Revenge of the Shaolin Master (1979)

Revenge of the Shaolin Master (1979)
Aka: Ninja Thunderkicks
Chinese Title: 冷刀染紅英雄血
Translation: Cold Knife Dyed in Red Hero’s Blood

 

Starring: Dorian Tan Tao-Liang, Chen Sing, Lung Fei, Chang Fu-Chien, Liu Shan, Tsai Hung, Alan Chui Chung-San, Yuan Shen, Chiu Ting, Woo Wai, Yang Rou-Lan
Director: Lo Chen
Action Director: Yuen Woo-Ping, Yuen Cheung-Yan

 

Revenge of the Shaolin Master kicked off 1979 quite handily for Tan Tao-Liang, the fourth of five consecutive years of reasonably high output before his career wound down. Although still working in Taiwan, Tan found himself in the company of Yuen Woo-Ping and Yuen Cheung-Yan, the former of whom was still basking in the success of his Jackie Chan collaborations the year before. Thankfully, mercenary choreography jobs were not beneath either men at this point, and they bring the same level of skill and professionalism to the fight scenes that they’d been doing for years. The result is a film that sits in the upper echelon of Tan Tao-Liang’s filmography.

Tan plays Lin Chen-Hu, a high-kicking escort whose latest job is to carry donations of rice and money to a region beset by floods. His caravan is held up by bandits, led by Tiger Over Wall’s Chiang Tao, who scare away the non-fighting laborers and fight with Tan. One man can only do so much against an entire contingent of sword-wielding crooks, and the latter absconds with the goods. Tan returns home to lick his wounds and figure out just how to get the rice and money back.

But there is a problem: the local nobleman, Chin Chu (Tsai Hung), has chosen to Lin to be the sacrificial lamb for this particular crime. He has Chin arrested for collaborating with the robbers—despite no actual evidence of such—and has him sent to the magistrate for judgement. Meanwhile, Lin’s sister (Liu Shan, of Snake in the Crane’s Shadow) and some faithful employees of his company show up and free him. This prompts Chin Chu to call for Inspector Shao Yun-Ting (Chang Fu-Chien, of Road to Hell and Young Kickboxer) to bring Lin to “justice.”

While Shao is initially adamant about bringing Lin before a judge, he is slowly moved by displays of Lin’s character and some other disturbing revelations: like how Lin’s fiancée Lam Pang (Yang Rou-Lan of Mission of Kiss and Kill) has become Chin Chu’s personal sex toy since Lin’s initial incarceration. Maybe, just maybe, Chin Chu has a stake in all this business.

My first impression of Revenge of the Shaolin Master was simply how bleak the film is. A lot of good people die over the course of the film and very seldom does it feel like the heroes are ever at any sort of advantage. Lin Chen-Hu, an innocent victim from the start, spends much of the film in chains and getting tortured. This dark tone suits the film well, although director Lo Chen, whose martial arts credits include The Mad Killer and The Invincible, needed to add a bit more energy to the plot itself. Sometimes the film feels like it’s moving in circles instead pushing its way toward its climax. This makes some of the dramatic scenes move a bit slower than they should.

It is also worth pointing out that Chen Sing, who receives second billing in the opening credits, does not show up until the climax of the film. His appearance as “the Marshall” deflates the tension of the story in two ways: first, he shows up to assist the heroes against the main villains and thus robs them of the triumph of defeating the bad guys. Second, he resolves the main conflict completely offscreen without any build-up or foreshadowing. I suppose it works as a cruel irony that Lin Chen-Hu might have gotten off the hook had he waited patiently in jail and waited for the deux ex machina, but in the context of the film, it feels a little cheap.

The action is by far the strongest part of the film. Dorian Tan has rarely looked so assured and confident in his moves then under the direction of Yuen Woo-Ping and his brother. His kicks are faster and crisper than in most of his Taiwanese potboilers, while his handwork is suitably more convincing and complex as well. Only in the final fight does Tan lose a bit of this edge, although given the context--of a trio of physically battered and exhausted men desperately trying to beat each other to death—it makes sense. Tan’s best moment in the film comes early in the second act when he fends off a number of spearmen with mainly his legs. While his kicking skills have always been obvious, few choreographers other than the Yuen Clan would have the creativity to develop such an inventive display of leg-based parries and strikes, coming from multiple targets simultaneously.

Complementing Tan on the action is the supporting cast. While it is obvious that not everybody is a trained fighter, they look great under the Yuens’ direction. Liu Shan wields the double broadswords in most of her fights. Taiwanese regular Tsai Hung uses the Eagle’s Claw in his early fights, and then picks up a three-section staff at the end and does justice to that weapon. Lung Fei, another Taiwanese regular, shows up at the climax as a secondary villain and wields a kwan do in his scuffle with Chen Sing.

The real revelation is Chang Fu-Chien, who plays the good-hearted Inspector. He had sort of a Ti Lung look to him at that time and was just starting his career when he made this. It is almost sad that this cheapie placed him in a leading role under the direction of Yuen Woo-Ping, as it guarantees that many of his subsequent films in which he had supporting roles look like a step down in comparison. His fight scenes are quite good, even though he lacks the flashy moves of his established co-star. His brief fight with Tan Tao-Liang at the climax is particularly impressive. And so it goes with this film: For a low-budget Taiwanese flick, it is impressive. With a little bit more color and energy in the direction, it might have become one of the unsung classics.