“The Thunderbolt Fist” Chinese Theatrical Poster
Director: Chang Il-ho
Producer:Â Runme Shaw
Cast: Chuen Yuen, Shih Szu, James Nam, Fang Mien, Tung Lam, Lee Ka Ting, Wong Chin Feng, Yukio Someno, Gam Kei Chu, Chan Feng Chen, Cheung Hei
Running Time: 86 min.
By Paul Bramhall
In the history of kung fu cinema, 1972 was one of the most significant years. The Shaw Brothers studio had imported several experienced directors and martial artists from Korea, and in this particular year it proved to be a move that paid dividends, when Chung Chang-wha directed a little movie called King Boxer. Not only was it a runaway box office success locally in Hong Kong, but it would also become forever remembered as the movie that introduced western audiences to the world of kung fu (under the title Five Fingers of Death). Sensing that Chang-wha had formulated a recipe for success, understandably fellow Korean director Chang Il-ho was subsequently tasked with replicating it, and the end result came in the form of The Thunderbolt Fist.
Unlike Chang-wha, who by the time he made King Boxer had already been working at the Shaw Brothers studio for 3 years (during which time he churned out 6 movies), for Il-ho The Thunderbolt Fist was his debut for the studio. It was far from being his debut as a director though, with a filmography that already came close to almost 50 titles made in his native Korea since the early 60âs. Being tasked with imitating the success of another movie is arguably not the best way to start your career at a studio though, and perhaps as a result of this Il-ho would only make two other movies for the Shaw Brothers â The Deadly Knives which was made the same year, and Devil Bride from 1975.
The Thunderbolt Fist gives half Dutch half Taiwanese actor Chuen Yuen his first lead role at the studio. A popular actor in Taiwan, Yuen moved to Hong Kong and took a contract at the Shaw Brothers in 1968. After various roles playing an extra or supporting part (he can be spotted in the likes of Chang Chehâs Vengeance! and The Duel), it was The Thunderbolt Fist that gave him headliner status. Here heâs teamed with Shaw Brothers starlet Shih Szu, who was heavily marketed by the studio as the next Cheng Pei-Pei, for a tale which (much like King Boxer) has the Chinese rise up to take on the oppressive Japanese forces, led by Korean actor James Nam (aka Nam Seok-hun). Like several of the actors who appear in The Thunderbolt Fist, Nam also has a role in Chang-whaâs earlier production.
So enough of tip toeing around it, letâs be clear from the start that The Thunderbolt Fist is completely derivative of King Boxer. The structure even follows the plot beats with remarkable familiarity. The hero tries to take on the Japanese, hero fails and ends up with one of his limbs partially crippled, hero trains to overcome his disability, hero takes on the evil Japanese and comes out victorious. In fairness, there are plenty of other movies out there that could also have that same plot description applied, however considering the timing and structure of The Thunderbolt Fist, Iâd be willing to bet none do it quite so flagrantly as we see here.
With that being said, The Thunderbolt Fist shouldnât be written off as just a second rate imitation of King Boxer. Despite the similarities, itâs also noticeable that Il-ho is trying to at least put as much of his own stamp on proceedings as the story will allow. By 1972 Chang Cheh has already developed a reputation for his excessive use of bloodshed, usually leaving the screen coated in liberal doses of the red stuff, but here Il-ho gives Cheh a solid run for his money. Stabbings, decapitations, and more projectile blood spitting than you can shake a stick are liberally sprinkled throughout, with the ground and walls of any given action scene usually caked in blood splatter by the end of any given scuffle.
What is immediately noticeable though is that Yuen isnât a trained martial artist, or, as it would sometimes seem, much of a trained actor. To be fair, heâs not to blame for one major issue. We spend some time with the child versions of Yuen and Nam (played by kung fu cinema legends Austin Wai and Stephen Tung Wai respectively, here both making their screen debuts), and they look no older than 12 years old. When it skips 10 years forward and Yuen steps into the role, the fact that he should be no older than 22 just doesnât match his appearance, which looks significantly older. The discrepancy between age and appearance also results in some cringe worthy moments. In one scene Yuen is resting in a field, recalling his time with a childhood sweetheart, shown in flashback. When it cuts back, he does a deep sigh while looking wistfully at the camera. I promise itâll make you temporarily look away in embarrassment.
Itâs the kind of scene that someone like David Chiang could have pulled off perfectly, but with Yuen it just comes across as slightly awkward. The same also applies to the choreography. While both Szu and Nam look sharp, with Nam in particular outshining everyone whenever he springs into action, Yuen only comes across as average in comparison. He visibly lacks that same sharpness, which is no more evident than when, in the middle of a group melee, he lands in a chair and performs an over the shoulder kick, with no one being there to receive it. The action itself is choreographed by Leung Siu-Chung (the father of Bruce Leung, who can be seen as an extra if you look closely), who never really found himself in that top tier of fight choreographers like his contemporaries Lau Kar Leung and Tong Gaai. Leung does deserve credit though for incorporating the likes of judo and karate into the choreography, but thereâs no doubt that the action on display falls into the basher category.
What canât be denied is that for fans of the genre, The Thunderbolt Fist offers a wealth of early glimpses at those who would become legends within a decade of its release. Apart from those already mentioned, itâs also possible to see the likes of Lam Ching Ying, Tony Leung Siu-Hung, Corey Yuen Kwai, and Alexander Fu Sheng in small parts. Throw in the likes of Kim Ki-ju, aka the guy who seems to appear in every Korean kung fu movie ever made (and of course, King Boxer), and there are plenty of familiar faces to keep the kung-fu cinema fan happy. Where The Thunderbolt Fist gets really interesting though, is in its application of what the title suggests, or rather, lack of.
Just as Il-hoâs effort is heavily influenced by King Boxer, so King Boxer was heavily influenced by Jimmy Wang Yuâs directorial debut The Chinese Boxer, from 1970. The Thunderbolt Fist in many ways is a kind of unintentional hybrid of the pair, with the aesthetics borrowing heavily from Chang-whaâs influential classic, while the element of Yuenâs arm being rendered crippled coming straight from Wang Yuâs earlier movie. However itâs due to this very point that The Thunderbolt Fist seems to lose its way in terms of narrative logic. With one arm rendered useless, Yuen trains his fist extensively from a secret manual explaining (guess what), the Thunderbolt Fist. However after an initial confrontation with Nam and his cronies, the villains are left to reflect on how deadly Yuenâs kicks are. If there was ever a âHuh?â moment in a movie, then this ranks as one of them.
At first I figured something had perhaps got lost in translation, but the more I thought about it, the more it became apparent to simply be a lack of coherency on the part of the filmmakers. We spend time watching Yuen train his fist, however in the last reel all the attention is diverted to his feet. I mean, if he had a powerful kick, why did we have to wait for him to become cripple before he kicked some Japanese posterior!? It doesnât make sense, and coherency is thrown more and more out of the window as we head towards the finale. Nam sends a crony to injure Yuenâs leg before their penultimate battle in an outdoor ring (think the finale of Ip Man, itâs identical), however despite the crony being successful in his mission, during the match itself it doesnât factor in whatsoever.
Despite this, such incoherency can be somewhat forgiven for delivering a finale that lays on both the creativity, and the bloodshed, in equally heavy doses. When Yuen is confronted by a group of Japanese attackers, itâs revealed they have concealed blades in their shoes, in a clear nod to the work Tong Gaai was doing with Chang Cheh at the time. Plus itâs not a spoiler to say that Yuenâs finishing move against Nam is worth the price of admission alone, providing one of those rare spit your coffee/beer/whatever it is youâre drinking out moments. As derivative as it may be, The Thunderbolt Fist does its best to compensate with ample bloodshed and over the top violence, and while itâs true to say theyâre appealing to the lowest common denominator, sometimes thatâs exactly what we need.
Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 6/10
Great fact filled review Paul, another title I’d be interesting in watching at somepoint.
Have a soft spot for these gritty low budget early 70’s Martial Arts actioners.
Yes, an interesting analysis Paul. I really appreciated the information pertaining to the film’s background too.
With regard to the stated lack of plot coherency, I can’t say that I am altogether surprised. Given the rate films were being churned out by the studio at the time, discrepancies in the story line likely went unnoticed. Probably an unavoidable consequence of the ambitious production schedule, particularly when directors’ would often be working on multiple films simultaneously.
Like you, I would also suspect the English film titles given to these productions would only bear a cursory resemblance to the intent of the original Chinese.
Nonetheless, I still hope to eventually track this film down.
I agree the Shaw Brothers conveyor belt style of filmmaking is likely one of the causes for the lack of coherency. It’s almost as if the pages from another movies script got mixed up with this one for the last act.
The good news is that it shouldn’t be too difficult to track down. IVL released it on DVD in Hong Kong in 2006, and Image Entertainment followed up with a US DVD in 2008, both of which are still relatively easy to find.