Iron Fists (1979)

Best movie of this year hands down!

Good concept, poorly executed.

Admirable film.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

SHAOLIN KING BOXER is an acceptable kung fu vehicle for a number of Shaw actors, who decamped to Taiwan to make this film which is heavily inspired by the plots of the old spaghetti westerns. The film features no less than two heroes who team up to fight a bandit gang. The first and foremost of these is Meng Fei, the Alexander Fu Sheng-alike, while the second is the great Chen Kuan Tai. The latter plays a man on a mission of revenge and gets sadly little screen time, but he does light up the screen whenever he appears. The bad guys include the wonderful Beardy as well as Wilson Tong. This film features better fight choreography than usual for a Taiwanese flick, with acclaimed choreography Lau Kar Wing helping create fight scenes that feel fresh and involving.

ej's kung-fu capsule review for films of the chop-socky old-school.1. basic plot type - Hero seeks revenge for murdered family.2. plot construction - Solid, if a little complicated; involves a bounty hunter we don't quite trust (Meng Fei), as well as a gang of thieves who can't trust each other.3. dramatic - Chen Kuan Tai really adds credibility here.4. funny - Meng Fei almost adds credibility with occasional humor.5. dialog - pretty good; could have cleared up a couple points rather sooner than later.6. cast performance - Solid, for the most part; gets a little hammy in spots.7. crew performance - Competent, nothing special.8. amount of fighting - Plenty.9. quality of fighting - Pretty good; cast includes some of the better fight-performers of the genre.10. special any cast or crew notes - None.11. big positive - Chen Kuan Tai.12. big negative - Meng Fei (I just find him annoying here).bottom-line - who should see this movie - 'Fu film fans; action film fans with a tolerance for "old school" chop-socky will not be disappointed.

SHAOLIN KING BOXER (aka IRON FISTS, 1979) is an average kung fu film with an above-average cast and fight director. It tells a fast-paced story with lots of characters and plenty of fights but undercuts the suspense by basing the script on Sergio Leone's well-known Italian western, FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE (1967), and its story of two bounty hunters teaming up to catch a bandit and his outlaw gang. Here, a pair of kung fu fighters, one a bounty hunter with an eye for a buck (Meng Fei) and one a former constable seeking revenge (Chen Kuan-Tai), team up to stop an outlaw gang from executing its next big caper, the looting of a wealthy family's treasure house. Many scenes are clearly modeled on similar scenes in the earlier film, although there is enough variation to keep it interesting for fans of both kung fu and Italian westerns.The setting is Black Town, a provincial town where the varied characters converge to either participate in the raid on the Kao family's stronghold or try to prevent it. There are lots of tactical maneuvers and secret deals before the big day as well as a flurry of kung fu bouts battles between some of the more highly regarded names in 1970s kung fu cinema. Shot in Taiwan on a low budget, the film skimps on production design, resulting in extremely limited views of Black Town. The fights, however, are fast and frequent and choreographed by Lau Kar Wing, himself a top-notch director of kung fu films (HE HAS NOTHING BUT KUNG FU, ODD COUPLE) and a co-star of this film. Chen Kuan Tai (BOXER FROM SHANTUNG, EXECUTIONERS FROM SHAOLIN) stars as Captain Chu, whose mission is a vendetta against the outlaw leader, Shu Ting Shen, played by Lau Kar Wing. Meng Fei (PRODIGAL BOXER) plays a rather casual bounty hunter who uses his wits to play various opponents against each other. One of the lead villains is a beautiful woman (Yang Pang An) and Meng's character is the only one to flirt with her. Wilson Tong (THE YOUNG AVENGER) and Leung Kar Yan (SLEEPING FIST) are the other prominent villains although each has had better fight scenes in other films. There are plenty of good fights anyway, including one extended battle between Chen Kuan Tai and Lau Kar Wing. Most are shot outdoors and Chen relies on his long arms and fists although his opponents frequently use swords. However, the fights are not as intricate as we'd like, considering the cast, nor is the film's story as exciting as it could be. For one thing, the criminals operate with impunity before the caper even though the Kao family has been warned about Shu's gang and its intentions. Instead of any sense of real urgency, there's just a long wait until Shu and his gang start the raid. Still, the film moves well and is entertaining enough. It was directed by Karl Maka, who is better known for starring in the 1980s ACES GO PLACES comedies. The title (which is seen as THE SHAOLIN KINGBOXER in the onscreen credits) has absolutely nothing to do with anything in the film.