Hong Kong Synopsis
少林搭棚大師
“Back for the rest!”
The workers of a dye factory have their pay cut by 20% when the factory owner brings in some Manchu thugs to try and increase production. Desperate to reclaim their full wages, the workers hire an actor to impersonate a priest and kung-fu expert from the temple of Shaolin. The factory owner proves the actor a fraud, and punishes all those involved. The young actor feels he has let the workers down, and promises to atone. He sets out for Shaolin, determined to be accepted as a kung-fu pupil at the elite temple.
Titles With Overlapping Themes
Films and series that share thematic tags with Return to the 36th Chamber. Number on each card indicates how many keywords overlap.
Other Titles From Shaw Brothers
The 1979–1981 Hong Kong Window
Return to the 36th Chamber holds position #10 of 54 Hong Kong films in the 1979–1981 window, below highlighted by audience rating.
The 1980s Hong Kong Landscape
Catalog density by release year across the 1980s in Hong Kong, 151 titles in total. Highlighted year (yellow) is when Return to the 36th Chamber premiered alongside 13 others.
Position in Catalog
Released alongside 13 other Hong Kong films in 1980.
The 143rd Hong Kong title from Hong Kong we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1955).
Our Hong Kong catalog contains 836 titles in total (828 films).
Audience Engagement
163 audience reviews — more than 88% of Hong Kong films in our index.
Popularity sits at the 88th percentile among Hong Kong films.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #157 of 836 Hong Kong films indexed here (81st percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is +0.6 points above the Hong Kong average of 6.3/10.
Among Hong Kong Action productions specifically: #92 of 516 (top 18%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | Hong Kong |
|---|---|
| Original Language | Chinese |
| Spoken Languages | Cantonese, Mandarin |
| Production Companies | Shaw Brothers |
| Runtime | 1h 39m |
| Release Date | August 24, 1980 |
| IMDb | tt0081494 |