This DVD is informative to all styles of Tai Chi.
My review won't be as long as the other reviews, but I wanted to say that this is very well produced DVD. This DVD is awesome.

Dr Yang has picked 37 Tai Chi postures that he believes to be representative of all the forms in Tai Chi and demonstrates them on students, explains the application, and then has the students do the forms. The students are not fully accomplished experts yet and so they make mistakes while trying the posture applications. These mistakes are representative of common mistakes and Dr Yang corrects the mistakes while explaining why they would make the mistake and why they should do it the correct way.

The photography and DVD menu selection are also very good.
You do not have to know the Tai Chi form to benefit from this DVD, although being familiar with the postures will be helpful.
Also viewing this will be helpful with your form practice as you will have a better understanding of how the form works; and how and why you should position your body.

Also, I thought this was much easier to understand than the book of similar title. But after watching this DVD I went back to the book and it made more sense to me. Seeing the applications in motion on a DVD is really helpful.

I recommend this for anybody that wants to do Tai Chi beyond just copying their teacher.

Without understanding the underlying martial applications of Taijiquan movements, I would just be waving my hands in the air, doing a folk dance. Dr. Yang's demonstrations are easy to understand, adaptable, and the DVD is an important adjunct to his encyclopedic book on martial applications. I practice the Cheng Man-Ch'ing form, but all the movements of that form are covered in this important DVD.

GREAT DVD ! A LTTLE WORDY BUT IF YOU REALLY WANT TO GET INTO KUNG FU, THIS IS IT. FROM BASIC TAI CHI MOVEMENT AND FORMS TO APPLICATIONS WITH FULL EXPANATIONS AND DEMONSTRATIONS OF EACH MOVEMENT . IF YOU ARE NOT SERIOUS ABOUT THE FULL PHILOSPHICAL AND MENTAL PREPARATIONS FOR IN DEPTH PRACTICE OF THE ART, THIS IS NOT FOR YOU. AFTER GOOD INSTRUCTION FROM A QUALIFIED MASTER, THIS VIDEO WILL ENLIGHTEN YOU AND GIVE YOU A FULLER APPRECIATION OF THE MARTIAL ART OF KUNG FU. LIKE ANYTHING WORTHWHILE IT TAKES A LOT OF PATIENCE AND REVIEW TO APPRECIATE THIS DVD.

Easy to use help.s with my health program.

Preserving the essence of taijiquan is a monumentally important task, and we are fortunate to have an exceptional teacher in Dr. Yang. His riveting lecture and superb demonstration reveal the immense depth and breadth of taijiquan. With that being said, Dr. Yang also states that the true origin and application of taijiquan is vanishing. Perhaps ten percent of practitioners integrate taijiquan's root -- defense -- into their practice.

Any person practicing Tai Chi should listen to Dr. Yang's lecture. In my opinion, many would be stunned by a concept heretofore never exposed to them: taijiquan is an internal martial art. While it is true that one can practice simply for relaxation and health, Dr. Yang points out that if your understanding is shallow Tai Chi is not as effective.

Taijiquan ultimately means "fist of the mind". Mind leads the Chi, wherein you harness, project and focus martial power (Jin) to specific body points with precise recoiling velocity (whipping). Your power manifests from relaxation, lower oxygen consumption, and EMF -- the electro motive force of nerves. This increases your ability to stick with your opponent. Contrast that with the blunt force emitted by muscular tension, which consumes more oxygen, releases acid to the muscles, and results in early fatigue. Every taijiquan movement, therefore, is a strategy: it has a name, a meaning, and an application. Here you will find the root of taijiquan.

For example, a movement called "Single Whip" (Dan Bian) has several phases of martial application: You transition from "An" (settle the wrists) with Yin coiling; move the body from east to north to west; the whip is again north-facing; you complete the movement with your body facing north and your left arm and head facing west.

What does it all mean?

Why do we coil with the right hand to initiate the movement?

Why do we use Peng (round the chest, arc the back) as we face north?

Why do we then flip our hands and arms?

What is the whipping motion for?

I would submit that it's not a nicely choreographed dance, and the serious student should ask questions about EVERY movement. What you learn is the difference in reciting what you are told to think, or thinking for yourself and saying what YOU believe. Moreover, it gives body to Dr. Yang's precept: "Have a sense of enemy when doing the form" (Di Yi).

For those who want a deeper understanding of taijiquan and greater dimension within their practice, this is an excellent companion to Dr. Yang's later DVD, Yang Tai Chi For Beginners.