Cast Member: Wang Kuang-Yu

Jackie Chan is given one of his more serious roles and succeeds in giving a fine performance both in the acting and the fighting departments.

I really can’t find much to criticise in this movie. It’s a short, tight story that is well told, well acted, exciting and at times surprising. Good times.

The action is simply electric, most notably the two-against-one finale that pits Sammo and Yuen against Liu Chia Yung.

Of course, it is far from perfect and lacks the polish that was applied to Chan’s later vehicles, but it’s still a solid effort that has a distinctly old school charm.

Although dated, ‘The Chinese Boxer’ is historically fascinating and provides an interesting point of reference to the many films that would follow.

Chang Cheh’s ‘The Heroic Ones’ is an ambitious and sumptuous martial arts epic that set a benchmark for Shaw Brothers at its time of release.

In just over 90 minutes so much action, story and style is effortless woven together that it shows the brilliance of one of the genre’s finest minds.

‘The Shadow Boxer’ is a fairly standard affair as offered by the Shaw Brother’s studio and is unable to elevate itself to compete with the likes of the classic ‘Boxer from Shantung’ and the exceptional ‘The Water Margin’.

A four-star movie that, due to its heavy-handed closing shots, loses half a star; the same idea was used with much more sophistication at the end of ‘Anonymous Heroes’.

Strong performances, intelligently filmed action and an all round aura of quality mean that this comfortably hits a four star rating.

Though there is talent behind the lens and in front of it, this is a run-of-the-mill swordplay film with a wasted gimmick.

From opening credits that ape the Spaghetti Westerns of the period to its surprising epilogue wrap-up, ‘Valley of the Fangs’ is an equally surprising and unexpected hidden gem.