

Five Fingers of Death

A young boxer joins a martial arts school to increase his skill so he can enter a martial arts competition. He leaves the school when he hears that a local gangster is terrorizing the town. He comes to the aid of a young singer and brings on the wrath of the local gang. He eventually enters the martial arts competition after learning iron palm technique and takes out all competition.
**Part of my 2022 Martial Arts Mondays**
King Boxer (Five Fingers of Death is a name Warner Bros, gave this film when they released it in the US, and is not the name it should go by) is on the very highest level when it comes to Hong Kong martial arts movies.
It's the classic tale of good vs evil. Our hero is of course going through a lot of trials and tribulations, before the showdown at the end. The story is simple, but very well told, and the level of acting is outstanding. Both heroes and villains are great, but I have to single out Lo Lieh. What a likeable dude…
The martial arts and the choreography is second to none. The fights are exciting, and you actually feel the impact of some of the hits. I can easily understand why this is hailed as the one who started the martial arts craze in the US.
I love this movie, and it was a treat to watch it on Blu-ray in the Shaw Scope Volume set from Arrow. I know I say this a lot about the Arrow and other boutique releases, but…It has never looked as good as this.