Sammo Hung is so deceptive. Compared to all the muscular martial arts superstars of the ’70s, the husky Sammo seems like he’d merely played a village punching bag or a comic relief sidekick who gets winded throwing a single kick. Turns out Sammo was able to go beyond holding his own in a fight scene. He’s a dynamo on the screen. He quickly found himself going from extra to stunt man to fight choreographer to major actor. He received prime notice when he sparred with Bruce Lee in the opening of Enter The Dragon. While Sammo lost the fight, he showed skills that he was a worthy opponent including a flip. After being the action director on several films, Golden Harvest elevated Sammo to star, co-write and direct The Iron-Fisted Monk that came out in 1977.
Rice Miller Luk (Sammo Hung) works in a marketplace at his uncle’s food stand. He’s happy to stay at the back of the stall processing the food. One day things go extremely bad when a pack of Manchu goons descend on the stall with outrageous demands. They’re pissed that the Uncle supposedly refused service to some of them the day before. The Manchu give the stall a no star review by beating up the elderly Uncle. Luk leaps into the fray with his martial arts skills even though he’s completely outnumbered by the goons. Before he gets destroyed like his uncle, San De (The Shaolin Plot‘s Chen Sing) a Shaolin monk saves his life. San De is best known as The Iron-Fisted Monk for his destructive blows that he uses in the melee. As the two escape the scene, San De has Luk hide at the Shaolin Temple and learn better fighting techniques from the other monks including James Tien (Fist of Fury). Luk proves to be a great student as he quickly absorbs the lessons. The major thing that frustrates him about the program is the timetable. He doesn’t want to wait two more years to take on the Temple’s ultimate test. Every day he’s behind the Temple walls, the Manchus are torturing other people. He sneaks out through a hole in the Temple’s wall. Is he ready to take on the inhumanity of the Manchu officials that are terrorizing his village?
The Iron-Fisted Monk is considered the first film to mix comedy with martial arts made in Hong Kong. The film did come out a year before Sammo’s friend Jackie Chan got into the genre with Drunken Master. Sammo plays so much of Luk for laughs. But the movie isn’t a straight out laugh riot. The marketplace attack is nasty, but has comic touches such as when Chan Sing takes control. When the Official (Snake In the Eagle’s Shadow‘s Fung Hark-On) has his way with owner of a dye factory’s daughter while her mother is in the other room, it’s extra vicious. This is the Hong Kong cut and not the U.S. release that shortened this scene considerably. While there are great playful sparing moments with Sammo, the last thirty minutes is intense battles that mixes slapstick with bloodletting. Sammo has the amazing ability to give these great comedic expressions and then get extremely serious when it matters. He has a natural ability to surprise which gets back to his deceptive nature on screen.
Sammo’s first directorial effort shows how he put all his acting and stunt experience together with his time directing action scenes. He captures the delicate moments on the screen as well as the huge fights. He gets the camera moving while he’s also in motion during fights. It’s not the locked down shots that so many directors used during this era. His work and the team he brought together is exceptional. The Iron-Fisted Monk captures Sammo’s persona with the mix comedy and marital arts. Over the last year, Arrow Video has released Sammo’s directing work with Warriors Two, Knockabout, The Prodigal Son, Heart of Dragon and Millionaire’s Express. He’s more than Jackie Chan’s sidekick. Sammo Hung is auteur with triple threat talents of actor, fighter and filmmaker. When talking of great Hong Kong directors, Sammo Hung needs to be an immediate part of the conversation.
The Video is 2.35:1 anamorphic. The 1080p transfer brings out all nuances of Sammo’s character as he goes from goofy helper in the stall to the fighting machine taking on the Manchu thugs. The audio is Cantonese 1.0 DTS-HD MA. There’s also a 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix. There’s a Mandarin 1.0 DTS-HD. The English 1.0 DTS-HD MA track with the classic dub long with a 2004 English dub in 5.1 DTS-HD MA. I prefer the original English dub. The movie is subtitled in English.
Audio Commentary by Frank Djeng has him point out that the exterior scenes of the Shaolin Temple were shot in South Korea. He points out the various actors and gives their background. Djeng gives cultural and historical context to what is happening on the screen so you can appreciate so much about the film than Sammo’s amazing moves.
Interviews with Sammo Hung has two talks about the directorial debut. The first (9:37) The second interview (6:00)
Interview with Casanova Wong (17:05) gets into how he was discovered by folks from Golden Harvest while working out at the gym. He discusses his relationship with Sammo Hung.
Theatrical Trailer (4:18) promises us two legendary heroes from the history books and Shaolin Temple action.
Image Gallery has over 38 press photos, lobby cards, posters and a press kit.
Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Gary Mills
Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing by Brandon Bentley
Arrow Video presents The Iron-Fisted Monk. Directed by Sammo Hung. Screenplay by Huang Feng, Sammo Hung & Yu Ting. Starring Sammo Hung, Chan Sing, Fung Hark-On, Chu Ching, Wang Hsieh, Dean Shek, James Tien, Wu Ma, Lam Ching-ying and Casanova Wong. Running Time: 93 minutes. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: October 24, 2023.
