
Watches
May 29, 2007
A precursor to the five venom films. The crew is already intact here, only it doesn't quite feel like a five venoms film yet. It's a bit of an atypical Cheh Chang film I guess, though knowing this is a Shaw Bros production, a statement like that has to be taken with a grain of salt. The Shaw Bros signature is very present, it's just a couple of minor details that set this film apart.
Five elite fighters band together and decide to rebel against their Manchu oppressors, whose reign has taken a severe toll on the Ming people. Each of the five warriors sets out to recruit some strong fighters, hoping to train them into well-oiled fighting machines, so they can take on the Manchu leaders with a small army of their own.
The martial arts scenes aren't quite as good here, but the training scenes are pretty cool, and it's fun to see such a broad cast of varied individuals wage a miniature war. It's a welcome diversion in an oeuvre defined by similarities, though the impact remains quite limited. Ultimately, this is just another Shaw Bros/Cheh Chang collab.
More by the director
Cheh Chang

Have Sword, Will Travel

Invincible Shaolin

Legend of the Fox

Life Gamble

All Men Are Brothers

Blood Brothers

Boxer Rebellion

Crippled Avengers

Duel of the Iron Fist

Golden Swallow

Heaven and Hell

Heroes Two

Marco Polo

Men from the Monastery

Return of the One-Armed Swordsman

Shaolin Rescuers

Shaolin Temple

The Bloody Escape

The Brave Archer

The Daredevils

The Delightful Forest

The Invincible Fist

The Magnificent Ruffians

The Magnificent Trio

The Shaolin Avengers

The Weird Man

Trail of the Broken Blade

Trilogy of Swordsmanship

Vengeance!

Five Deadly Venoms

House of Traps

King Eagle

Magnificent Wanderers

Man of Iron

Masked Avengers

Na Cha the Great

Ode to Gallantry

Ten Tigers of Kwangtung

The Assassin

The Brave Archer Part II

The Deadly Duo

The Delinquent

The Flag of Iron

The Flying Dagger

The Iron Bodyguard

The New One-Armed Swordsman

The New Shaolin Boxers

The Rebel Intruders

The Sword Stained with Royal Blood

The Water Margin

Two Champions of Death

Boxer from Shantung

Brave Archer 4

Chinese Super Ninjas

Disciples of Shaolin

Four Riders

Kid with the Golden Arm

Shanghai 13

Shaolin Martial Arts

The Dancing Warrior

The Demons

The Fantastic Magic Baby

The Heroic Ones

The One-Armed Swordsman

The Pirate

Chinatown Kid

Dead End

Duel of Fists

Journey to the West

Police Force

The Angry Guest

The Anonymous Heroes

The Butterfly Chalice

The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires

The Singing Killer

The Singing Thief

The Generation Gap
