King Eagle

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Cast: Lung Ti, Lei Cheng, Miao Ching, Ching Li

Director: Cheh Chang

Genre: Action/Adventure/Martial Arts

Year: 1971/2009 DVD Release

Rating:NR

Jin Fei (Ti Lung), aka King Eagle, a skilled but reclusive warrior. With warring clans fighting it out all around him, Fei remains a neutral avenger of the innocent until love draws him inexorably into battle. But his romance with chief Yuk Lin (Lei Cheng) of the Tien Yi Tong society means taking on Lin's evil twin sister, one of the most formidable opponents Fei has ever faced.

Director Chang Cheh has made some of the best Martial Arts films in history including, One-Armed Swordsman and Five Venoms. King Eagle doesn't match up to those two or a few others but this is still a solid film from 1971. Jin Fei is a lone hero, he is a strong and lethal killer that can strike at any time if pushed to his limit but for the most part he keeps out of any bad business. There is a great mix of action,drama and a touch of romance here, all three blend very well together making up a strong story that captivates the audience. King Eagle has a lot of the same faces in it as many of the other Shaw Bros. films had, this is a strong cast from the lead actors all the way down the list of the supporting cast. Martial Arts on film is a popular genre and seeing these released to DVD is fantastic. They don't seem to make as many Martial Arts movies as they use to years ago, for the most part it seems Asian Cinema has switched to action and horror as their genres while tossing in a epic like this every now and then. While this certainly lacks of a lot of the Director's later films had King Eagle is still a must own for any fan of Asian Cinema, it is a solid, epic that is highly entertaining and one that requires multiple viewings. Released by Image Entertainment. *** 1/2 Out Of *****