury
of the action.
Part
one is an overview of the history of karate and serves as an introduction
for what promises to be an expanding series. It deals with the origins
of karate in China, then moves on to examine the Okinawan arts that developed
from Chinese models, specifically Goju Ryu and Uechi Ryu. Demonstrations by
Higaonna sensei and Gushi sensei follow which include, kata, applications,
test breaking etc. We then move quickly through the development of modern
karate which is illustrated with a mass of beautiful old photographs supported
by film footage from the 1950's -1980's of early Shotokan, Shoshin Nagamine's
Shorin Ryu, and the Japan Karate Association. Quite an experience!
Part
two of the series takes a much closer look at the ancient style of Uechi Ryu
and Goju Ryu. We
trace their development and examine the unique features of both as we watch
a montage of historical
images blended with technical demonstrations by instructors Higaonna, Gushi,
and others. This is followed by a very detailed look at the formative years
of Japanese karate specifically Shotokan, Shito Ryu, and Shindo Jinen Ryu.
There is no pause in the action, nothing is repeated or dragged out, we move
at break neck speed through a kaleidoscope of moving and still images propelled
by a stereo soundtrack that ranges from classical oriental to esoteric electronic
than back to solo Chinese flute. It's difficult to image that it's thirty
minutes long-but it is.
As
a magazine editor I know just how difficult it is to find two or three historic
photos to illustrate an article-here there are hundred and the quality of
the images is exceptional. The soundtrack is superb, clean, rich, and satisfying.
The editing cannot be faulted and the instructors perform as one would expect-flawlessly.
This is the just the sort of program that Discovery and the History channel
should be screening!
Instructors
featured: Shinyu Gushi 9th Dan, Uechi Ryu; Morio Higaonna 9th Dan Hanshi,
Goju Ryu; Hideharu
Igaki 6th Dan, Shito Ryu; Takehiro Konishi 10th Dan, Shindo Jinen Ryu; Liu
Chang I, Feeding
Crane Kung Fu; Yukiyoshi Marutani 7th Dan, Gen Sei Ryu; Shoshin Nagamine 10th
Dan
Hanshi, Matsubayashi Shorin Ryu; Toshishiro Oshiro 7th Dan Matsubayashi Shorin
Ryu; Eihachi Ota 7th
Dan, Matsubayashi Shorin Ryu; Kiyoshi Yamazaki 7th Dan, Shindo Jinen Ryu.
Available
in the following formats:
DVD
Running
time 56 minutes. $39.95
(we
ship within 24hrs.) |
