THE INVINCIBLE KUNG FU TRIO opens with this descriptive narration:

"A long time ago, China was a peaceful land. After the Manchus conquered China and established the Ching Dynasty, things changed. Taxes were harsh. Times were hard. Hung Sze Kwan, Fong Sai Yuk, and Lu Ah-Choi were three students of Shaolin. They got together to organize a Brotherhood to combat the hated Chings. Their mission is to protect the people and save China from the Ching powers.

"The Abbot of Wu Tang had ambitions to dominate the whole world of Kung Fu. He perfected a highly specialized new Kung Fu technique to further these aims. The butterfly is a very delicate insect. The Abbot’s new technique took inspiration from the butterfly. It had the ability to change its features and float over any surface. It was known as the Butterfly Fist. It was invincible. No one could withstand it."

To combat the secret faction of revolutionaries called The Brotherhood, the Manchurians enlist the aid of the Wu Tang temple, who have a rivalry with the Shaolins throughout history. The High Priest of Wu Tang (Kam Kong) is easily manipulated by the Manchurians, but he fears no one because of his mastery of the unbeatable Butterfly Fist. During a celebration, the Wu Tang guards attack the revolutionary named Lu Ah-Choi (John Liu). His fellow member in the Brotherhood, Hung Sze Kwan (Lee Chung Kin) immediately seeks to get even with the Wu Tang. The wise Fong Sai Yuk (Meng Fei) warns Hung Sze Kwan not to do anything rash; to do so will surely risk exposing the Brotherhood. Hung Sze Kwan sneaks out later that night and infiltrates the Wu Tang temple. The Wu Tang’s guards are no match for his cat-like agility. Angrily, Hung Sze Kwan demands those that assaulted his compatriot stand forth. The High Priest of Wu Tang quickly responds, and they begin to duel. The Wu Tang Master surprises his opponent with the dreaded Butterfly Fist. The proud Hung Sze Kwan is incapacitated by the blow, and completely demoralized.

Hung Sze Kwan stumbles out of the Wu Tang temple, and a peasant hides him in the nearby village. A Wu Tang search party follows, and Wu Tangs corner him inside a barn. Just as Hung Sze Kwan is about to receive more punishment, Fong Sai Yuk arrives to even the odds. Hung Sze Kwan, helpless from the Butterfly Fist, is unable to defend himself, but Fong Sai Yuk chases away the Wu Tang soldiers. Fong Sai Yuk then intrudes upon the Wu Tang temple, and tries to convince the High Priest of Wu Tang to turn against the Manchurians. When the Wu Tang Master refuses, Fong Sai Yuk demands a cure to the Butterfly Fist. The High Priest of Wu Tang promises the cure if Fong Sai Yuk can beat him in Kung Fu. The battle is joined, and after a tremendous showing, the Wu Tang Master overpowers Fong Sai Yuk with the Butterfly Fist. That’s when Lu Ah-Choi shows up to rescue his imperiled comrade.

As the Brotherhood is desperate to learn how to counteract the Butterfly Fist, Fong Sai Yuk graciously suggests they consult his elder Uncle (Liu Ping), who is skilled in both the martial arts and medicine. The Uncle and his lovely daughter, Yau Chun (Angela Mao) tend to Hung Sze Kwan, while the High Priest of Wu Tang sets in motion his plan to crush the Brotherhood. First, they abduct Lu Ah-Choi, which prompts the Uncle and Yau Chun to follow the trail back to the Wu Tang temple. The High Priest of Wu Tang springs his trap, and forces the Uncle into a martial arts showdown. Soon as the Uncle overpowers his opponent, the Wu Tang Master uses his Butterfly Fist to stun the old man. Fong Sai Yuk and a rejuvenated Hung Sze Kwan swear vengeance on the High Priest of Wu Tang for all the pain and misery they have has caused. Before they assault the Wu Tang, they liberate Lu Ah-Choi so the Brotherhood is now at full strength. They prepare to beat down their enemies, unaware that the High Priest of Wu Tang is anticipating their every move. The crafty Wu Tang Master has placed an impostor among them, and members of the Brotherhood are untrusting of the other...

There are literally hundreds of Kung Fu films detailing the Shaolin Vs. Wu Tang wars, and THE INVINCIBLE KUNG FU TRIO is one of the better efforts in the genre. The story has just enough twists, turns, and curiosities to keep the viewer hooked into the intrigue. Especially interesting is how the High Priest of Wu Tang carries out his plan to infiltrate and destroy the brotherhood from within. How he got around to creating those duplicates of the Brotherhood is never revealed—but its implied that he used some bizarre, sorcerous method to conjure them up. Director Lo Chi capably balances the plot framework with the fight choreography. Lo Chi is an underrated director of Hong Kong genre productions, who doesn’t quite aspire to the level of Cheng Cheh, but neither does he sink to the depths of a Robert Tai or Godfrey Ho. Lo Chi is more entrenched in the middle with his contemporaries Joseph Kuo and Yuen Woo Ping.

Lo Chi controls the pacing of THE INVINCIBLE KUNG FU TRIO by continually slipping into action sequences after every exposition scene. Just when one of the heroes looks to get polished off, an unexpected arrival usually saves the day. The fight choreography is very good, with Kam Kong employing the fictitious brand of Butterfly Fist. However, a martial arts veteran Kam Kong can make any bogus style look like the real thing. Hung Sze Kwan, Fong Sai Yuk, and Lu Ah-Choi prepare to combat the High Priest of Wu Tang by practicing the Crane Fist technique. In the explosive conclusion, Kam Kong (who dominates everyone throughout the film) must face the combined fury of Meng Fei, John Liu, and Lee Chung Kin.

Meng Fei is charismatic as Fong Sai Yuk, a role he knows all too well as he played the legendary Chinese character before in PRODIGAL BOXER. In the confrontations with the Wu Tang, Meng Fei delivers his lines with humorous glee, to antagonize his opponents (other than this there is no humor in THE INVINCIBLE KUNG FU TRIO). John Liu has a good presence, and fights really well here. He doesn’t rely on high-kicking moves like he did later in his career. Lee Chung Kin is good as the hot-headed Hung Sze Kwan, but he doesn’t have as much ability as Meng Fei or John Liu. Kam Kong really steals the show in his over-the-top performance as the High Priest of Wu Tang. He injects into his character the crazed, paranoid pageantry of a villain from the old BATMAN TV series. Sadly, Angela Mao is pretty much wasted in this film. Though her character Yau Chun is an accomplished martial artist, she never joins her compatriots in battle. Remember this was back in 1974 when it was still very rare to have a strong female character that would show up the males. Mao later went on to forever change how women would be perceived in Kung Fu cinema, and paved the way for the likes of Michelle Kahn and Maggie Cheung.

SIGHT
THE INVINCIBLE KUNG FU TRIO was originally released widescreen (1.85.1) when it premiered in Hong Kong theaters in 1974. Ocean Shores cropped the film to 1.33.1 (and dubbed it) when they capitalized on the video revolution during the 1980’s. Tai Seng’s DVD transfer utilizes Ocean Shore’s master as the video source. Naturally, it is disappointing to see the film cropped, but the quality of the transfer (for a 1974 chop-sockey film) is quite good. There is very little wear in the image, and the color is not faded. The detail level is also good as opposed to many of these films from the same era. The cinematography is well lit (there are no frustrating dark sequences), and the black level is perfectly calibrated. Despite the cropping, the fight scenes are centered in the picture, and rarely does the action go outside the frame. The Ocean Shores logo appears once at the film’s onset. A satisfying presentation from Tai Seng.

SOUND
Tai Seng’s DVD presents the audio in Dolby Digital Mono 2.0. THE INVINCIBLE KUNG FU TRIO benefits tremendously from its music, which helps craft a dramatic tone to the proceedings. The score is probably lifted from another film. Thankfully, the score sounds prominent in the mix, along with the sound effects and dialog. There is no hiss, drop-outs, or video noise (things that plague Tai Seng’s VHS counterparts). The English dubbing is no better than any other martial arts film of this era, nor is it any worse. The sound effects are clear and undistorted and you can hear the ambient sounds such as howling wolves, banging gongs, and chattering crickets, in addition to the punches, chops, and kicks.

FEATURES
There is also the requisite 30-second Martial Arts Theatre compilation trailer.

CONCLUSION
THE INVINCIBLE KUNG FU TRIO is certainly a better-than-average martial arts production. In fact, it is one of the better movies to emerge from the Martial Arts Theater collection. The cast is dynamic, the plot is unpredictable (at least compared to other Shaolin vs. Wu Tang pictures), and the fights are intricate and brutal. Only one thing bothered me about Tai Seng’s DVD; never mind the lack of extras and Tai Seng’s generic menu and package design--they had the gall to use Chen Kuan Tai’s name on the ad copy to sell this thing when he is not even in the film.