Jackie Chan’s ‘Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow’ and learning Kung Fu

‘Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow’ (1) was Jackie’s first big hit. This provides excellent insights into the snake style and eagle claw Kung Fu technique. Hwang-Jiang Lee (the Silver Fox) plays the despicable villain, an Eagle Claw Grandmaster.

eagle vs snake

While the ongoing feud between Eagle and Snake Schools (central to the film’s plot) is purely the screenwriter’s invention, in real life, Eagles take advantage of Snakes, and never the other way around. The addition of the Eagle Claw technique of aerial abilities means that it is generally considered superior to Snake Styles, who specializes in ground fighting. However, if the Eagle is reckless enough to grab a poisonous snake (and some Snake Styles specialize in ‘poison hand’ pressure point hits) it can ‘meet its Waterloo’. The climax of ‘Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow’ hinges on a brilliant variation on this theme!

learning kung fu

Unfortunately, one cannot learn Kung Fu simply by watching movies or DVDs, even when displaying the unparalleled skills of a brilliant practitioner like Grand Master Chan. An appropriately qualified and trained Instructor/Coach/Teacher or ‘Sifu’ is always an essential prerequisite for such activities; Take care of.

This is how Jackie Chan himself trained, as confirmed by his autobiography ‘I am Jackie Chan’ (2) and ‘Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow’ shows Jackie learning the Snake Style from scratch from such a master charismatically portrayed by Yuen Siu. -Tien (father of the film’s director, Yuen Woo-Ping). ‘Shé Xíng Diao Shou’ or ‘Snake Form Trick Hand’ is the translation of the film’s Chinese title and painstaking step-by-step progress involving repeated practice of basic skills is shown on screen as Jackie strives to master this. new and unknown style of Kung Fu.

At the other end of the Kung Fu teaching spectrum, in a splendid cameo appearance, Dean Shek (and the Kung Fu school to which he belongs) deftly outlines what all those seeking Kung Fu instruction should avoid.

The snake and the 5 animals

Learning Wu Shu from the five animals also means starting from the bottom. Here the beginner is considered a Serpent (you cannot go lower than Serpent without legs) and must learn a basic Serpent Form and its practical applications. However, the snake is considered lucky, a symbol of good fortune in Chinese culture and also of Qi since, lacking legs, it has to use internal energies to move. Shaolin internal energy training begins at this point for students who can benefit from seeing Jackie Chan in action in the earlier production due to his Kung Fu training, knowing that he can never be a substitute for this.

That’s the good news, learn Wu Shu from a proper teacher and you will enjoy and appreciate Jackie Chan movies more than you ever thought possible!

Ratings

(1) ‘Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow’ (1978) Dir. Yuen-woo-ping

(2) ‘I am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action’ (1999), Ballantyne Books