Anyone who starts the film will most likely finish it. It paces well, the plot is friendly, the soundtrack is groovy, the cinematography and editing are great (Yiu-Chung Cheung won a 1975 Golden Horse Award for "Best Film Editing"... okay, I got that from the DVD cover. You gotta admit, it sounded good!) and the film's budget is decent. If there's anything this movie has over a typical Bond film, it's the excessive blood and violence which is a lot more gutsy and raw.

The fight scenes are a mixed bag... sometimes a little too long and sometimes really dull. But for some reason, during the Wang Yu vs. Lazenby finale, the martial arts choreography is a lot more crisp and direct. I got the impression that more quality time was given to this main event. Honestly, I think it's one of the best staged fights of its time. With that said, kung fu fanatics won't be let down.

Those expecting all-round goodness might be disappointed. One thing that really hurts the film is Wang Yu's voice. I'm not sure if it's really him speaking or not (his lips do synch flawlessly), but every time Wang Yu talks, the outcome of his voice/delivery is laugh-out-loud atrocious. What's even worse is that everyone else sounds fine, which makes Wang Yu stand out even more. Seriously, this film would have been 100x better if this problem was fixed.

As of many early-mid 70's Golden Harvest flicks, expect to catch well-known faces with bit parts - Yuen Biao, Corey Yuen and some extended cameos by Sammo Hung (who also choreographs this film) and Andre Morgan (Golden Harvest's white boy producer). Also in the mix is Hugh Keays-Byrne, mostly known for his role as Toe-Cutter in "Mad Max." Even though this film was filmed a couple of years before "Mad Max," he looks a lot scummier here.

"The Man Fron Kong Kong" is a good, colorful, popcorn flick that's worth watching, but nowhere near Wang Yu's best.

Jimmy Wang Yu plays a Hong Kong Special Branch inspector sent to Australia to retrieve a drug courier (Sammo Hung in an early role) being extradited. However, when Sammo's character gets killed by a sniper on orders of Wilton, the Sydney crime boss played by George Lazenby, the inspector goes on a rampage to bring Wilton down, and the Australian federal police are aghast at his no-holds barred methods.

There's a scene where an exasperated agent blurts out, "This is Australia mate! Not 55 Days at Peking!"

Later that same cop has another great line: "This country's got a small population, and he's getting through them very fast!"

I was almost on the floor laughing! When you watch the dialogue in context, I'm sure you'll agree how hilarious it sounds.

Moreover, Wang Yu has time to bed two pretty Australian women, and the love scenes provide more great dialogue. Check out this priceless exchange prior to steamy love-making...

Girl: "Do you think you've recovered enough for me to make love to you?"

Jimmy (in a totally nonchalant tone): "I think I could stand the pain."

The quality of the martial arts and stunts might not up to par to a later Hong Kong action film set in Australia (Jackie Chan's Police Story 4), but all in all The Man From Hong Kong is a lot fun, down to even the corny 1970's outfits and pop songs.

The Man From Hong Kong is a 1975 kung fu-action collaboration between Aussie action supremo Brian Trenchard-Smith, and Hong Kong's Golden Harvest studio, producer of many of the Bruce Lee films. Starring 60s and 70s kung fu superstar, Jimmy Wang Yu, the film was also an amusing spoof of the James Bond genre, cemented further by the casting of ex-007 George Lazenby as the main baddie. You may ask, why the hell am I writing about this film now? Well, I've always been a fan of Hong Kong flicks and B-grade action movies. They are often so bad, they're good :) I saw The Man From Hong Kong once before on TV and have been trying to find it ever since on DVD. Imagine my salivations when I discovered that HKFlix.com was selling it online!

The plot (and I use this term loosely) starts off with a sting operation at Ayer's Rock no less. This awesome sequence sees drug runner Win Chan (Sammo Hung!!) fight it out with an Aussie cop on top of the Rock. A helicoptor chase of Win's accomplice in a blue Datsun, culminating in the Datsun overturning and blowing up, was also great. Win is nabbed and refuses to cooperate, and so a call is made to Hong Kong undercover detective, Fang (Wang Yu), to come to Sydney and extradite Win. Chaperoned by two Aussie detectives (Hugh Keays-Byrne and Roger Ward) who try to keep him out of trouble, Fang nevertheless unleashes his special blend of mayhem in Sydney in his relentless pursuit of mob-boss Wilton (Lazenby), leaving a trail of bodies, trashed property and cars, and irrepairable destruction of Aussie-Hong Kong relationships. Fang's love interests are played by Ros Spiers and Rebecca Gilling; the saucy Gilling a far cry from Better Homes and Gardens and her current Australian Pensioners Insurance Agency ads!

From start to finish, it's a non-stop action fest, with spectacular stunts, like Wang Yu handgliding above Sydney Harbour; Lazenby being set on fire in the explosive final scene; and some car chase scenes involving Aussie icons like torana's, holden premiers, and a Valiant Charger, ably driven and crashed by Wang Yu. Some corny lines are delivered but I think that's the spoof element coming through; the film never really takes itself too seriously. That said, certain scenes are nauseating, like Wang Yu's horseback wooing of Gilling on a farmstead - bleh! Wang Yu is not as accomplished a fighter compared to his then contemporaries Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan, but he does OK. Flushing Sammo's head down the toilet; squirrel gripping an assassin in a Chinese restaurant, then tossing him into a fish tank; chopping up six karate dudes with wuxhu butterfly swords, were all priceless. He also did a lot of his own stunts, and was nearly killed whilst doing the handgliding scene. I am not sure whether Wang Yu's voice was dubbed, but it sounded very suspicious indeed. But it was all part of the fun. The fashions were sensational too; Lazenby's lambchop sideburns, 70s porno moustache, and exposed hairy chest were all fabulous!

I wouldn't say that The Man From Hong Kong was groundbreaking in any way, but it was refreshing to see an Asian leading man in a Western setting, particularly when it might still have been taboo in those times to see an Asian guy get it on with Caucasian/European women, which I might add, Wang Yu does with gusto! Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon was a much better Hong Kong-Western co-production, but Lee was never much into love scenes, and certainly could never have got Rebecca Gilling's gear off as well as Wang Yu ;)

I really enjoyed this film and would certainly recommend it, if only for a slice of 70s Aussie/Hong Kong action nostalgia. Just keep an open mind and enjoy the chop-sockiness for what it is!

Wang Yu's planned second english language movie, The New Spartans, under the direction of James Bond Director Terence Young was never made as the producers ran out of money during production.

Produced by Golden Harvest and directed by australian Director Brian Trenchard Smith, the producers tried to cash in on James Bond and the then growing easternwave with this crossover product.

Jimmy Wang Yu plays Fang, an undercover detective from HongKong sent to Australia to take down Wilton (George Lazenby), Sydneys biggest drugdealer.

Wilton is understandably not too happy about the fact that a HongKong Cop is interfering in his business, sends his henchmen to kill Fang. Fang is not really impressed by them and finally confronts Wilton in a literally explosive finale.

The Man From HongKong features some impressive fights and stuntwork.Wang Yu performed, long before Jackie Chan became famous, all his own stunts and almost got killed in the hang glider sequence.

The story itself is nothing new with not many surprises but is told at a good speed.

Jimmy Wang Yu plays his role with his trademark coolness and stoic face his fans love him for.

One-time James Bond George Lazenby appears in his second film for Golden Harvest in his first bad guy role.Lazenby had a contract with Golden Harvest for 3 movies, the first one, Stoner, where he played the lead run only 11 days in HongKong theaters, The Man From HongKong made it two days longer but both of them didn'succeed at the box office and thus the third movie was never realized.

A young Sammo Hung has a cameo appeareance as a small time gangster fighting an australian cop on Ayers Rock.