Chinese Hercules in trailers, pictures and ads mainly show actor Bolo Yeung as the star of the film, however, he only emerges as the head henchman in the last half of the film. If you're a fan of his, I guess it's still worth the wait. He's as mono-syllabic as he was in Enter the Dragon, but he has the one great line in the film. Some reviews state that the "hero" (Chen Hui Min aka Wai-Man Chuan)kills his fiancée's brother - not quite true. It's established that the girl likes him, but not really clear what their relationship is. When she shows up later to give him some good news, she never does tell him, AND talks him into a fight that will most likely lead to his death. Being a Chen Hui Min fan, and this being the first one of his I saw, I like the film. You've got a hero with reason not to fight, placed in a situation in which he could partially redeem himself if he did; he's a stranger who steps up to help some kids, but is tortured by a promise made to himself. The bad guy is really bad and the only townspeople who can stand up to the boss face defeat if they don't have anyone backing them up. What more can you want? Most copies are washed out and tend to use a choppy version, so beware if you try to purchase one.
10 Reviews
Who doesn't love Bolo?
KingM215 January 2006
Since this old kung-fu flick features China's answer to Arnold, the formidable Bolo Yeung, one can only assume the title refers to him. The reason this is a bit peculiar is because Bolo is a bad guy heavy who only has about 20 or 25 minutes of screen time. Still, he made his presence known; there's nothing quite like watching multiple Chinamen who weigh 115 pounds dripping wet take on the mighty pecs that are Bolo! Yeah, surprisingly, Chinese Hercules wasn't that bad of a fight flick at all, decent plot and everything. Also stars the chubby punk who "scolded" Bruce Lee for not wearing his uniform in Enter The Dragon.
Historically interesting but actually difficult to watch
winner552 August 2008
This is indeed the film that solidified Bolo Yeung's international reputation as a strong and implacable villain. And he really pulls his weight in the film, killing with a rare enjoyment.
The trouble with the film is two-fold. First it is an early 'chinese boxing' film, not really about the self-discipline that 'kung fu' is all about. It is in the vein of what became known as the 'swining fist' fight movie, since that is what the fighters really do, swing their arms and legs about, without much technique.
This leads to another, larger problem: this film is downright cruel. The violence is unrelenting, even sadistic, and there is no great sense that the hero will at last achieve the much needed revenge and justice until the very end.
It is unclear why many Hong Kong filmmakers chose that kind of structure during that period; my own guess is that it made making films cheaper, easier and faster - everybody get's killed, and then the hero at last exacts revenge. That's pretty much the whole formula.
Historically interesting but actually difficult to watch. Definitely not for repeated viewing.
The trouble with the film is two-fold. First it is an early 'chinese boxing' film, not really about the self-discipline that 'kung fu' is all about. It is in the vein of what became known as the 'swining fist' fight movie, since that is what the fighters really do, swing their arms and legs about, without much technique.
This leads to another, larger problem: this film is downright cruel. The violence is unrelenting, even sadistic, and there is no great sense that the hero will at last achieve the much needed revenge and justice until the very end.
It is unclear why many Hong Kong filmmakers chose that kind of structure during that period; my own guess is that it made making films cheaper, easier and faster - everybody get's killed, and then the hero at last exacts revenge. That's pretty much the whole formula.
Historically interesting but actually difficult to watch. Definitely not for repeated viewing.
Another keeper from Brentwood's 10-packs!
groovycow12 September 2003
CHINESE HERCULES is a martial-arts movie with a nice plot, something you don't see too often in the genre! The fight scenes are also not bad, and considering that Bolo Yeung is one of the bad guys, can it really be that terrible?? :)
Starting with our protagonist Lee Hsi accidentally killing someone in a fight, CHINESE HERCULES follows him through his flight to a small village, which is entirely dependent on the traffic that comes into their pier. As such, the owner of the pier can control all the workers (isn't ownership great?) and beat them up without remorse. Lee wants to defend his friends, but he's sworn an oath to never fight again. Also, the current boss of the pier is eventually overrun by chain-smoking Boss Chan and his giant of a henchman, Chiang Tai (played by our buddy Bolo).
The fight scenes in CHINESE HERCULES, when they actually happen, are not terrible, with the exception of one scene in the middle (wherein a disgruntled worker barges in on the pier owner "doing business") that is entirely overdubbed by shabby sound effects. The most interesting part of the fights is seeing Lee's emotions as he fights with himself over whether or not to fight OTHER people. And eventually, what do you think he decides to do? Take a wild guess!
As mentioned earlier, the struggle of the village's inhabitants against the big bosses is possibly the best feature of CHINESE HERCULES. Add into that an emotionally torn Lee and a huge-ass bad guy and you've got a solid script, and a great movie. My rating: 7.5/10
Starting with our protagonist Lee Hsi accidentally killing someone in a fight, CHINESE HERCULES follows him through his flight to a small village, which is entirely dependent on the traffic that comes into their pier. As such, the owner of the pier can control all the workers (isn't ownership great?) and beat them up without remorse. Lee wants to defend his friends, but he's sworn an oath to never fight again. Also, the current boss of the pier is eventually overrun by chain-smoking Boss Chan and his giant of a henchman, Chiang Tai (played by our buddy Bolo).
The fight scenes in CHINESE HERCULES, when they actually happen, are not terrible, with the exception of one scene in the middle (wherein a disgruntled worker barges in on the pier owner "doing business") that is entirely overdubbed by shabby sound effects. The most interesting part of the fights is seeing Lee's emotions as he fights with himself over whether or not to fight OTHER people. And eventually, what do you think he decides to do? Take a wild guess!
As mentioned earlier, the struggle of the village's inhabitants against the big bosses is possibly the best feature of CHINESE HERCULES. Add into that an emotionally torn Lee and a huge-ass bad guy and you've got a solid script, and a great movie. My rating: 7.5/10
An Old-Style Kung Fu Film
Uriah4330 October 2016
"Shen Wei Ta" (Wai-Man Chan) is a young man who is dating the sister of the local bully. One night the two men get into a fight and after Shen Wei Ta accidentally kills him he is forced to flee from the scene. Vowing to never fight again he changes his name to "Chung San" and gets a job as a manual laborer off-loading cargo from ships and tries to save as much money as he can. However, when young thieves are caught stealing some rice from a warehouse, Chung San stops them from getting beaten to death by offering to pay for the merchandise out of his earnings. This inexplicably angers the dockyard boss who doesn't like the fact that Chung San dared to interfere and proceeds to order some of his hired thugs to beat him up as well. Fortunately, some of the workers come to his aid and manage to stop things before he is seriously hurt. Not long afterward, things get much worse when the leader of a crime syndicate moves in and takes over the pier which subsequently disenfranchises all of the workers who have spent most of their lives working on the docks. Violence soon erupts with a particularly strong and muscled individual named "Chiang Tai" (Bolo Yeung) killing or maiming anybody who dares to interfere with the syndicate. It's at this time that Chung San realizes that he has to reevaluate his vow to abstain from fighting. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was an old-style kung fu film of the type that gained prominence in the early 70's. While not as good as those movies which featured Bruce Lee, this particular film had more than enough action and several actors (most notably Bolo Yeung) who had previously performed with him to give it a certain amount of credibility. In short, fans of martial arts films from this general era might enjoy this particular movie and I have rated it accordingly. Average.
Routine kung fu flick enlivened by the presence of a hulking mega-man
Leofwine_draca29 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
A routine Hong Kong beat-em-up, surprisingly entertaining thanks to the starring power of huge Chinese muscleman Bolo Yeung (ENTER THE DRAGON) who spends his entire screen time breaking down his opponents and ripping them to shreds. Although Bolo doesn't come into the film until halfway through the running time, his appearance immediately signals a stronger level of quality in the fight scenes as he smashes through enemy after enemy, never losing and destroying every opponent. My only major complaint with this film is the misnomer of the retitling, Chinese HERCULES; it makes it sound like Bolo is going to be the hero in the movie when instead he is more routinely (type)cast as the villain's henchman. Now watching Bolo in a traditional peplum-style Hercules film as the hero; that would be something really special.
Aside from Bolo, it's hard to see why this film is so special. The production values are about average for a typical mid '70s Hong Kong kung fu film, meaning that the editing is sloppy and the music overbearing. The dubbing is either unbelievable or ridiculous and the transfer I watched was horrifically panned and scanned, ruining the spectacle of a number of the fight sequences. Speaking of the non-Bolo action, it is fairly routine and the film does take a long while to get going. The clichéd storyline concerns the skilled fighter who kills a man and vows never to fight again; of course we all know that eventually he will resume fighting so the various plot twists are never too surprising.
Cast members put in commendable performances (especially from the lead, whose character surprisingly gets some depth, unusual for this genre) but nobody really shines. Apart from Bolo, of course, who makes do with a single line of dialogue ("First we kill them, then we dump them") for dramatic effect. The finale of the film consists of a massacre followed by a massive battle which really shows off Bolo's bone-breaking capabilities and as a result the entertainment value is far greater than it has any real right to be. My advice is to struggle through the slow build-up and then watch it for the violence and the coastal scenery alone. Grade C chop-socky at its finest.
Aside from Bolo, it's hard to see why this film is so special. The production values are about average for a typical mid '70s Hong Kong kung fu film, meaning that the editing is sloppy and the music overbearing. The dubbing is either unbelievable or ridiculous and the transfer I watched was horrifically panned and scanned, ruining the spectacle of a number of the fight sequences. Speaking of the non-Bolo action, it is fairly routine and the film does take a long while to get going. The clichéd storyline concerns the skilled fighter who kills a man and vows never to fight again; of course we all know that eventually he will resume fighting so the various plot twists are never too surprising.
Cast members put in commendable performances (especially from the lead, whose character surprisingly gets some depth, unusual for this genre) but nobody really shines. Apart from Bolo, of course, who makes do with a single line of dialogue ("First we kill them, then we dump them") for dramatic effect. The finale of the film consists of a massacre followed by a massive battle which really shows off Bolo's bone-breaking capabilities and as a result the entertainment value is far greater than it has any real right to be. My advice is to struggle through the slow build-up and then watch it for the violence and the coastal scenery alone. Grade C chop-socky at its finest.
Kill 'em, and dump 'em!
Hey_Sweden4 November 2019
Michael Wai-Man Chan plays a young fighter named Shen Wei Ta, who accidentally kills the obnoxious brother of his fiancee. Ashamed of himself, he takes it on the lam, ending up in a remote fishing village where corruption reigns supreme. He's vowed never to fight again - at one point, he even goes so far as to maim himself - but he just might have to, in order to combat the gangland bosses who intimidate all the locals.
"Chinese Hercules" is not the slickest film of this type that one will ever see, but it serves its purpose, delivering one intense fight after another. Granted, the dubbing is hilarious - and who would expect anything different? - and the over-use of LOUD "impact sounds" is also worthy of many a chuckle. But the story is pretty decent, and the on-screen performances are capable enough. Despite the supposed brutality of the combat, there's very little gore to put a bad taste in the mouths of more squeamish viewers. The widescreen photography and the location shooting are excellent.
Yang Sze (a.k.a. Bolo Yeung) is touted as the star attraction, and the presence of this martial artist with the awe-inspiring physique will no doubt be the element that will entice most people. But this is really Chans' film, with Bolo reduced to maybe 20 or 25 minutes of screen time, as he portrays muscle employed by the bad guys to keep the locals in line.
All things considered, this is pretty fun. It lacks true distinction, but there are much worse ways to spend 95 minutes.
Jackie Chan and Corey Yuen have bit parts.
Seven out of 10.
"Chinese Hercules" is not the slickest film of this type that one will ever see, but it serves its purpose, delivering one intense fight after another. Granted, the dubbing is hilarious - and who would expect anything different? - and the over-use of LOUD "impact sounds" is also worthy of many a chuckle. But the story is pretty decent, and the on-screen performances are capable enough. Despite the supposed brutality of the combat, there's very little gore to put a bad taste in the mouths of more squeamish viewers. The widescreen photography and the location shooting are excellent.
Yang Sze (a.k.a. Bolo Yeung) is touted as the star attraction, and the presence of this martial artist with the awe-inspiring physique will no doubt be the element that will entice most people. But this is really Chans' film, with Bolo reduced to maybe 20 or 25 minutes of screen time, as he portrays muscle employed by the bad guys to keep the locals in line.
All things considered, this is pretty fun. It lacks true distinction, but there are much worse ways to spend 95 minutes.
Jackie Chan and Corey Yuen have bit parts.
Seven out of 10.
He's got a crush on you!
AwesomeWolf5 November 2004
Version: RBC entertainment (and probably bootlegged) DVD. Dub only.
Chan Wai Man is a fighter, and doesn't get along with his fiancé's brother. In fact, he accidentally kills him and runs away. He vows never to raise his fists in anger again, and finds work at a dock. The company owning the dock is down-right nasty, repeatedly cheating and abusing their workers. The workers try to fight back, but only Chan is strong enough to actually beat the company bosses and their henchmen.
If you bought a movie called "Chinese Hercules" for $8, and the cover makes out the movie to be completely about Bolo Yeung, what would you expect? I didn't expect much, but I was rather surprised. The story is pretty solid, you really feel Chan, and the fights (though not frequent) are pretty good. My only complaint would be that there isn't enough Bolo. Bolo is cool.
My only complaint is the dubbing. Sure, it is hilariously bad, but it does detract from what is otherwise a pretty good movie.
8/10
Chan Wai Man is a fighter, and doesn't get along with his fiancé's brother. In fact, he accidentally kills him and runs away. He vows never to raise his fists in anger again, and finds work at a dock. The company owning the dock is down-right nasty, repeatedly cheating and abusing their workers. The workers try to fight back, but only Chan is strong enough to actually beat the company bosses and their henchmen.
If you bought a movie called "Chinese Hercules" for $8, and the cover makes out the movie to be completely about Bolo Yeung, what would you expect? I didn't expect much, but I was rather surprised. The story is pretty solid, you really feel Chan, and the fights (though not frequent) are pretty good. My only complaint would be that there isn't enough Bolo. Bolo is cool.
My only complaint is the dubbing. Sure, it is hilariously bad, but it does detract from what is otherwise a pretty good movie.
8/10
A nifty martial arts action outing
Woodyanders12 February 2009
Warning: Spoilers
Lee Hsi (a solid performance by Yeh Fang) accidentally kills his fiancé's brother in a fight. Lee promptly leaves town and vows never to fight again. He gets a job unloading boats in a small village. The ruthless Boss Chan (a perfectly hateful portrayal by Liang Tin) closes down the docks and puts everyone in the village out of work. It's up to Lee to face both Chan and his army of nasty flunkies. Director Ta Huang and writer Kuang Ni deliver a strong and compelling story about courage, morality and redemption that moves along at a steady clip, offers an interesting array of colorful characters, and certainly doesn't skimp on the copious raw, brutal and exciting martial arts fisticuffs. Moreover, the harsh, serious tone and bleak coastal community setting add extra grit to the absorbing narrative. The film earns bonus points for its realistic and unglamorous depiction of violence. Fang makes for a sympathetic tormented protagonist, with sturdy support from Di Chin as tubby, amiable bumbler Wa Ah-mao, Tien Ying Li as the hot-tempered Chu-heng, Wang Chung Tsung as tough, friendly foreman Uncle Lo, and Fan Chiang as Chan's sultry mistress Miss Ho. Top acting honors go to the ever-fearsome Bolo Yeung as the savage and intimidating Chiang Tai, who's the seemingly unbeatable henchman for the main bad guy. The climactic confrontation between Lee and Chiang is a total vicious corker. A worthy chopysocky flick.
Is there no one who save the village from this massive foe?
gcmulock5 August 1999
A small village is under the thumb of the local cigarette-flipping Boss Chan (Liang Tim) and his hired thugs, including a giant of a man, Chiang Tai (Bolo Yeung). A man, seeking to run away from his past (he killed someone in a fight) seeks refuge there, vowing never to lift his hand against another man again.
Memorable Quotes: "First we kill 'em, then we dump 'em"
Memorable Quotes: "First we kill 'em, then we dump 'em"
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