Five Deadly Venoms is the first film in the unofficial Venoms series of martial arts films, starring a large group of martial artists and performers working mostly in Shaw Brothers pictures. This first film was hugely influential in Kung Fu film history, and is certainly an enjoyable ride. The film opens with an old man training by sitting in a pot full of boiling water. He tells his pupil, a man trained in the five venoms schools - centipede (Fast strikes), snake (powerful, targeted strikes), scorpion (hidden and sudden strikes), toad (immense physical immunity), and lizard (ability to climb walls), to track down the five experts - one in each of these styles. The teacher knows some have turned to evil, but his pupil must team up with the good ones to defeat the others. Also they wear masks that comically impede their ability to be understood. This is to hide each masters identity from the other. In the capital, the venoms are scheming against each other using secret codes, executions, and torture.
This film has some very fun and campy sequences, with excellent martial arts choreography. It's style is certainly a bit Wu Xia in nature - with the styles giving each master incredible powers. The Toad is a particularly interesting character for his ability to withstand great physical pain. This was a very memorable martial arts film, with the story, martial arts action, costumes and acting, setting and feeling fitting well together. This film certainly suffers from the Shaw Brothers "charm" - the same sets used again and again, similar styles to many of their hundreds of other films, and so on. Even so, this film stands above the pack for its quality, charm and enjoyability. Good watch and a classic of its genre, it is certainly worthy of a watch for fans of this genre of films, or those looking for a good martial arts flick to watch.
This film has some very fun and campy sequences, with excellent martial arts choreography. It's style is certainly a bit Wu Xia in nature - with the styles giving each master incredible powers. The Toad is a particularly interesting character for his ability to withstand great physical pain. This was a very memorable martial arts film, with the story, martial arts action, costumes and acting, setting and feeling fitting well together. This film certainly suffers from the Shaw Brothers "charm" - the same sets used again and again, similar styles to many of their hundreds of other films, and so on. Even so, this film stands above the pack for its quality, charm and enjoyability. Good watch and a classic of its genre, it is certainly worthy of a watch for fans of this genre of films, or those looking for a good martial arts flick to watch.