Le Poing de la vengeance

Lo Wei, director of Bruce Lee classics The Big Boss and Fist Of Fury saw potential in Jackie Chan and cast him in several kung fu flicks, including this great film, Dragon Fist. With Bruce Lee gone way too soon and martial arts movies being more popular than ever film makers from east and west scrambled to replace him. Jackie Chan is in rare form as an invincible Bruce Lee type of bad ass. He is on a mission of revenge once his teacher was killed and disgraced by a leader of a rival school. Things get complicated when Chan, his master's widow and daughter arrive at the rival school. I'm not going to give away too much of the plot, but things don't end up all that peachy and all of the violence contains consequences. During this period the market was flooded with similar kung fu films, so Chan found success later with Drunken Master and other lighthearted kung fu comedies. He did a great job here though I think. Jackie was awesome as indestructible, kung fu iron man that becomes fury incarnate at the film's conclusion. Lo Wei also made a well paced, solid chop sockey film with a good story serviced with the right amount of kung fu action. Great kung fu!

If you're a recent Jackie Chan convert, or you've been watching his films since 'Police Story' his backlog of seventies films is a daunting place. There's a lot of terrible, terrible stuff out there. You might have seen 'Eagle Shadow Fist' or 'The Killer Meteors' and shied away from anything else. I wouldn't blame you. But he made some decent films in this era. It's just a matter of finding them.

The Director of Dragon Fist is a man called Lo Wei. I say a man, not a director. Lo Wei was more interested in Gambling than directing.

Bruce Lee nearly came to blows with Wei in the filming of 'Fist of Fury'. Wei spent more time listening to horse racing and sleeping than he did with a megaphone. The result? Lee got his own input. Better movie. That's maybe the point with Lo Wei. The less he directs, the more the other people direct. And that could be a good thing.

Lo Wei director or produced (almost) all of Jackie Chan's films between 1976 and 1978. Chan = Lee. That was the plan. At first anyway. His first starring role in this period was 'New Fist of Fury'. It didn't work. Wei was trying too hard. When he sleeps the stars talent takes over. Anyway, Chan can't play straight. Or can he?

Most of us will be cursed to see Dragon Fist in it's 4:3 pan and scan, poorly dubbed, damaged washed out version. Even taking this into account I think it's the best film Jackie did before 'Snake in the Eagles shadow.' (yes 'Snake and Crane arts of Shaolin' had the best action, but it wasn't as good a film.)

This film is crying out for a remake.

It takes the simple themes of revenge and distorts them till your not sure who's in the wrong. Or Right.

Yam Sai-Kun plays the bad guy. One of his earliest roles. He's a hard, hard man. In the late 60's he swam from China to Hong Kong with the aid of a basketball. He later played roles in Films such as 'Fearless Hyena' and 'Iron Monkey'. But this role, like Iron Robe Yen in 'Once Upon a Time in China' is one of his most psychologically complex. He chops off his leg early on to try and ease his guilt. His self redemption seems, to this viewer, to excuse him of his crime. That makes things more uncomfortable when it's the very crime that Jackie's out to avenge. Jackie, in his role as avenger, blurs the line between good and evil. He joins the 'bad guys' (to comply with the black and white polarisation of these films). He goes too far. But he goes further. There's always a point when you think. 'Come on Jackie, realise that your fighting for the wrong side, beat the hell out of them.' But he still fights. It's a dark film.

Budget constraints. Technological constraints. Lo Wei. Lot's of elements try and turn this film into the 70's schlock it's often compared to. But somehow it rises above all of this. The Choreography varies between the average and the mind blowing. Chan hasn't been better in a straight role until Crime Story (15 years later.) You can probably pick this up for a few pounds. If so it's a good place to start. Enjoy.

We all gotta be careful in what 70's Jackie movies we watch, but this one certainly isn't bad. The plot has something to do with Jackie's master being killed. There actually is a mildly shocking twist (shocking for Jackie, but don't expect Usual Suspects here). Anyway, the kung-fu is very good, definitely up to snuff. Jackie is good, and there's scenes where the old men fight. Even the dubbing isn't horrible. Very good overall, but Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin is better (even though it has an awkward title) if you're looking for something from this era. I gave it a 7.

Standard kung-fu revenge fare, but the man who would soon become the clown prince of Hong Kong martial arts films gives a very credible performance as the hero who is pushed beyond all endurance while just trying to keep his head down. Chan has a solid supporting cast in this film, too: Yen Shi-kwan (who later portrayed the white-haired villain in Chan's first directorial effort "The Fearless Hyena") as the guilt-ridden fighter who vanquished the hero's sifu, plus reliable Lo Wei standbys Nora Miao and James Tien. Best of all, the choreography bears Chan's unmistakable stamp, resulting in a particularly satisfying climactic duel during which the hero uses a crutch to fend off his opponent's sharpened metal tonfas.

Entertaining fights, as well as decent sets and costumes, earn "Dragon Fist" six and a half stars.

There's a special place in my heart for old school Jackie Chan films. For some reason, when I look to my JC collection for something to watch, I tend toward the older fare.

On the surface, DRAGON FIST is pretty average. But if you're an old school fan, you can't help rooting for virutally everyone in the film. Yan Yee Kwan (sometimes Yam Sai-kun) is one of my favorite bad guys; he was also excellent in Fearless Hyena, Once Upon a Time in China, Iron Monkey, and Heroic Trio. James Tien and Nora Miao bring a lot of respectability to the cast as well.

The plot offers some nifty twists. The fights are strong. I have to agree that the film takes itself just a little too seriously. If Jackie's early work could be measured on a "stiff-o-meter," DRAGON FIST would fall squarely between TO KILL WITH INTRIGUE and FEARLESS HYENA. Not coincidentally, that's about where it falls in his chronology.

Much of the charm of these films for American viewers -- and it can't be disregarded, especially for those of us who grew up in the 70s and 80s -- is the afternoon matinee "Kung Fu Theater" nostalgia factor. It imbues them with a quality that I can't ascribe to many of Jackie's later films. I love POLICE STORY, etc. -- the production values are generally much higher, the stunts are mindblowing -- but those are a different breed altogether. They occupy a different place in film history, and in my esteem.