A young man is entrusted with the golden seal but is almost killed by the Chings. A family nurses him back to health but then they fall victim to the bad guys and he is off to Shaolin temple to learn kung fu and one day take revenge.

The love story angle is a bit weak (really not even needed) and the bits with the drunk/crazy monk could have been developed alot better. However, it's a solid movie all around. I'm real curious if the editing of this movie was intentional as the beginning has a replaced title card then jumps right into the credit sequence where they name off production people (no cast members). Then at the end it plays what appears to be the credit sequence that should have been done in the beginning, and then we get a THE END. Either way it's a bit strange.

As with most Shaw films of this period, particularly by this director, there is some comedy. But unlike most other old-school films that contain comedy, the jokes and gags in this movie are actually funny instead of just being annoying and tedious, and this manages to give the movie a light-hearted tone throughout most of its running-time.

This movie is a definite must-have in any old-school film collection. It is impossible to use too many superlatives when describing its greatness. Absolutely brilliant.

Not to go too much into the plot, but it involves a good guy that knows the deadly Lohan Palm and travels with Polly Kuan to initially find the 18 Jade Lohans as well as track down Chang Yi's "killer". The plot is all right for the most part, and we even have some cameos from Lo Lieh, Ko Fei, and Lung Fei. In the end we find out the "killer", the reasoning behind the string of events leading up to this confrontation, and then have a very weak climax.

Polly Kuan out of the blue gets some epiphany on how to beat her opponent. That was done really dumb and showed a real lack of development on the director's part. Following this epiphany, the villain is defeated in what seems like less than a minute.

As mentioned, some night scenes were hard to view, but it didn't detract too much from the movie. I think the mystery element of this movie was better than the action. Granted you can probably figure out the main culprit halfway in. The action comes secondary to me. I am not one of those viewers who has to have nonstop brainless action with a paper thin plot to have some kind of enjoyment. So in short, I would easily say this is a rental but don't know if I would be watching this over and over again.

Aside from the absolutely remarkable fight scene involving Gordon Liu near the very beginning of "Executioners from Shaolin", there is little else to recommend in this boring film. Even its greatest asset, Lo Lieh, is given scant few minutes of screen time.

The flaws in this film are numerous. The film is so dominated by scenes of Chen Kuan-Tai's extremely mundane domestic life it almost makes the revenge scenario against Pei Mei feel like an afterthought. What little fight action that does occur is slow and uninspired. Moreover, Chen Kuan-tai is never even remotely Lo Lieh's match, even after 17 years of training. The sheer one-sidedness of the fights makes them more tedious than exciting; I won't even go into the absurdity of Pei Mei's kung fu style. And to make matters worse, the training sequences that occur prior to the Hong Xiguan-Pei Mei showdowns are boring, consisting mostly of Chen Kuan-tai banging away on an immobile bronze dummy, when he isn't busy ripping the bark off trees.

But far and away the biggest flaw of the whole movie is the character of Hong Wending, played by the perpetually annoying Young Wang Yu. Regardless of the film, whenever Liu Chia-liang used Young Wang Yu as his comedy relief, it always produced the same annoying-as-hell slapstick result, and this film is no exception. The fact he is portrayed as an exremely effiminate, almost girlish, buffoon with a pronounced lack of kung fu skill does not help matters. That he is able to beat Lo Lieh at the end, after his father had failed twice at the same task even after two decades of training, is an insult to the intelligence of the viewer. This movie is utterly disappointing and completely forgettable.

At the risk of being overly critical, I am tempted to withold half a star because the choreography isn't among the best I've seen (as in "Drunken Master" 1 or 2, or in "Mad Monkey Kung Fu", or "Prodigal Son") and leaves something to be desired. That said, I still find myself engaged in every fight and sometimes cringing at the nasty blows people receive. The choreography reminds me of a Jimmy Wang Yu movie, being more chop-socky. This style is appropriate given that the iron palm technique, glorified in this movie, is delivered in simplicity as a single, straight thrusting blow.

This movie has everything: a multitude of weapons utilized in brilliantly choreographed scenes, great hand-to-hand combat, breathtaking acrobatics; all the physical qualities one associates with the Venoms are here.

And while the plot does evolve into one of revenge, it has much more meat to it than the standard "you killed my teacher, now I'm going to kill you" fare.

Lu Feng is at his sleazy, scheming best as the villian in this film, and he has the kung fu skills to back up his evil machinations. And unlike most Venoms films, all of them play major roles, including Sun Chien who is often inexplicably in the background in many Venoms films. His increased presence makes for some great kicking action. And though there is quite a bit of bloody violence, as usual with the Venoms, there are also some funny, lighthearted comedic moments that help to flesh out the characters and make them more than just two-dimensional killing machines.

This film is an absolute must-have for all old-school fans; it is one of the best ever. Highly recommended.