Even by today’s standards, FIVE VENOMS is still recognized as one of the best old school kung fu films ever made. FIVE VENOMS has not only influenced countless of other martial art films after its release, but we can also see influences in other forms of media such as music and videogames. At the time of its releases, the movie had a moderate success, but literally catapulted its five leads to stardom in Asia, which who are still internationally recognized today as the Venoms. Directed by the legendary Chang Cheh, who passed away in 2002 with a legacy of more than a hundred movies including other classic such as VENGEANCE! and THE ONE-ARMED-SWORDSMAN, FIVE VENOMS is indeed an important film in the history of martial arts cinema.

FIVE VENOMS features a rather intricate storyline for the genre, an aspect that is often underdeveloped in old school kung fu movies. One of the interesting parts is, of course, trying to guess who the mysterious Venoms are, even if some of the clues are sometimes too obvious for the viewer. However, the story also develops nicely with a few unexpected surprises, twists and turns. The chivalry aspect and the bond that is created between the good and bad characters are well built, which gives the movie a serious dramatic tone that a lot of kung fu film could not successfully achieve at the time.

The character designs are also very creative; the idea of giving a specific, nonetheless strange, fighting technique to each of the disciples was indeed a genius idea, an idea that was later used countless of times in other kung fu productions. The casting was the most dominant aspect of the movie. The film was a big breakthrough for the six majors cast, who were almost unknown before the release of this movie. Three of them, Chiang Sheng, Lu Feng and Phillip Kwok came from Taiwan with a background of martial art experience and acrobatic abilities. Sun Chien, with his special kicking ability came from Korea. As for Wei Pai and Lo Meng, who is easily noticeable by his muscular body, both came from China.

By watching the movie, you can easily notice that these men have great martial abilities and also good acting skills. No wonder why Chang Cheh used them in many following productions. Still today, some of these actors are still active in the movie industry as film company heads or action directors. Probably the most recognized figure today is Phillip Kwok, who worked on many Kung Fu productions since the 1980’s as an action director. He is also responsible for the action scenes in the French movie BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF. FIVE VENOMS is a great and perfect introduction to these actors. I suggest to those new to the genre to find films directed by Chang Cheh, as they have been cherished and recognized as masterpieces.

The only complaint that could be said about FIVE VENOMS is that the plot drags a bit as the mix between story development and action is not very well balanced. There are just a few major fights in the movie; all of them are extremely well shot with the performers giving everything they can. However, more fighting would have probably fastened the pace of the movie. At least, the movie ends with a final battle between the good Venoms and the bad Venoms, all of them displaying their martial art techniques at his best. As for the animal techniques, except for a few key moments that the Venoms actually use their special moves, there’s not that much attention put on the different styles, which is a shame as they could have pushed the idea much further. The fighting is very traditional, with the exception of a minority of moves, so you can expect realistic fighting all along.

FIVE VENOMS is probably one of the first kung fu films that reached an international audience and also one of the most recognized martial arts film in North America, considered by many to be a cult classic. The movie is a strong recommendation to anyone who like kung fu movies. It is also a good introduction to the genre and to the immense Shaw Brothers Studio (that strange logo at the beginning of the Kill Bill movie) catalogue of old school kung fu movies.