Crippled Avengers (1978)

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Amateur movie with Big budget

A Disappointing Continuation

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

It does rather come with the territory on these films, that in order for there to be action, there must be some terrible act to either avenge or on which to get revenge. In this case it is a bit more brutal than normal since the heroes are the ones who are subject to the terrible act. See Tian-du Dao not only saw his wife murdered, but also saw his son Chang Dao lose his arms; this has led to him being brutal and unforgiving himself – and his son, complete with finely draft iron arms and martial art skills, is just as bad. For fun they cripple a group of strangers; leaving one without legs, one without sight; one deaf and mute; and another of his senses, leaving him a fool. The four set out for revenge, joining a martial arts master to learn skills which compensate for their disability and heighten their existing skills.The opening set-up of this film is probably a bit too harsh, because it is hard to relax into a film where the ones we are supposed to care for are having bits chopped off them or being left in some other terrible state. Although this does set-up the villains well, I thought that it was too dark and too quickly, although once the fight back begins, it justifies this narrative device. The group learn to heighten their remaining skills and I quite enjoyed how it worked in the training sections, but also in the fights themselves. There is a bit of a gimmick to the whole thing, but the acrobatics are generally good even if the fight sequences themselves are not quite as good as I would have liked – too often I was more appreciating the movement and the ideas, rather than really getting into the fight.The 5 actors are not quite as good as used in other 5 Venoms films – here they are less characters and more their disability. They still move very well and physically it is hard to fault their acrobatic skills. The sets are overly familiar from those used in other films (particularly the courtyard of the final fight reminded me of the Magnificent Ruffians) but generally it moves well. It is an enjoyable film once it gets over the necessary roughness of the setup, however it is still limited by the gimmicks of the plot and there are stronger films featuring the five.

Despite the title, this is not a sequel to The Five Deadly Venoms. it has the same actors and director, but the stories are not related. In my opinion this film is much superior to the original.It is about an evil politician who cruelly disfigures four men. Once disfigured the four go to learn kung fu. After an amazing training montage, the four go back to get revenge. It is a really fun and campy film.Besides the venoms it also stars Chen Kuan Tai; Chen Kuan Tai is most famous for his role in Killer Constable, another outstanding film. He has great on screen chemistry with the venoms. This is just a fun and violent film.

Sorry folks, but for me Crippled Avengers (AKA Return of the Five Deadly Venoms - named so probably for the marketing purposes alone, without any connections to the earlier film, except the director and the cast) was a let down, one of the glorified Shaw pictures I found less gripping than many others shaded by it's legend.It doesn't take a genius to see that Chang Cheh just let it rip with the script and story instead of trying to make a point or create any menacing moods or great wallowing in traditional virtues (although there's a dose of loyalty, friendship and your regular good old heroism and self-sacrifice thrown in for a spice). The story must be one of the most cartoonish in Shaw history, excluding their pure fantasy adventures, and this time in a bad way.Although in Kung Fu films, action is what mostly counts, I'd like to see some story development and good characters, and mostly there was neither. Even in my eyes the almighty Chen Kuan Tai is plain and hammy in the role of evil master Dao Tian Du. The sympathetic heroes do their best for what is given to them, which is not a lot, script-wise. And instead of a good story, we have a script that just routinely moves from set-piece to other, culminating in the final, mandatory and satisfactory revenge, and that's it, folks.Then, after all the complaining and bashing, the good things. And of course, there's the acrobatic skills of the cast, being dizzying at best. There's also something compelling about the brashness of the film's most cartoonish fantasy elements, mainly the iron prosthetics that have unusual kill skills and hidden secrets. These add spice to otherwise routine script. And like mentioned earlier, the main cast do their best, especially Philip Kwok in the role of a blinded man, in my eyes definitely the best performance in the film.Somehow I feel this movie owes it's status to the nostalgics who have seen it first time dubbed in English in the 70's in some grind-house or Chinatown theater. And I can't blame them for that, being a nostalgic in some matters myself. In my books, however, this is more of run-of-the-mill "Another Shaw production" as they called their flicks themself, with some unique spices added on. Entertaining, yes, but doesn't cut the custard like it's reputation lets you think it would.This is my truth. What is yours?

"All in color, for a dime" - that's what comic books were said to offer in their "Golden Days", action and adventure impossible to perform in "real life", presented in a colorful, but inexpensive, format. Of course nowadays, comic books cost as much as movies, and actually more than "bargain basement" video, such as this re-release of the Shaw Bros. classic "Crippled Avengers".As I write this, "The Fantastic Four" is going into national release; it is hard to believe that Marvel Comics publisher Stan Lee spent some 30 years trying to get that film made; and it will have cost millions of dollars; and it involves tons of computer-graphic effects; and it is being hyped "4 wall", as the ad-men say, i.e., in every possible media, as if it were the new "Gone With the Wind"; when, after all, it is only a childhood fantasy, however entertaining.Fortunately, by the time he began making the "Venom" ensemble pictures, famed Hong Kong director Chang Cheh had learned to stop taking such films all that seriously. While the production values of this film are quite good for their day, Chang Cheh is not intent on making a classic here. He merely wants to make a colorful comic book of a movie suggested by Chinese folk legends, allowing the Venom actors (most of whom had actually trained in dance and acrobatics) a chance to show off their athletic talents. And just to be on the safe side, he placed at the center of the film Chen Tai Kwan, a classically trained martial artist who had also developed considerable skill as an actor. His presence adds credibility to what, after all, is itself a childhood fantasy.For its kind, for its day, this is an exceptional bit of genre fluff; and one has to mention the creative charge brought to this film by a performance ensemble in its prime, and in which everyone is clearly having a great time providing their audience with a great time. This film is just dam' fun to watch, and more than once! One loves these characters, despite the occasional bit of ham, and I repeatedly find myself in awe at the acrobatics of the concluding fight sequence, even though I have seen similar, & more spectacular, feats performed live (i.e., w/o the aid of editing) at a circus. I suppose that's partly because the actors rely as little on the editing as possible, and the director insists on getting as much on film in single takes as possible, and wisely shoots the fights in full-shot, so we can watch these bodies move with as much grace as the actors can conjure. But it's also because all involved are asking their audience to set aside adult judgments on their performance and simply enjoy a well-rehearsed and directed bit of old-fashioned Chinese-style showmanship. When people say "they don't make them like they used to", this is the kind of film they're talking about. A genre-defining moment in the history of "old-school" kung fu films, this film was frequently imitated, and never bettered.