Cha Shou
1981 / 92m - Hong Kong
Action
2.5*/5.0*
Masked Avengers poster

Watches

November 11, 2015

2.5*/5.0*

It's a strange observation, but the later Shaw Bros productions often feel a tad more rushed, not quite as polished as their late 60s/early 70s work. Maybe they got a bit sloppy, as they'd been remaking the same film over and over again, but for a big player in a movie industry known for quality by repeated refinement, the Shaw Bros catalog forms a notable outlier.

A brutal gang of masked robbers is terrorizing the land. Wherever they go, they leave behind a trail of death and destruction. Yuen is a young clan leader who is fed up with the masked gang. Rather than wait for his town's inevitable demise, he finds out where their headquarters are located and goes there with a troupe of local fighters.

Masked Avengers is a bit bloodier than your average Shaw Bros film, but that's hardly a selling point (with blood looking like cheap red paint). The fight choreographies are a notch above average and the pacing is on point, so at least that makes this film worth a watch. Pretty basic Shaw Bros filler, but if you're in the mood for a simple and entertaining martial arts flick, it's a decent enough option.