The parents of Lee Tien Chow (Chi Kuan Chun) were murdered by rival warlords when he was infant. An elder friend of the family, Kung Fong, brought the boy to a temple to save him from the fate of his parents. Eighteen years later, the monk who trained him in the martial arts sends him out from the temple back into the outside world. The monk grieves for Lee Tien Chow, because he knows the young man will attempt to gain revenge. The monk tells him to seek out the school of Kung Fong. When Lee Tien Chow arrives there, he is beset upon by a family of martial arts ragamuffins. Lee Tien Chow is forced to defend himself, and overpowers his attackers without using deadly force. Kung Fong appears and explains the situation that made him save Lee Tien Chow when he was young. Kung Fong gives his blessing to Lee Tien Chow to hunt down the assassins and their master, Kim Man Kang. Lee Tien Chow immediately heads to the palace of Kim Man Kang, who is now a warlord for the Ching Dynasty. He easily roughs up the chamberlain and some guards, and warns them that he’ll soon return. Kim Man Kang, now alerted to the presence of his adversary, orders his men to track down and kill Lee Tien Chow. Soon, black-clad assassins descend upon Lee Tien Chow. Among them is the lead assassin known as the Ching Tiger, who takes credit for delivering the killing blow to his parents. This angers Lee Tien Chow, and he takes his frustrations out on his attackers. After dispatching them, Lee Tien Chow saves the Ching Tiger for last. His opponent is soon defeated, and when he demands to know who gave him the order to kill his parents, the Ching Tiger is murdered by a small deadly dagger—thrown by an unseen assailant who doesn’t want the Ching Tiger to talk.

Four of Kim Man Kang’s thugs kidnap a woman who they plan on taking back to their master. Lee Tien Chow witnesses the kidnapping and warns the men to free her. They refuse, and are beat upon like the jackals they are. The girl thanks him and insists she repay him by preparing him a meal. But he realizes killers are after him, so not wanting to endanger her he refuses. Instead he goes to a local teahouse for sustenance, when a beautiful woman (Hai Ho) approaches, intent on seducing him. She entices him out into the back room of the place, where Kim Man Kang’s guards attempt to surprise him. Lee Tien Chow single-handedly subdues the killers, whereupon he is attacked by the lethal lovely who lured him into the trap. Their fight spills out into the woods, where she is impaled with the very blades she intended to kill him with. He returns to his room in the village, where he finds the girl he saved waiting for him. She claims she will do anything to repay him for his bravery (I can think of a few things), but Lee Tien Chow makes it clear he is only there to seek vengeance. Kung Fong tips him off about a crooked casino run by the other assassin involved in the death of his parents, Ming Ting Chin. A platoon of armed guards with swords and shields stand between him and the casino head. A huge battle breaks up the gambling parlor, with Lee Tien Chow finally getting his hands on Ming Ting Chin. They fight furiously until once again the hero gets the upper hand. He spares the life of Ming Ting Chin on the condition that he reveal the identity of his parents’ killers. But before the casino kingpin can divulge the information, he too is struck in the back by a miniature dagger.

Back at the deserted school of Kung Fong, one of Kim Man Kang’s goons, Chang Chen (Chiang Tao) sneaks into the place, and brazenly goes about murdering the women and children. The killer saves the old Kung Fong for last, who doesn’t put up much of a struggle. Lee Tien Chow returns to see Kung Fong and finds dead bodies lying all over the place. Chang Chen then surprises Lee Tien Chow, and the battle is joined. Lee Tien Chow quickly gains the upper hand. Like the others before him, Lee Tien Chow gives Chang Chen the opportunity to say who hired him. The cunning Chang Chen convinces him that he is merely a student of Kung Fong who found his master’s body lying there lifeless, and thought Lee Tien Chow was the killer (hence the surprise attack). Then Chang Chen says that a man named Lung Si Chen (a respected healer) is the one who ordered the deaths of his parents. Lee Tien Chen falls for the deception and immediately tracks down this man, Lung Si Chen (Chen Sing). Lee Tien Chow confronts Lung Si Chen man-to-man, and the healer reveals he has not lifted his hand in violence since his wife died, and has pledged himself to help others. Lee Tien Chow forces a fight with the healer, unaware he is being manipulated by the power mad Kim Man Kang (Lo Lieh). The girl who Lee Tien Chow saved earlier happens to be in the woods and watches the two evenly matched fighters tire each other out. Convinced that Lung Si Chen is evil, he uses a weapon to puncture the ribs of his opponent, leaving him unable to fight. At this juncture, Kim Man Kang himself chooses to enter the fray. Lee Tien Chow realizes he has been tricked, and is barely able to fight off the assault of his deadly enemy. The girl that he saved has a secret that could change the face of this fateful duel...

MASTER OF DEATH exhibits a rushed, slapped together framework to contain the plot and martial arts action. The editing and camerawork are flawed and often make things more confusing than they are. There is a conscious attempt to pad the movie out which affects the pacing. In fact, the filmmakers include a gambling scene from another movie (featuring Chia Ling and Wu Ma) to pad out MASTER OF DEATH. It’s quite obvious and even the film stock does not match. Except for Chi Kwan Chun, the other major players don’t appear until the last act. Together with the low budget, these drawbacks prevent the movie from being a true independent classic. This however, does not mean the movie is a complete throwaway. The script does in fact create some tension and suspense that plays out later on. MASTER OF DEATH does indeed have a hook. The story build-up unravels perfectly in the end. Chi Kuan Chun proves he’s got the ability to headline a Kung Fu movie. His critics claim his acting range is limited, but for a silent tough-guy revenge film, he’s perfect. He also looks like he put on more size for this picture. Lo Lieh lives up his reputation as he delivers another baddest-of-the bad performance. His character is truly vile and hateful, and he puts as much effort into killing his own henchmen than he does his opponents. Chen Sing appears in a rare role as a righteous healer (usually he’s the heal), who actually survives the fateful confrontation to fight another day. The fight choreography is very violent and realistic, with occasional lapses into the ‘flashy’ category. MASTER OF DEATH features 10 major fight scenes, with many of them using specialized weapons such as swords, staffs, daggers, and steel claws. I blame the failures of this movie on the shoulders of director Yu Han Sang, whom I don’t believe directed any other martial arts films.

SIGHT
Many independent low-budget efforts could not afford the ultra-wide ShawScope film stock, and were filmed instead in 1.85.1. Tai Seng presents MASTER OF DEATH in full frame 1.33.1, framed inappropriately from the original 1.85.1 ratio. The DVD is mastered from a VHS source as usual, so while the transfer is slightly better than VHS, there is still the inherent problems that Kung Fu fans are used to (like grain, faded colors, lack of clarity, etc.). The good news is the print displays few scratches, blemishes, or dirt that plague other titles from this era. While it’s true the color seems slightly washed out, the basic essence of the film remains. It’s a cheap movie with not much production values or sets. Similar to hundreds of other independents, the backdrop for the action is the mountains, fields, and woods. The interior shots (consisting of combat scenes inside the restaurant and casino) feature minimum production design not at all convincing to fans of the Shaw Brothers pictures. Heck, even the photography is unimaginative and nothing special (unlike the beautiful cinematography of THE MAGNIFICENT). The fight choreography is truly the saving grace of the feature, and is mostly retained in the image. Overall an average transfer for an average film.

SOUND
The sound is the usual Dolby Digital Mono 2.0. The sound is above average with very little analog noise, tape hiss, or pops that inhabit videotapes. The frequency levels are far reaching and pleasing. The extensive use of swords and clanging shields provide plenty of opportunities in the soundtrack. There is even some slight bass for the high-kicks and death blows. The English dubbed dialog is better than most, with the voices emanating cleanly from the center channel and without distortion. The score is credited to Chow Fook Leung, but clearly these themes are library stock cues that you’ve all heard before numerous times from other independents. To the film’s credit, it’s not the origins or quality of the compositions that are suspect, it’s how the music is used that’s important. And the score here blends perfectly with the drama and action in MASTER OF DEATH.

FEATURES
The disc also includes audio commentary with author Ric Meyers and martial artist Bobby Samuels. Meyers lays the ground work with as much history on this rarity as can be expected, and Samuels comments on the fight techniques employed. This buddy system is fairly effective and brings to mind play-by play and color commentators for a sporting event. Samuels seems rather reserved at times, perhaps he needs some caffeine to bring him up to the speed of Meyers (or a couple of beers to loosen him up). Meyers goes over the resumes of Chi Kuan Chun, Lo Lieh, and Chen Sing. Secondary players are ignored, as info on this movie is difficult to come by. Though not all the details are provided, Meyers and Samuels provide a great overview of working on the Hong Kong or Taiwan independent filmmaking circuit. Indeed MASTER OF DEATH is a perfect lesson of how to produce an independent martial arts film, circa 1982.

There are also English language trailers for these Tai Seng special edition DVDs (all trailers are widescreen with Dolby Digital Mono sound):