REVIEW:
The names attached to Challenge of Death guarantee that its a good film. Lee Tso Nam was Taiwan's greatest martial arts director while his frequent collaborator, Tommy Lee provided impressive choreography. Actors Dorian Tan, Don Wang, and Chang Yi all possessed the necessary martial arts skills and prowess to enhance any film they appeared in. In this effort, the pair proved to be a capable team and appeared side-by-side again in Lee Tso Nam's classic Fatal Needles vs. Fatal Fists (1980).

With Lee Tso Nam at the helm, an involved and unusually competent plot drives the film. Super kicker Dorian Tan plays Lu Sai Yen, a Dragon Fist expert and police agent sent to foil an illegal arms deal which would put guns into the hands of a rebel general and his army. (The year is undetermined, but its likely that this story takes place in the 1930's.) Sai Yen's job is to find out who the arms dealer is and his only lead is a prostitute named Wu Chin Wa who works for him. He gets to her through her boyfriend, a gambler and Snake Fist expert named Chen Tso Lan (Don Wong) who is pressed into helping Sai Yen in exchange for having misdemeanor charges dropped. Initially, the two form an uneasy partnership that takes them from a gambling hall dressed as an old couple where they discover that the owners are sore losers to Wu Chin Wa herself. A sub-plot involving an attempt by the lovers to steal the arms buyer's money is foiled by Sai Yen who finally learns that the dealer is Sung Tin Pa (Chang Yi), a rare Spider Fist expert and all around nasty guy. This villain is smart enough to uncover the scheme that Wu Chin Wa attempted and she's not long for this world. Tin Pa's skills prove to be too much for either Tso Lan or Sai Yen alone, but together they use their skills to bring the arms dealer down for good.

Tso Nam has a knack for creating this type of hardboiled period kung fu where police officials are trying to bust a criminal outfit. Most of his films deal with similar plots. They can be a bit slower than straight action films, but the pay off is in a more carefully constructed story where the normally ridiculous martial arts action makes sense. In other words, his films often put the action in a real world context. Countless kung fu films portray this period in China as a frontier land where rural villages are ruled by local warlords and criminals posing as landowners and businessmen. Like in American Westerns, lawmen are basically on their own when it comes to keeping the peace so they rely on their fighting abilities to succeed.

Dorian Tan proves again why he is one of the screen's greatest kickers in his role as the police agent. Don Wong is a talented fighter who relies more on arm work and occasionally breaks out impressive leaping attacks. There is one such stunt that appears a third of the way in the film and looks spectacular as he kicks an opponent behind while punching another in front while suspended in air. The two players make a great team and they both have skills and personality traits that compliment each other.

Less successful as a pair is Wong and his female counterpart in the film played by a Taiwanese actress that, as of this writing I am unfamiliar with. They never seem convincing as a couple. They both appear locked in their stereotypical roles which are overused in this genre and never connect. In addition, Dorian Tan doesn't so much as acknowledge the death of his fellow police agent near the end. This all hurts the story which in most other respects is not bad.

The martial arts action is likely choreographed by Tommy Lee who also appears in the film, although some sources credit Lung Fong. Lee choreographed many of Lee Tso Nam's films and deserves accolades for providing some of the best action seen outside of Hong Kong. The action incorporates a lot of classical movements, but he's also adept at creating fantasy action too. Chang Yi plays the lead villain and his ability is the Spider Fist, a style rarely used in film but put to good use here. His special move is to toss out elastic ropes from his sleeves that attach to tree branches and whatnot. This allows Yi to hang above his opponent and drop down at will to scoop him up. The cape and web-like embroidery is a nice Shaw Brothers style touch. The duel between Dorian Tan and Don Wong half way through the film is probably the best. The action appears to be only slightly under-cranked and the two really seem evenly matched. At one point, they stop to size each other up and the intensity only grows. Its a great moment that Tso Nam fully capitalizes on.

Breaking it down, this a high quality independent effort. Challenge of Death is not quite as good overall as some of Lee Tso Nam's best films including The Hot, The Cool and the Vicious (1976) and Eagle's Claw (1977), mostly due to the film's slower pace and weak supporting actor performances. But, its still a lot of fun and recommended to classic kung fu fans who generally prefer old school fighting with only a touch of gimmickry.

Security Officer Lu (Tan Tao Liang) is on the trail of a mysterious gun smuggler. His investigations lead him to Madam Wu, an eccentric lady of the night who appears to be the link between smuggler and client. Luckily for Lu, it appears that she has a soft spot for the womanising gambler known as Chang (Wong Tao) so Lu arrests him in the hope that, with a little brute force, he will assist in the case. His inside information brings about the identity of the true man behind the smuggling ring who is a master of the little-known Spider kung fu. Only by combining Lu's Dragon fist and Chang's Snake fist can the two heroes stand a chance of bringing this villain to justice.

Action-wise, 'Challenge Of Death' certainly has a lot to offer. As with the first flick, Tao mainly provides the impressive handwork whilst Liang sticks to what he does best and lets his feet to do the majority of his talking. This is a successful mix that is employed for the majority of the fights and is clearly at its most effective for the thrilling finale in which our two leads combine their skills to battle the ruthless Spider kung fu master. However, Tommy Lee's Spider style emerges as one of the most disappointing elements of the film unless you like your kung fu to be humourous. The cumbersome combination of poor wirework and rather silly hanging manoeuvres only really provide unintentional laughs and this can overshadow what is an otherwise well choreographed set of action set pieces.

The plot is probably the point at which most fans will find their patience lacking. Where 'The Hot, The Cool And The Vicious' was a tightly crafted, traditional kung fu movie with a story that was easy to wrap your head around, 'Challenge Of Death' introduces rather inane moments of comedy and provides a plot line that really could have been told in half the time. If it had been two lesser known actors in the starring roles then this lack of direction could have caused the production to fail but the stars' action abilities alone force you to watch on in anticipation of the next confrontation.

'Challenge Of Death' was always going to provide some exhilarating action thanks to three such captivating combatants but the story certainly leaves a lot to be desired. However, it does enough to hold your attention between the kung fu and is worth sticking with just to see the closing fight sequence. Therefore, this is not nearly as good as it's predecessor but a worthwhile watch none-the-less.

PICTURE: Full screen presentation. It's easy to see why this film is hard to come by if this is the best print on offer. Colours are washed out and pale with heavy damage present throughout in the form of white scratches. Poor even by VHS standards but at the current time it seems to be the only way you will find this film.

SOUND: DD 2.0 English dub with the regular cast of voice artists.

TRAILERS: A Tai Seng montage of various flicks from the Martial Arts theatre range.

The main credits begin with some Spaghetti Western-type theme music as Lu hauls off Chang to trial. Lu proposes a deal to let Chang off if he will lead the cops to the arms smuggler, Chow, who is supplying the warlords. Lu informs Chang that his sometimes girlfriend Madam Wu is the arms broker and can lead them to the buyer Chow. Chang agrees only if Lu helps him raise $100 for his Uncle’s school for the poor. Lu agrees and the two go to a casino in disguise--Chang as an old man, and Lu (in drag) as his wife! They win big and face some casino thugs in an alley upon leaving. Unsurprisingly, a brawl ensues. At a restaurant, Chang is confronted by a thug (who address him as "Golden Spider"?) who forcibly takes him to see his mysterious mistress. Chang resents this and another fight breaks out. Chang is surprised when he is presented to his girlfriend, Wu! She wants Chang to gamble with Chow and win his considerable cash intended for the arms sale. That night, Chang and Lu confront thugs at their hotel. The thugs report the incident to big boss Spider, who is revealed to be the mastermind supplying the ammunitions for the deal between Madam Wu and Chow. The Spider suspects that Chang and Lu are trying to interfere with the arms deal and orders his henchman Lee (Tommy Lee) to take care of them.

Madam Wu meets Chow, a proud gambler, and sets up a game of chance with Chang. Just as Chang begins to seriously beat Chow, Lu (in drag as Chang’s mom!) interrupts the game and hauls Chang away. In a forest, Lu explains that Chang is jeopardizing the arms deal that will lead them to the big boss. The two have a serious kung fu confrontation. The Spider suspects Wu and others are trying to screw around with the deal and orders his henchman Lee to keep an eye on the growing cast of double-crossing participants. Chang and his girlfriend Wu secretly plot to skip out of town and start a new life after they get the money from Chow and give Lu the name of the arms supplier. Unfortunately, the Spider shows up and demands that Madam Wu turn over Chang. Wu denies everything but the Master is convinced they are plotting to betray him. Wang comes out of hiding and takes a brutal thrashing at the hands and feet of the Spider on CHALLENGE OF DEATH's only studio-bound exterior set. Chang is badly wounded and Wu begs him to escape as Spider chokes her to death. That same night, henchman Lee confronts Lu and they sort it out in an especially good but brief fight scene in which Lee is killed. Lu consoles the battered Chang over Wu’s death and goes off to apprehend the Master despite Chang’s warning that he can't do it alone. The next day, just as the Spider and Mr. Chow are trying to conclude the arms deal, Lu and a fellow officer show up to make the arrest but they get more than they bargained for! Spider’s arsenal includes a rope web that he sprays from his wrists (Spiderman-style) to entrap his opponent (with the aid of some convenient wire work). Lu barely escapes while his cop pal is murdered. He finds Chang in a cave holding Mr. Chow hostage to prevent the deal from going down. In retaliation, Spider’s thugs kidnap Chang’s school teacher uncle and threaten to kill him if they don’t turn over Mr. Chow.

Both wounded, Lu and Chang decide to team up and train together. They study each others’ styles and they try to discern the weak points of the Spider Fist style. They train on a rope-suspended dummy and try a variety of combination attacks that should theoretically squash the Spider. The film’s rousing fight finale takes place in a sunny forest where the Spider Master (in a bright blue spider web costume and cape) swings from his web in the trees to make flying attacks on his two brave opponents. When nothing seems to work, Lu cleverly guesses that the Spider's weak point is hidden beneath his trusty belt buckle! They attack his Chi and it’s "Finis".

CHALLENGE OF DEATH is a semi-sequel to Director Lee Tso Nam’s classic THE HOT, THE COOL & THE VICIOUS which also starred Tan Tao Liang, Wang Tao (aka Don Wang) and Tommy Lee. Wang’s Chang the Snake is the film’s most involving character, an always scheming, rascally conman who is out to cheat and double cross anyone at every plot turn. Not a notably stand-out fighter, Wang, came to the attention of western audiences when he replaced the late Bruce Lee and took on Chuck Norris in 1973’s widely released but dismal, SLAUGHTER IN SAN FRANCISCO (YELLOW-FACED TIGER). Like THE HOT, THE COOL, & THE VICIOUS, this film shares a similarly convoluted, multi-charactered plot. Director Lee’s reliance on the theme of man’s eternal greed points to the strong influence of Sergio Leone’s THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY. With the exception of some cheesy wirework in depicting the Spider Fist style, the fight scenes are well above the norm--violent, exotic, and realistic.

SIGHT
This is the typical Ocean Shores full-frame transfer from a battered but serviceable print. Most importantly for a Kung Fu flick, there is no major viewing impairment to the fight scenes due to the cropping of the original scope image. The Ocean Shore logo occasionally appears superimposed in the screen’s lower left-hand corner. The disc’s ability to scan through the FBI warning and opening logos is a welcome nod to the personal freedom that we once took for granted with the video tape and laser disc formats. (A real annoying trade-off we made in upgrading to the DVD format is the fascist encoded device which forces the viewer to sit through seemingly endless warnings, logos, and trailers every time the disc is played!)

SOUND
The mono sound is strong and the sound effects are suitably exaggerated and punchy. The dubbed voices are typically silly and give the film an unintended cartoonish tone. The film’s music hijacks several cues from John Barry’s 007 score for THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN and at least one unidentified Spaghetti Western.

FEATURES
You get the same old Martial Arts Theater promo trailer (full frame, Dolby Digital 1.0, :33) and a decent animated menu with loud sound effects! The menus and packaging for CHALLENGE OF DEATH is an improvement over Tai Seng's other generic Martial Arts Theater DVDs. If only Tai Seng would include trailers, talent bios, and credits on the DVD, it would really make the presentation more appealing.

CONCLUSION
This is one of the better Tai Seng/Martial Arts Theater titles to date and a mandatory purchase if you dig THE HOT, THE COOL & THE VICIOUS. At a consumer-friendly low retail price of $14.95, this no-frills DVD is a decent addition to any fan of old school Kung Fu fan's collection!