David Chiang as a cocky, grinning antihero...Delon Tam (Tan Tao-liang) as a stern, by-the-book lawman...Wang Chung as a hapless tattooist...Fan Mei-sheng as a pickpocket...Michael Chan (Chan Wai-min) as a bandit leader with a dangerous temper...Philip Cheung as his right-hand man. Not many kung-fu films have casts as good as this. So where does "The Blooded Treasury Fight" go wrong? For starters, the first half of the film is almost agonizingly dull; there are long stretches of uninteresting dialogue with no action whatsoever. Secondly, the talents of Wang Chung and Fan Mei-sheng are wasted in their roles. (Wang makes it to the end of the film, but doesn't do much; Fan is eighty-sixed early on, awkwardly and abruptly.) Thirdly, the story is unnecessarily confusing. The basic plot--Delon Tam putting together a motley team of criminals to raid Michael Chan's stronghold and recover treasure that belongs to the government--is fine, but the ludicrous twists and turns are annoying rather than intriguing. Finally, the choreography is pretty good when the action does kick in, but the vitally important final fight scene is marred by the fact that the characters (all trying to get their hands on a chest full of large, extremely valuable pearls) chatter to one another throughout--with the level of sophistication we've come to expect from 1970s chop-socky flicks. "Goddamn ya! So you want the treasure, too, eh? I thought you were on my side, you bastard! Hai-YAAAHH!" There *are* some juicy fight scenes, particularly the showdown between Tam and Philip Cheung (during which director Pao Hsueh-li makes good use of slow motion). And David Chiang is always worth watching, even in his lesser, post-Shaw Brothers pictures. Fans of kung-fu films will enjoy "The Blooded Treasury Fight", but it's definitely a case of good idea/flawed execution. Still, you've gotta love the fact that they swiped Stu Phillips's rousing theme for "Battlestar Galactica" and played it over the opening credits!
4 Reviews
Tops stars make an instantly forgettable film
ckormos131 July 2016
It starts in a tea house. Fan Mei-Sheng pays his bill of three cents then picks Dorian Tan's pocket on the way out. Dorian has outsmarted him and forces him into some kind of a deal. Dorian seems to be some sort of police official. He next goes to see David Chiang, in prison for murder. He gathers a girl also and explains the plan which seems impossible but they proceed anyway or there would be no movie.
In route Dorian is injured and David tries to flee but the gang won't allow him. Meanwhile, the tattooist, Wong Chung, gets access to the bad guy's stronghold. He is to tattoo a map on leader's leg (Michael Chan).
Kim Jeong-Nan appeared a year earlier in Jackie Chan's "Half a Loaf of Kung Fu" and her appearance seemed so different here I could not believe it was the same actor.
The final fight takes place inside a tofu factory. It was standard for these movies to fight it out on a featureless hilltop at the end. Jackie Chan and the Yuen clan changed that to set pieces in the 1980s. In this movie however, the physical features of the factory are minimally used in the fight choreography. There is also a plot twist or two at the end but they are unbelievable and not even necessary for the story.
The year 1979 was one of the most, if not THE most prolific in the history of these movies. I can only rate this one as average at best. My copy is a VHS transfer with English dubbing. The picture quality alone would put off anyone other than the most hardcore of fans so I can't make anything more than a minimal rating and recommendation.
In route Dorian is injured and David tries to flee but the gang won't allow him. Meanwhile, the tattooist, Wong Chung, gets access to the bad guy's stronghold. He is to tattoo a map on leader's leg (Michael Chan).
Kim Jeong-Nan appeared a year earlier in Jackie Chan's "Half a Loaf of Kung Fu" and her appearance seemed so different here I could not believe it was the same actor.
The final fight takes place inside a tofu factory. It was standard for these movies to fight it out on a featureless hilltop at the end. Jackie Chan and the Yuen clan changed that to set pieces in the 1980s. In this movie however, the physical features of the factory are minimally used in the fight choreography. There is also a plot twist or two at the end but they are unbelievable and not even necessary for the story.
The year 1979 was one of the most, if not THE most prolific in the history of these movies. I can only rate this one as average at best. My copy is a VHS transfer with English dubbing. The picture quality alone would put off anyone other than the most hardcore of fans so I can't make anything more than a minimal rating and recommendation.
Twisty hunt-the-gold story with a great climax
Leofwine_draca11 December 2016
Warning: Spoilers
I watched this kung fu vehicle under the title BLOODED TREASURY FIGHT. It features David Chiang in a role away from his usual Shaw Brothers pictures and is very much a typical 'hunt the gold' type story in which various rival parties are searching for a hidden treasure. The bad guys are looking for it too, which means that a wealth of action dominates the tale, alongside various twists involving hidden identities and shifting loyalties.
For David Chiang fans this is a solid enough picture although it being an ensemble picture he doesn't have all that much screen time and is sometimes away from the big fight scenes. He plays his usual character, full of cockiness and likability. Chan Wai-Man is the villain of the piece and as impassive and imposing as ever. BLOODED TREASURE FIGHT features a fast pace and plentiful action so as a kung fu film it achieves what it sets out to do, i.e. entertain the viewer. The plot is just about involving enough to keep you watching, and the whole thing builds to an extensive final set-piece inside a flour mill which is very well directed and thoroughly involving; a real high on which to close the picture.
For David Chiang fans this is a solid enough picture although it being an ensemble picture he doesn't have all that much screen time and is sometimes away from the big fight scenes. He plays his usual character, full of cockiness and likability. Chan Wai-Man is the villain of the piece and as impassive and imposing as ever. BLOODED TREASURE FIGHT features a fast pace and plentiful action so as a kung fu film it achieves what it sets out to do, i.e. entertain the viewer. The plot is just about involving enough to keep you watching, and the whole thing builds to an extensive final set-piece inside a flour mill which is very well directed and thoroughly involving; a real high on which to close the picture.
Good cast led by David Chiang in average kung fu adventure
BrianDanaCamp25 October 2004
BLOODED TREASURY FIGHT (1979) is another all-star kung fu fight fest from the same director (Pao Hsueh Li) and some of the same stars that gave us THE EIGHT ESCORTS (aka 8 PEERLESS TREASURES, also reviewed on this site). It's all about a mission by varied parties seeking a hidden imperial treasure in the fort of a bad guy with a private army who's also interested in the treasure but doesn't know where it is himself. So he waits for the treasure seekers who know its location to arrive and be captured alive so they can be tortured to reveal it. It's not always clear who everyone is or who the good guys are, but the large cast is consistently interesting, the fights frequent and furious and the production values considerably higher than those of EIGHT ESCORTS.
David Chiang leads the cast as a superior kung fu fighter who is released from death row so he can help a constable from the court break into the fort and find the treasure. Tan Tao Liang plays the constable and they are joined by several others for the mission, including Tsai Hung, Fan Mei Sheng (who inexplicably disappears midway through the film), Wang Ching and female lead Chen Bi Feng. Wang Chung plays an inside man at the fort, while the lead villain is played by Chan Wai Man, always an interesting kung fu presence. Philip Cheung (aka Chang Yi Tao), from GRANDMASTER OF SHAOLIN KUNG FU, plays one of the bad guys and has a few good fight scenes. The beautiful Gam Ching Lan (BRUCE AND SHAOLIN KUNG FU, also reviewed on this site) plays a female fighter working for the bad guys who develops a soft spot for David.
The two lead actors, David Chiang and Tan Tao Liang, are both in good form, particularly David, who plays an amusing variation on his usual cocky, overconfident, cheery self and acquits himself well in the fight scenes. Tan is the more earnest of the two and does more than his share of fight action. The two lead actresses, Gam Ching Lan and Chen Bi Feng, don't quite have the star power (or fighting skills) of the lead actresses from EIGHT ESCORTS (Hsu Feng and Lily Li), and they get treated remarkably badly here, taking much more punishment than usual for a pair of beautiful lead actresses. (In one scene, one of them gets lashed repeatedly in the face, but in her very next close-up there's not a mark on her, so I guess we shouldn't be all that concerned.) David's the only male in the cast who pours on the charm.
The final brawl in a working mill that's slowly collapsing from the pressure of all the fight activity is quite a harrowing battle, based on the sheer greed of some of the participants, and involves most of the film's principal performers. It's a well-staged fight although you have to pay extra attention to keep track of the shifting alliances and betrayals. Overall, BLOODED TREASURY FIGHT isn't one of the best kung fu films we've come across, but it's definitely worth seeing if you enjoy these performers' work.
David Chiang leads the cast as a superior kung fu fighter who is released from death row so he can help a constable from the court break into the fort and find the treasure. Tan Tao Liang plays the constable and they are joined by several others for the mission, including Tsai Hung, Fan Mei Sheng (who inexplicably disappears midway through the film), Wang Ching and female lead Chen Bi Feng. Wang Chung plays an inside man at the fort, while the lead villain is played by Chan Wai Man, always an interesting kung fu presence. Philip Cheung (aka Chang Yi Tao), from GRANDMASTER OF SHAOLIN KUNG FU, plays one of the bad guys and has a few good fight scenes. The beautiful Gam Ching Lan (BRUCE AND SHAOLIN KUNG FU, also reviewed on this site) plays a female fighter working for the bad guys who develops a soft spot for David.
The two lead actors, David Chiang and Tan Tao Liang, are both in good form, particularly David, who plays an amusing variation on his usual cocky, overconfident, cheery self and acquits himself well in the fight scenes. Tan is the more earnest of the two and does more than his share of fight action. The two lead actresses, Gam Ching Lan and Chen Bi Feng, don't quite have the star power (or fighting skills) of the lead actresses from EIGHT ESCORTS (Hsu Feng and Lily Li), and they get treated remarkably badly here, taking much more punishment than usual for a pair of beautiful lead actresses. (In one scene, one of them gets lashed repeatedly in the face, but in her very next close-up there's not a mark on her, so I guess we shouldn't be all that concerned.) David's the only male in the cast who pours on the charm.
The final brawl in a working mill that's slowly collapsing from the pressure of all the fight activity is quite a harrowing battle, based on the sheer greed of some of the participants, and involves most of the film's principal performers. It's a well-staged fight although you have to pay extra attention to keep track of the shifting alliances and betrayals. Overall, BLOODED TREASURY FIGHT isn't one of the best kung fu films we've come across, but it's definitely worth seeing if you enjoy these performers' work.
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