Snake Style Kung-fu

Customer Reviews:

Not interesting.......2007-07-11

I just purchased Snake style Kung Fu based on the above reviews and was disappointed. I suppose you could say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but are we looking at the same thing?

Here are my specific observations:
1. -The form is presented as Wudang mountain-snake style and it is implied that it is related to taijiquan. This particular form appears to be "new Wudang" or contemporary wushu and in my opinion, not particularly good contemporary wushu.

2. The form is not dynamic or fluid as characterizes most wudang and taiji forms. It is also not explosive either. The choreography did not wow me in the least and I had to sit through the video hoping to see something of value to get out of the experience. Again, disappointed.

3. Tseng's movements correctly originate from the legs and center (most of the time) but he does not carry the movements through his arms effectively. In other words the power is not correctly transmitted. In fact, he appears to shake and vibrate all of the power out of the movements before they are expressed. For experienced practioners of taijiquan, fajing (explosive energy movements) are expressed through a wave, but the wave is linked and results in a proper alignment resulting in force being concentrated, extended, and reinforced by linear vectors. The start of the vector is typically the legs. The end of the vector is the target. None of this is present. Tseng's arm movements tend to be partially or even largely independent of what is going on with the rest of his body, and he does not appear to have much root (sometimes hard to determine based on a video.) That is not to say that he is uncoordinated, but rather that his understanding of the form and how to use it as a weapon appears to be limited. It is also likely that the form as it is presented has little direct martial application other than to develop "coordination", balance, and fitness.

4. "Master" Bob Klien, was slightly more internal than Tseng, but as with his Sword video, just as awkward as usual. He takes on the role of student in the video and continuously does the movements in a heavy and imprecise manner. I actually have no idea why Klien was in the video at all in any capacity other than as a narrator.

5. The scripting in the video was completely useless. I am not sure if they actually bothered to write a script. Klien repeatedly says *"Notice this, and Notice that. (He might have said, "Notice that master Tseng has two arms and two legs, etc." ouch) The musical background was completly irritating, but probably because I was disappointed in what I was watching.

Well that's all. It is not my intention to insult anyone. It is my assumption that Master Klien must have learned a great deal about martial arts and benefitted from his studies over the course of many years. Unfortunately, it has not been well presented in either of his two videos that I have seen.

Regards.

A brief comment.......2007-01-02

This is an excellent video showing the snake style form, but contrary to the previous reviewer's comments, it is not the original Wu Dang Mountain snake style (which is why the four stars), but rather the modern wu-shu version of it. It's still worth watching to get an idea of what the style is like, which is very graceful and fluid like he says. Pure snake style has essentially died out, but some of it still exists in five animals styles such as Hung Gar and some other southern styles. Tseng does a fine job on the form and he is a champion in wu-shu from the old country, and I also have his eagle claw kung fu video, which was also excellent. There is no doubt that he has considerable skill, it's just unfortunate that this isn't the original art, which may be almost impossible to find if it indeed it still exists at all. But the video is still worthwhile watching to learn about this unique but almost defunct art.

Contents of this DVD.......2005-06-21

This DVD presents the legendary Wu Dan Mountain Snake Form which was one of the original forms taught by Chang-San-Feng, originator of Tai-chi-Chuan Kung-fu. (Tai-chi-Chuan means "Grand Ultimate Fist" and the term "Kung-fu" is used to denote Chinese martial arts in general).
Snake style is very loose, fluid and lighning quick (like a snake's strike). It will loosen and strengthen every joint in the body. This is an "internal" martial art meaning that it uses internal energy ("chi") which is much more powerful than muscle tension. The techniques are unorthodox, unexpected and devastating and include kicking, punching, finger strikes and grappling.
The snake form can also be used as an aerobic exercise to develop flexibility, muscle tone and the sharpness of attention. This DVD includes demonstrations of the snake form from several angles and speeds, self defense applications of the movements, step by step instructions for each movement and a discussion with Master Tseng, Yun Xiang (the teacher) about the style.
90 minutes

DVD:

DVD

DVD