Cinq venins mortels

A dying teacher instructs his final student to check on the activities of five former pupils, each of whom he taught a unique and special style of kung-fu to: The Centipede, Snake, Scorpion, Lizard, and Toad (hence the title). His final student, who knows a little of each style must team up with one of the other good students to destroy the evil ones if there are any.

I can't say I'm a huge fan of martial arts films or the Shaw Brothers. And it's not so much that I don't like them, but just that I don't really know enough to appreciate them. This, however, is one of the first I truly enjoyed and would put on the same level as some of Bruce Lee's work. There are not just plenty of good fight scenes, but a real plot that is a joy to follow.

Its influence has been strong, too. The film was referenced extensively in "Juuken Sentai Gekiranger", in which the Five Venom Fists are based directly upon the Five Deadly Venoms, each reflecting the fighting styles in the film. In turn, they were brought into "Power Rangers: Jungle Fury" as the Five Fingers of Poison. In "Kill Bill" the five assassins of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad are a reference to the Five Deadly Venoms. I need to watch more Shaw Brothers after seeing how good they can be.

Most 70s (and 80s) Kong Kong martial arts films barely function as movies; usually there are a few well-planned fight sequences, but the plot is scraped pretty thin to fill in the gaps between those nodes -- like porno films, really.

But this one does several things well. Most overtly, there is the direction and choreography, which confines each combatant to a 'style' -- it's really based on Chinese circus acrobatics and comedic theater, but the effect works.

Second, there is the language of the camera, which uses some impressive techniques(even by today's measure), changing projection speeds from real time time to slow motion, and from unfiltered to filtered views to depict story direction toward the past or toward the future.

Least overt, but most powerful and unexpected, is the construction. The winner of this contest is determined by who 'unfolds' the story. The master (the writer) sets up a game where the lead character doesn't know who he's seeking, which is the same situation we viewers find ourselves in. One by one, he figures out who is who, at the same rate we find out who is who. It all follows a tragedy/noir arc. The ending tends toward irony, a la "The Sting". Much more clever stuff than what we usually get out of this genre.

The 'five venoms' idea is the template for Tarantino's 'deadly viper assassins' from the "Kill Bill" volumes.

Five Deadly Venoms is the first film in the unofficial Venoms series of martial arts films, starring a large group of martial artists and performers working mostly in Shaw Brothers pictures. This first film was hugely influential in Kung Fu film history, and is certainly an enjoyable ride. The film opens with an old man training by sitting in a pot full of boiling water. He tells his pupil, a man trained in the five venoms schools - centipede (Fast strikes), snake (powerful, targeted strikes), scorpion (hidden and sudden strikes), toad (immense physical immunity), and lizard (ability to climb walls), to track down the five experts - one in each of these styles. The teacher knows some have turned to evil, but his pupil must team up with the good ones to defeat the others. Also they wear masks that comically impede their ability to be understood. This is to hide each masters identity from the other. In the capital, the venoms are scheming against each other using secret codes, executions, and torture.

This film has some very fun and campy sequences, with excellent martial arts choreography. It's style is certainly a bit Wu Xia in nature - with the styles giving each master incredible powers. The Toad is a particularly interesting character for his ability to withstand great physical pain. This was a very memorable martial arts film, with the story, martial arts action, costumes and acting, setting and feeling fitting well together. This film certainly suffers from the Shaw Brothers "charm" - the same sets used again and again, similar styles to many of their hundreds of other films, and so on. Even so, this film stands above the pack for its quality, charm and enjoyability. Good watch and a classic of its genre, it is certainly worthy of a watch for fans of this genre of films, or those looking for a good martial arts flick to watch.

The Five Deadly Venoms is a great kung-fu action movie wrapped in a whodunnit mystery. There are all the usual telltale signs of a kung-fu flick: great choreography, awful dubbing, different "styles" of fighting, and a wide range of greatly exaggerated, often cheesey human emotions. However the plot certainly is better than average. It's interesting and holds your attention throughout the non-fight scenes. Occasionally it's even able to fire up the audience, such as when X character receives horrible injustice.

Another thing I love about the Five Deadly Venoms is the beautiful simplicity of the movie's morals and themes. Just about everyone gets what's coming to them. The cowardly, greedy, and corrupt lose out. The bad guys, consumed by selfish greed are ultimately destroyed by their own treachery and backstabbing. The good guys use teamwork, planning, and integrity to overcome the odds and come out on top.

Poison Clan rocks!

I love movies just like everyone else, but if you don't watch kung fu flix your missing something special, 5 deadly venoms was one of the first kung fu movie i seen as a kid. The fight scene were so amazing plus the storylines are too good!! wink.wink. THIS IS A MUST WATCH FOR ALL MOVIE LOVERS!