Fistful of Talons, A (1983)

A FISTFUL OF TALONS is a classic kung fu gem featuring charismatic star Billy Chong (KUNG FU ZOMBIE), Hapkido expert Hwang In-shik from THE YOUNG MASTER and the fighting mastery of THE FIVE VENOMS action director Robert Tai. It possesses more than enough genre talent in front of and behind the camera to make it worth tracking down.

The relatively low production values and poor quality of available versions make A FISTFUL OF TALONS look initially like any other mediocre chop socky flick. But don’t be fooled. This one has the legendary Robert Tai orchestrating wire-assisted fight sequences at least as good if not better than his more famous contemporaries at the time including Yuen Wo-ping and Ching Siu-tung.

Although I always knew that Tai was a talented AD, only now can I understand to a degree why he has come to feel cheated out of the success that Ching Siu-tung, Yuen Wo-ping and other world-class choreographers have enjoyed in years since. While they went on to A-list projects in Hong Kong, Hollywood and elsewhere, Tai quickly fell into low budget obscurity after parting ways with director Chang Cheh and Shaw Brothers studios. Even so, he managed to produce some amazing action scenes before bottoming out with forgettable C-grade ninja flicks in years to come.

The lightly comical plot is typical of late-era classic kung fu that loosely follows the DRUNKEN MASTER formula. A hot-headed country bumpkin (Chong) encounters a kung fu master, played by Taiwanese wuxia film veteran Pai Ying, who is on the run from Qing loyalists. After getting into his own trouble with the Qing, Chong leaves his father’s restaurant to become Pai’s student and aid him in fighting the Qing and their fierce Manchurian leader (Hwang).

Where TALONS gets a little more interesting is in its time period which is shortly after the fall of the Qing Dynasty and during the Republican era. Hwang, who in real-life is Korean, is plotting to lead a revolt against the government yet first needs to claim an imperial seal from Pai. Thankfully, this overused plot device is given little further attention and instead the film focuses on the famous Manchurian queue (ponytail) that all Qing-era men were required by law to wear. With the dissolution of the Qing Dynasty, so went the queue, a sure sign of treasonous loyalty to the old regime.

Chong and his buddies initially make it their mission to cut off any queues they see on Qing loyalists. This leads to a frantic group fight within a grain barn involving scissors, sickles and lots of severed hair. It draws on a similar scene in Jackie Chan’s DRAGON LORD while displaying early, advanced elements of the dynamic rope and ladders scene that the Yuen Clan choreographed for ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA in 1991.

This scene, with its overhead camera sweeps and exaggerated wire-assisted leaps, sets the kinetic tone for all the action to come. Chong, a balanced screen fighter with strong sparring and leg fighting skills has no trouble leaping right into Tai’s action madness with an assured stance and cocksure attitude.

Chong’s mission is complicated when his efforts to bag a trio of petty thieves for the reward money catches the eye of a village elder and more importantly his spirited daughter (Liu Hao-yi). She ends up following Chong as he fights his way through more Qing fighters to catch up with Pai.

Chong receives a rather bland and ill-defined kung fu training course from Pai that at one point steals the pebble-from-hand gimmick from the KUNG FU television series. The real gimmick, referenced in the film’s title, has nothing to do with kung fu but is interesting nevertheless. It involves real eagles owned by Liu’s character. They come to her rescue towards the end in what becomes one of the most violent, dramatic and cruel uses of animals in a fight sequence. Bird lovers beware.

Hwang In-shik’s performance as the lead villain is a disappointment. This Hapkido legend made his name in Hong Kong action movies by displaying powerful leg work in films like HAPKIDO, WHEN TAEKWONDO STRIKES and especially Jackie Chan’s THE YOUNG MASTER where he virtually stole the show. Yet in this, his final classic kung fu appearance, at least outside of South Korea, Hwang doesn’t get the showcase that Jackie afforded him.

Like a lot of villains in kung fu movies, Hwang teases the viewer by making few appearances throughout the movie before showing up for the final match with Chong. He lets go with some quality leg work at this point, yet Tai isn’t able to draw much on his strengths. Instead, the final match focuses more on the spectacle of a memorable indoor set furnished with a giant Buddha statue and a pool of water. There are hints of Hwang’s metal legs, but it turns out to be far less interesting than I had hoped.

Tai and director Sun Chung go for tricks over pure kung fu excellence, much as can be seen with other Billy Chong movies like KUNG FU ZOMBIE. Yet I can’t complain much. It’s extremely fun to see eagles swoop out the sky to gouge eyes out, projectiles batted around or sent hurling from wrist launchers and bodies sent into a slow-motion spin through the air after receiving a bone-crunching blow. The camera and wire work are both amazing for a 1983 film.

There were other action directors in Hong Kong experimenting with the kind of advanced action techniques seen in this movie at the time, yet they were few and Robert Tai was probably the only one who didn’t go anywhere with it. Tai’s biggest claim to fame since has been the cheese-fest action opus NINJA: THE FINAL DUEL starring Alexander Lo Rei. It’s a cult film favorite, yet remains far removed from the excellence of IRON MONKEY and HERO.

There are many flaws to A FISTFUL OF TALONS such as bad costuming, an uninspired story and no emphasis on realistic or at least defined kung fu skills. The limited training sequences are lame and superkicker Hwang In-shik has seen better days. I still can’t help loving this movie. Billy Chong is an underrated kung fu star who came onto the scene too late to really distinguish himself. He’s got great charisma, handles comedy as well as Jackie Chan and fights nearly as well, better when considering his leg work. Robert Tai’s action choreography is sophisticated and ahead of its time. I’m not sure how involved director Sun Chung was on this production, yet as the helmer of SB classics like THE AVENGING EAGLE and HUMAN LANTERNS, I’m sure he had a hand in raising the quality of the movie beyond typical indie action standards. This can be seen in the set design, professional camera handling and locations use.

I don’t say this about a lot of the independent kung fu movies I’ve picked up on budget labels, but A FISTFUL OF TALONS has enough deliriously entertaining action that it really deserves a quality home video release to match.