In which, a watermelon becomes a dangerous weapon! Or at least its seeds do! All joking aside, The Invincible Fist is a wonderfully realized wuxia flick that deserves to be recognized. If not for the incredible use of leafy, green reed fields, then for the fight choreography which has Lo Lieh battling it out with Fang Mian in a countryside setting, complete with rain-soaked marshes and a charged atmosphere of suspicion and false disguises, thanks to Mian’s carefully balanced kind gentleman charade.
Long before Lieh became King Boxer, he - with director Chang Cheh guiding the shoot - took on four villainous thieves: Southern Geese (Ku Feng), Golden Abacus (Cheung Pooi-Saan), Iron Bat (Chang Sing) and the leader Ma Wai-Jia (Mian) as a constable of sorts, hired by the local government to track down these thieves. He’s not alone in the journey, assisted by his brother Tieh Er-Long (David Chiang), but this is certainly his responsibility to return the stolen loot.
Tieh Wu-Ching (Lieh) is The Invincible Fist. He’s powerful and charmed with great abilities with the sword; he’s also suspicious of strangers on the road. Especially those traveling in downpours, no matter their age. And he should be. Because Ma Wai-Jia is no ordinary foe.
With some wonderfully realized fight choreography set against a very natural landscape, The Invincible Fist is fun to watch (and that split screen opening is BONKERS!!) and completely full of life as the acrobatics on display never fail to disappoint. The fight sequences are intense, disturbingly ugly with their brutality, and full of mud and buckets of blood. They also carry with them enormous weight as each action scene counters some very intense and quiet moments on the road and in the reed fields, where enemies can’t be seen.
The Invincible Fist also involves a blind woman, Kuei Ku (Li Ching), who is Ma Wai-Jia’s daughter. She is wonderfully played by Ching and manages to captivate all sympathy with her dependance on her father, whom we all know is the bad guy. The problem is that he’s not the bad guy to her, proving to be very loving and patient as she has only flowers to tend to and smell while she waits for each and every return trip home from her father.
But Wu-Ching knows him only as the bad guy. Oh, man.
And when these two meet for the final time, only one will return to Ku and her garden of flowers. In spite of its violence, The Invincible Fist is also dynamically heart wrenching and, thanks to Cheh’s subtle control of the camera and his actors, the real story involving the blind daughter of a criminal still reads quite well on film.
The movie - now on 1080p - is only one in Shout Factory’s incredible Shaw Brothers Classics Vol. 1 set. This spectacular box set comprises 11 classic martial arts films from the famous Shaw Brothers' library, featuring some of their greatest stars Jimmy Wang Yu (One-Armed Swordsman), Cheng Pei-pei (Come Drink With Me), Lo Lieh (King Boxer), Ku Feng (The Five Venoms), and David Chiang (The Boxer From Shantung). Many of these films are debuting for the first time on Blu-ray. The film includes two new commentaries, as well.
Living up to its namesake, The Invincible Fist is exactly that!
Home Video Distributor: Shout Factory
Available on Blu-ray - June 13, 2023
Screen Formats: 2.35:1
Subtitles: English
Audio: Mandarin: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; 11-disc set
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
The Invincible Fist is one of the few films where the godfather of the kung fu film Chang Cheh headlined Lo Lieh as the leading hero three years before Lo would become the Shaw Brothers' first international star in King Boxer (aka Five Fingers Of Death). Here he plays a dedicated chief constable for Tsang Chou village who falls in love with the blind daughter of a bandit who is wreaking havoc. Joining him in all the action and emotion are award-winning actor Ku Feng and future superstar David Chiang.
Video
Presented in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio, The Invincible Fist gets its hands bloody and never once rinses its sword as beauty is birthed in this same blood, all with its audience in mind. The poetry on display comes through in the lush fields, the crispness of the interiors and the haunting exteriors, and the sudden violence which echoes throughout the film, including its big finale in which a lone figure takes down all manner of soldiers. Black levels are strong throughout, bringing out nice details in both the loud and quiet moments of this epic adventure. The night and rain-drenched scenes included here are truly rich with layers and those tracking shots are glorious to behold in 1080p.
Audio
For this release, viewers get a satisfying uncompressed Mandarin and English original mono audio. There are optional English subtitles.
Supplements:
Commentary:
-
There are two brand new audio commentaries included. One by film historian Brian Bankston which is quite informative in understanding the film’s importance to Asian cinema, and another with James Mudge, a veteran Hong Kong film critic.
Special Features:
Get ready for some exciting thrills and chills with these bonus features!
-
NEW Audio Commentary With Film Historian Brian Bankston (Cool Ass Cinema Blog)
-
NEW Audio Commentary with James Mudge, veteran Hong Kong film critic at easternKicks
-
Celestial Trailer
-
Original Theatrical Trailer
| Movie |  |
|
| Video |  |
|
| Audio |  |
|
| Extras | |
|
|
Composite Blu-ray Grade
|
||
MPAA Rating: PG.
Runtime: 99 mins
Director: Cheh Chang
Writer: Kuang Ni
Cast: Lieh Lo; Ching Lee; David Chiang
Genre: Acttion | Drama
Tagline:
Memorable Movie Quote:
Distributor: Shaw Brothers
Official Site:
Release Date:
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: June 13, 2023
Synopsis: Here Lo Lieh (future international star of King Boxer) plays a dedicated chief constable for Tsang Chou village, who falls in love with the blind daughter of a bandit who is wreaking havoc.
