Tian xia di yi quan (1972)

Director:

Chang-hwa Jeong

Writer:

Yang Chiang (screenplay)

Release Date:

21 March 1973 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

The New Movie Sensation That's Storming the Entire World!

Plot:

Two martial arts schools prepare for an important tournament. |

Plot Keywords:

Martial Arts | Tournament | Chopstick | Hand | Juggling

Cast

Lieh Lo	...	Chao Chih-Hao
Ping Wang	...	Sung Ying Ying
Hsiung Chao	...	Okada
Chin-Feng Wang	...	Yen Chu Hung
Mien Fang	...	Sun Hsin-Pei
Feng Tien	...	Meng Tung-Shun
James Nam	...	Han Lung (as Nan Kung-Hsun)
Shen Chan	...	Wan Hung-chieh
Bolo Yeung	...	Pa Tu-er, Mongolian Fighter
Wen Chung Ku	...	Sung Wu-yang
Lung Yu	...	Tu Wei
Yukio Someno	...	Oshima Shotaro (as Ran Yeh)
Tse Lin Yang	...	Sun's pupil
Chi Chu Chin	...	Chen Lang
Bong-jin Jin	...	Lu Ta-ming (as Chen Feng Chen)

Also Known As:

5 Fingers of Death (USA) (poster title)
Five Fingers of Death (USA)
Hand of Death
Invincible Boxer
Iron Palm (Hong Kong: English title) (working title)
King Boxer (Hong Kong: English title) (original subtitled version)
King Boxer: Five Fingers of Death (USA) (DVD box title)
Tin ha dai yat kuen (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)

Runtime:

USA:104 min

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:18 (video rating) (1986) | UK:X (original rating) | Australia:R (2007) | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:R18 | UK:15 (re-rating) | UK:15 (re-rating) (2009) | Finland:(Banned) (1973) | USA:R | West Germany:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario)

Company:

Shaw Brothers

Trivia:

The English dubbed version, released through Warner Brothers, was the film that launched the craze for "kung fu" movies in the United States.

Quotes:

Okada: Hold it!
[as Chao Chi-Hao, Sung Ying Ying & Lu Ta-ming turn around and Chao Chi-Hao walks to face Okada, Okada tosses the severed head of Chen Lang]
Okada: Come on. Let's have a return match.
Chao Chi-Hao: You owe us a good many lives... too many!

Movie Connections:

References "Ironside" (1967)

Classic Martial Arts Movie with Lots of Action!

I was first introduced to this movie while in San Antonio, Tx. This movie was the 2nd. in a double feature. Unfortunately, the theater where I saw this was torn down. Anyways, Five Fingers of Death (aka: King Boxer), was released in 1972 and introduced in the U.S. the following year. Like a lot of "other" Kung-Fu movies released while riding on the "coat-tails" of Enter the Dragon, this particular movie actually was pretty good. It's the story of a country boy who is sent to a martial arts institute to better himself & his fighting skills. Meanwhile, the "opponent" martial arts school plans & scheme to thwart our hero, utilizing dirty tactics to try to throw him off track & try to prevent him from participating in the tournament. By surprise, I had thought since Warner Bros. distributed this movie in the U.S., Warner Bros. was going to issue a DVD. It never happened. As far as I know, this movie has been released in both English & Cantonise, w/sub-titles.....the latter a more "cleaner & clearer" version. Although the fighting sequences are a bit funny to watch (i.e.: flying in air & hitting, jumping on buildings, a fighter using his head....literally....to hit his opponent, etc.), nonetheless, it's classic kung-fu action wonderfully planned & executed. If you like Enter the Dragon, Five Fingers of Death would be an excellent addition to any Movie collection.....if you can find it.