King Boxer

Made by Shaw Brothers in direct response to Golden Harvest's huge success with Bruce Lee, this took the formula for the studio's swordplay genre and adapted it (minimally) for the needs of the new kung-fu. The righteous, virginal Chi-Hao (Lo Lieh, more often cast as a villain) wins a regional martial arts tournament, thereby avenging his two treacherously murdered teachers. Obstacles in his path to victory include black-hearted Chinese, evil Japanese and the ambush which leaves him with broken hands. Director Zheng (who is Korean) delivers by-the-numbers action melodrama, never rising above the studio's house-style, and falls back on tacky colour and sound effects to render the hero's winning 'iron palm' technique. But the joli laid Lo is kind of cute, and it's nice to see action choreography (by Lau Kar-Wing) that relies on trampolines rather than wires to enhance the fighters' skills.