Review of Hou ying quan

Hou ying quan (1981)
5/10
Looking for a good cheesy kung fu movie with awesome legwork? Well look no further than Shaolin Drunk Monkey
19 April 2009
Warning: Spoilers
Not to be confused with Gordon Liu's Shaolin Drunken Monk, though this movie does have the same villain, Eagle Han Ying. And don't worry, he is on the top of his game in this, unlike Shaolin Drunken Monk.

At the start of the movie Mike Wong (the costar of Ninja Hunter and Ninja vs Shaolin Guards) plays an old kung fu master (a lot like the one he plays in Magnificent Natural Fist and Snake Strikes Back) who almost gets killed by the villain, The Silver Eagle, played by Eagle Han Ying. Eagle Han has declared that he is the best fighter, and he is going to kill all other good fighters. Yes, it is seriously that stupid of a movie. But I will admit that there are a few good genuine moments in this movie between the 2 lead actors, even if they are a bit cheesy. But for the most part it is extremely cheesy, and bad movie fans will no doubt fall in love with it.

Elton Chong plays the hero, and like always, he knows no kung fu at the start. He meets Mike Wong, and, he learns kung fu of course. Duh. Now it's time to look for the villain. Oh yeah, Elton Chong's dad was killed by The Silver Eagle. Apparently The Silver Eagle will kill anyone who can even slightly raise their fist.

The fights are plentiful, and Eagle Han's kicks are just about as good as they have ever looked. he is the main reason why this movie is worth watching, though there are plenty of other good reasons. If you have seen Death Duel of Kung Fu and Ninja vs Shaolin Guards, and you are a fan of Eagle Han, then you cannot pass this movie up. Yeah it's stupid, but Eagle Han can make any movie worth watching when he is given the chance to show his stuff. And if you are like me and happen to be a fan of Mike Wong and Elton Chong, then there's no way you can go wrong with this movie.

Most people are probably unaware of this, but there is a bit of a cult following for Elton Chong. I am one of those people that enjoy his work. He is a good actor at times, has good fighting skills, decent acrobatics, and really good grounded and flying kicks. I would have liked to see what Sammo or another director could have done with him. He seems to be willing to do anything, like in one scene where he jumps down about 6 or 7 feet into a little creek. It looked like he could have been severely injured by rocks, but Elton Chong must have just been a really crazy guy, and maybe that's why he always plays such crazy characters. It's too bad he was only in really horrible Korean movies like this one. But trust me, this is one of his best.
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