The Foundation 《決戰玄武門》 (1984)

Story about Li Shimin (Lee Saimun), played by Miu Kiu Wai, becoming king and Felix Wong becoming a 'martial arts master'.

It's got a really great cast. (Felix, Miu Kiu Wai, Yung Mei-Ling, Kent Tong..etc) Bobby Au Yeung Chun-Wah also appears as Lee Saimun's older brother.

It's pretty tragic. I don't want to spoil it for you guys, but it gets pretty depressing later on.

Felix Wong had some really bad hair in this series. The leader of the other sect had this 'lion hair' as well (he was played by Felix's blind master in Loch82)

It's neat to see Felix and Miu Kiu Wai friends in a series (after watching Loch).

I bought this series on DVD. It's a great Miu-Barb-Felix series. Miu is so handsome in here. It's a must see series for 80's fans.

I think Miu Kiu Wai is the best Lee Shi Man TVB ever had. He has the looks and charisma.

I like miu kiu wai too. He is one of my favourite actor. I watched his movie long long time ago. And now i am trying to look for his old movie. May i know where i can find his movie?. Cos in indonesia is so hard to find it. Thanks in advance and nice to know u all.

i will watch this series SOON!
but i hear that Miu Kills Barbara?
sadd! i seen many movies where they are together.

This Li Shi Min portrayal vs Grand Canal's were diff. I found LSM in here more destable.. but he reallyl had charmed thanks to MKW :D

SUch a sad story tho..

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Originally Posted by Sugar

This Li Shi Min portrayal vs Grand Canal's were diff. I found LSM in here more destable.. but he reallyl had charmed thanks to MKW :D

SUch a sad story tho..

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So is Lee Shai Man suppose to be good or bad? I saw so much series and some portrayed the character as bad and some were good. I'm wondering if I should see this series...

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Originally Posted by TommyH

So is Lee Shai Man suppose to be good or bad? I saw so much series and some portrayed the character as bad and some were good. I'm wondering if I should see this series...

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In this series LSM starts out as any fun loving prince going out of the palace with his younger brother, played by Kent Tong. But as the story progresses, Foundation is a series where brothers fight over the throne and so LSM is forced to say goodbye to person he may love most for something he loves even more the throne!

Barbara and Miu Kiu Wai are a good pair in this series but they're a tragic pair. I think you should see this series if you're a fan of Barbara Yung, Michael Miu, Felix Wong and Kent Tong. They're roles are very different from LOCH and I guess because its more of a political series than a wuxia series. So the feeling is different too.

eeek i finally saw this. really good, at first someone said it was BORiNG. i think otherwise. thuy thien's tragic ending sucked!! & yeaaa. its super cuute how felix still liked her

Really felt sorry for Barbara in it and she was and still is one of my fav actresses :(

I remember the themesong is quite good too.

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Originally Posted by TommyH

So is Lee Shai Man suppose to be good or bad? I saw so much series and some portrayed the character as bad and some were good. I'm wondering if I should see this series...

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He's a political figure, so you can't just say he's good or bad. Historically, he is known to be a great strategist, and a good king. But as we all know, politics is not nice. He did kill his brothers to secure the throne. But he wasn't a cruel ruler to his people.

love this series. one of the best, i've noticed some phim tau with "imperial court / policital stuff" follow the same line, how would i say it? "crazy [tai tu] princes out to get the crown" i`ve seen crazy sh_t lol

Michelle Pau Tsui Mei, who performed the theme song for THE FOUNDATION, was my first crush when I was twelve years old.

haha how cuuteee ^-^

i still cant get this one out of my head, how thuy thien [barbara] was kind of pushed around, like "shooed" away by the men she loved <33

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Originally Posted by lilviet_grl8o8

i still cant get this one out of my head, how thuy thien [barbara] was kind of pushed around, like "shooed" away by the men she loved <33

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Her role is basically a tragic *SOB*

which i found really GHETTO!! reminds me of ho mei tians role in swordmen2

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Originally Posted by lilviet_grl8o8

i will watch this series SOON!
but i hear that Miu Kills Barbara?
sadd! i seen many movies where they are together.

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Are you sure that miu kills Barbara Yung?

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Originally Posted by lilviet_grl8o8

i will watch this series SOON!
but i hear that Miu Kills Barbara?
sadd! i seen many movies where they are together.

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Are you sure that miu kills Barbara Yung? If yes how?

why did Barbara yung died? how?

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Originally Posted by Omniflame

Story about Li Shimin (Lee Saimun), played by Miu Kiu Wai, becoming king and Felix Wong becoming a 'martial arts master'.

It's got a really great cast. (Felix, Miu Kiu Wai, Yung Mei-Ling, Kent Tong..etc) Bobby Au Yeung Chun-Wah also appears as Lee Saimun's older brother.

It's pretty tragic. I don't want to spoil it for you guys, but it gets pretty depressing later on.

Felix Wong had some really bad hair in this series. The leader of the other sect had this 'lion hair' as well (he was played by Felix's blind master in Loch82)

It's neat to see Felix and Miu Kiu Wai friends in a series (after watching Loch).

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which website did you watched this movie?

hey kelvin, she gets stabbed.

This is 1 of my favorite shows. Great cast & story. :)

ME 2! I loved this series. Even though it's old. I was devasted when she got stabbed though :) but the rest of the series is good :)

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Originally Posted by kevin_nguyen

why did Barbara yung died? how?

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It's been quite a while since I last watched this series, but I think this is what happened:

click to show/hide spoilers

Michael wanted to secure an alliance with an official that is vital to usurp the throne from his older brother (the guy was a general, I think, who had command of many soldiers). However, the guy proposed a condition. He will only support Michael to the throne if he would kill Barbara (I think the guy wanted Michael to marry his daughter, but I'm not too sure about that). Michael invited her to this quiet spot and stabbed her. He didn't want to do it and regreted killing her b/c he really did love her, but the throne was more important.

Just found this, which features her death: http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=a0ch9FgOevI

You are right MysticDust. I saw this series way too many times and even got SICK of it.... I don't think you needed to hide that in spoilers since many many people have seen this series already.

This is one of my all time favorite series, perhap number 1 favorite.... Great Storyline, Great Casts, Great Costumes, Great Martial Art, ect... even though with very limitted sceneries.... It is by far better than now a days series...

click to show/hide spoilers

You know when I first watched this drama and saw how she died, I thought they would allow her to say her last words to him. That's what I hoped. I mean even a word or three words before she died. She just died to quickly. Even someone who got stabbed in real life, would still die slowly because of the bleeding. It was too quick here.

I think this series is ok and is kind of overrated because of the strong cast. However, the storyline isn't that great and isn't accurate to history. My mom used to love this series back then, but now doesn't like it that much. I think it is because she read some more history books about Li Shi Min and hates how this series portrayed him...But overall, still a decent series.

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Originally Posted by Trien Chieu

This is one of my all time favorite series, perhap number 1 favorite.... Great Storyline, Great Casts, Great Costumes, Great Martial Art, ect... even though with very limitted sceneries.... It is by far better than now a days series...

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I am guessing that you haven't seen that many series these days. There are a lot of pretty good and decent series these days too(well, not from TVB but other companies). I used to really like this series too. BUT there was one point in time where my mom watched this series over and over and over again for like 2 months that it caused me to hate it... I still like this series, but not very much...

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Originally Posted by Trinie

I am guessing that you haven't seen that many series these days. There are a lot of pretty good and decent series these days too(well, not from TVB but other companies). I used to really like this series too. BUT there was one point in time where my mom watched this series over and over and over again for like 2 months that it caused me to hate it... I still like this series, but not very much...

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I don't watch series as much these days but still watch quite a bit.
Some recent series are very good but they just can't compare to the 80s classics. The storyline aren't as interesting. The artists aren't as great. The costumes aren't as beautiful. The hand to hand combat is not as good. ect... The only things that better in recent series is scenery and special effect.

To me, The Foundation is not overated. It is still the number 1 series for me. I only watch that series couple years ago when it was released in DVD. I missed the tape version back then. So far no series can compare to it.

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Originally Posted by Trien Chieu

I don't watch series as much these days but still watch quite a bit.
Some recent series are very good but they just can't compare to the 80s classics. The storyline aren't as interesting. The artists aren't as great. The costumes aren't as beautiful. The hand to hand combat is not as good. ect... The only things that better in recent series is scenery and special effect.

To me, The Foundation is not overated. It is still the number 1 series for me. I only watch that series couple years ago when it was released in DVD. I missed the tape version back then. So far no series can compare to it.

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Well, that is just your opinion so I respect it. You are "New" to the Foundation then. I saw that WAY back then when it first came out and thought it seemed refreshing and all. However, as time goes by(it has been part of my past and many other 80s series for over 20 years now) a series like the Foundation may not still be loved like it was back then. My mom used to love that series way back then too. I have to say that she still likes it, but not as much as she used to...You may end up like that as well since you are still new to this series.

Trinie: I think I watched this series for the first time like one or two years ago and I didn't quite liked how it turned out.

Felix's character made me angry. Barbara's character was boring. The whole series could've been compressed into a movie and the plot would still be mediocre.

I swear if it wasn't for Felix, Barbara, MKW, and all, I wouldn't have finished the series. The storyline was weak.

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Originally Posted by Suet Seung

Trinie: I think I watched this series for the first time like one or two years ago and I didn't quite liked how it turned out.

Felix's character made me angry. Barbara's character was boring. The whole series could've been compressed into a movie and the plot would still be mediocre.

I swear if it wasn't for Felix, Barbara, MKW, and all, I wouldn't have finished the series. The storyline was weak.

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It was all right. Not spectacular, but not terrible. It was kind of "wuxia by numbers," taking advantage of the popularity of the LOCH '82 cast (honestly, most of the cast for THE FOUNDATION was recycled from LOCH '82) and the general early 1980s wuxia mania in Hong Kong.

I felt that the best part of the series was the soundtrack myself, but I had a dire crush on Michelle Pau at the time.

Hi! Just in case there's some question about whether the series is so fondly remembered only because it was relevant to the 1980's- I watched this just a few years ago, and I liked it a lot! :)

I think the characterization and plot make a lot more sense than the run-of-the-mill wuxia that we see loads of today- and I admit I thought Barbara and Michael were a super-sweet couple. :)

I liked its simplicity- no exaggerated plot lines to pull the lead couple together, no odd coincidences, a relatively straight forward story line, told well, good characterization, with a solid cast and script. Overall, this series gets at least my vote for being awesome even if I'm 20 years late watching it! :)

I might also add that I'm not at all a LOCH fan so that wasn't a big factor in my liking the series! Of course, I might have a unique opinion, but just my 2 cents! :)

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Originally Posted by Suet Seung

Trinie: I think I watched this series for the first time like one or two years ago and I didn't quite liked how it turned out.

Felix's character made me angry. Barbara's character was boring. The whole series could've been compressed into a movie and the plot would still be mediocre.

I swear if it wasn't for Felix, Barbara, MKW, and all, I wouldn't have finished the series. The storyline was weak.

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Hi Suet Seung,
I have to agree with that. I think if it weren't for the cast, this series would not be as popular as it was. The storyline itself was pretty typical and was nothing special. When I saw it for the first time over 20 years ago, I was too young to really judge this series. But as time went on, I began to not like it as much.
However, we all have different opinions so I do respect people who are new to this series and really love it. Imagine if there was an unknown cast with the same storyline. I wonder how that would turn out???

if that were the case, unless the couples had super chemistry, it would have been boring.

but couple with the scenery and camera works of now days, it could put some on the map.

it has the makings for it. love, hate, regret, greed. the works.

i however, didn't like this film, too long, too boring. half way through i wanted to slap someone just to see if i'm awake.

can anyoneeee please help me as to where i can get it in india!!!!!!!!!!!

Love this series and have been looking for it everywhere! Does someone know where I can buy it? I live in the US. DVD version preferred. Thanks!

This series has not been released on DVD, although a VCD edition was released a few years ago.

Judging from recent trends, TVBI seems to have temporarily given up on rereleasing older series on DVD.