Lan tou He

'Dirty Ho (1979)' is a martial arts movie about a young conman who finds himself indebted to a mysteriously influential antique enthusiast. His initially antagonistic attitude to his new master soon changes when he realises the latter is really, really good at kung fu. This action-comedy is equal parts humorous and exciting, featuring phenomenal fight choreography that perfectly blends fast-paced combat with zany slapstick to craft some truly unforgettable scenes. The creativity on display is almost as impressive as the physicality, with dance-like sequences that go on for minutes longer than you'd ever think possible (without ever truly dragging). Although the story is somewhat weak and the characters aren't exactly deep, the picture knows exactly what it wants to do and it does it with aplomb. You'll smile, then drop your jaw; laugh, then ponder how a mere human can even move like that. It's pretty great for what it is, even if it never quite gets past just being generally enjoyable as an overall experience. Fans of martial arts cinema are in for a real treat with this one.

Funny kung fu comedy with Gordon Liu as a lover of fine antiques, good wine, and is hiding a secret. He wants to show Dirty Ho (Yue Wong) the error of his ways. I have to say, the antagonism between the two is great in the beginning and I enjoyed scenes with the two of them together. Good chemistry.

Gordon Liu has some really weird, but very cool to watch, fight scenes which include wine cups and antique vases!! His fight with Johnny Wang is definitely worth watching. Towards the end, it's all action and the double attacks of Liu and Wong work well together. So for some laughs and lots of kicks, watch this one! And Gordon with a moustache, what more could you want??

This review is based on the version I watched on Prime Video.

Firstly, the dubbing is absolutely atrocious. I always prefer to watch these movies in the original language with subtitles, but this option wasn't available and I had to settle for the excruciating American dubbing.

The over the top sound effects in some scenes was very cringey, and so this movie mainly suffers on the audio alone.

The other negative point was the abrupt ending, as it would have been nice to have an explanation for the assassination attempts on Wang. I was originally going to rate this a 7 for these 3 points, but thought I'd be generous as the film makers can't be blamed for the dubbing.

I had no expectations on this movie and hadn't heard of it before doing a search for Gordon Liu movies, and I wasn't disappointed. The story isn't ground breaking, but it is rather deep for a movie of it's genre, but the movie really excels in the fight sequences.

The fighting is beautifully choreographed, and the subtle style used throughout is impressive, impeccably timed and entertaining to watch. As the movie progressed, I realised a striking similarity to moves later used by Jackie Chan in his movies (not that he copied the moves but there's definitely similarity).

Classic Gordon Liu... not only does he wear a mustache, but his fight scenes are excellent.

If you are a Shaw Bros. or Gordon Liu fan, this one is not to be missed. This one is screened as a comedy with Kung Fu, not the other way around, and it is excellent.

A very enjoyable movie, and definitely one I could watch many times over!