DVD Synopsis: Blistering, epic-scale action from the director of NEW POLICE STORY and SHAOLIN, with the action director of IP MAN. Call Of Heroes thrills through-out in its tale of skilled martial artists, who take a stand to protect their village against a ruthless army. In 1914, after the collapse of China's Qing dynasty, Yag Kenan (Sean Lau – Mad Detective) is appointed as guardian to defend the rural village of Pucheng. When alone man enters the village and takes innocent lives, Yang makes the decision that he must be sentenced to death. It emerges that this man is Cao Shaolun (Louis Koo – Flash Point), son of a sadistic warlord, and his army demands the son is released, threatening to bring death and destruction. The village soon becomes split between those who want to stand against the warlord, and those who want to set Cao free in a bid for peace. As the odds for peace lessen and the pressure mounts for Yang to release the murderous captive, a stirring tale of heroic resistance unfolds as he and a team of skilled villagers make a last stand against the warlord's vicious army. In the face of insurmountable odds, heroes will rise. (120 Mins)

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Views: Set in 1914 after the collapse of the Qing dynasty, Call Of Heroes tells the tale of heroes standing up to evil when a sadistic man's actions threaten the fate of the whole village. After slaughtered some of the villagers for his own entertainment, Cao is caught by the guardian and law-man of Pucheng, Yang Kenan. Once jailed, it is revealed that Cao is the son of a warlord who wants his son freed. Standing strong for justice, Yang keeps his prisoner but soon finds himself caught between those who want the warlord stopped and those who want to free Cao for the sake of their lives...

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Call Of Heroes is quite possibly one of the late Benny Chan's greatest ever films. It boasts an incredible cast with the great Lau Ching Wan, Louis Koo, Eddie Peng, Wu Jing, Xing Yu, and Liu Kai Chi who (at the time of writing) unfortunately passed away last week, as well as benefiting from the powerful choreography of the legendary Sammo Hung. It plays like a good old-fashioned kung-fu movie, albeit with a good old-fashioned Spaghetti Western feel, yet still feels fresh in many ways. This is down to Chan's direction along with its high production values, with no lack of detail in the costume department or its incredible riverside village set, completely built from scratch for the production. It's highly impressive and extremely authentic, and no doubt took most of the majority of the film's budget to complete, but with good reason. Most of the film takes place in the village of Pucheng, with each of the main characters making their way to or through it during the course of the story, and Benny Chan certainly makes use of every corner available!

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As impressive as Pucheng is, Call Of Heroes benefits most from its fantastic cast. The handsome and brilliant Eddie Peng is the first main character to get introduced, opening the film (after he wakes from a food coma) by beating the hell out of some robbers in a restaurant. I'm a huge fan of Peng's and have long said he is the next big martial-arts-action star of Hong Kong cinema. Eddie plays Ma Feng, sometimes known to the locals as Pigsy or Hero, a traveling swordsman with incredible moves and the one character who brings a little humour to this otherwise, dark tale. Eddie worked under the wing of Sammo in 2012 when he choreographed Tai Chi Zero and its sequel, as well as going up against him a couple of years later on-screen in the incredibly underrated, Rise Of A Legend, where Peng played a much darker Wong Fei Hung. The ever-reliable Lau Ching Wan soon follows as Yang Kenan, guardian to Pucheng, and while he is more often cast as a gun-toting cop or potential love-interest, Lau has gotten to play in some previous martial arts flicks such as All Men Are Brothers: Blood Of The Leopard, and Heroic Trio 2: Executioners for example. Although, much like Chow Yun Fat, he may suit having a gun in his hand more than playing a kung-fu fighter, Lau still manages to deliver some fantastic moves under Sammo's direction and impresses in doing so. This aids his character well as a no-nonsense man of justice, who aims to protect his family and village by all means necessary. I'd love to have seen this made 10 or 20 years ago, with Jackie Chan in the role of Lau and Yuen Biao in Peng's. It would have been an incredibly mature project for them both and quite possibly one of their best, especially with Sammo looking after them. Lau is aided by a host of strong fighters including Sammo's eldest son, the handsome Sammy Hung, and the aforementioned late-actor, Liu Kai Chi. With almost 100 credits to his name, Liu has proven to be a favourite for fans of Hong Kong cinema, starring in films such as Princess Madam, Infernal Affairs 2, New Police Story, SPL, As The Light Goes Out, and pretty much the most of Dante Lam's modern hits since the turn-of-the-century. Here, he plays Liao – one of guardian Yang Kenan's most trusted friends who gets forced into double-crossing at the halfway mark, making for one of the film's most exciting action scenes. In a period where we seem to have lost far too many great cinematic names far-too-soon, I can honestly say that Liu will be a face that I'll miss seeing in future productions.

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The brilliant Louis Koo proves to be the scene-stealer in Call Of Heroes, pulling off an incredibly twisted performance as Cao Shaolun, sadistic son of Warlord Cao. No man, woman, or child is safe when he gets going, often putting a bullet in whomever he wants without a second thought. Abusing his namesake and living with the mindset that he is practically invincible, Koo makes the most of his character and leaves a lasting impression for all the right reasons. Louis would go on to star as a family man and cat lover the following year in Benny Chan's family comedy, Meow – which I quite enjoyed. The always impressive Wu Jing stars as Zhang Yi, a servant to Koo's evil Cao, and a force to be reckoned with (as usual). A flashback tells us of a relationship between Wu Jing and Eddie Peng's characters as ex-monks who are now bodyguards for a corrupt official. It's a scene that had shades of Brotherhood Of Blades about it and got me thinking of a prequel based on the two of them that would make for an exciting follow-up. I can but dream I guess! Backing Wu Jing to get Cao out of prison is a literal army of men, one of which is fan favourite Xing Yu from Wrath Of Vajra, and Benny Chan's wonderful Shaolin. Berg Ng, from Election, The Great Magician, and Drug War, joins Jin along with Chinese actor Suen Kau Lung from The Taking Of Tiger Mountain, God Of War, and Dragon Tiger Gate, in a supporting role...

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While its extensive cast proves impressive, Call Of Heroes is very much about the action. Benny Chan definitely chose the right man for the job in putting Sammo in charge. In fact, it's something that proves to be so vital to the film that it even gives the legend himself the first opening credit, with Benny Chan (the director) coming up second. It's no secret that Hung has been one of the greatest stars and choreographers of Hong Kong cinema ever, and while age and style have worked their ways on him over the years, he still proves that he is one of the best with his work on Call Of Heroes. While a few moments of wire-work are questionable, Sammo delivers a host of powerhouse fight scenes that allow for some painful-looking stunt work, incredible moves, and gives anyone that can bust-a-move the chance to look good doing it. From Eddie Peng's introductory fight scene in the restaurant to the night-time rescue attempt on Cao, and the deadly attack on the bridge to the grand finale, Sammo directs some intricate stuff that helps make Call Of Heroes a modern-day, martial arts classic! The closing 20 minutes alone is brutally brilliant with Peng taking on Wu Jing in a clash of broad-swords and spear (in a hark back to his own classic film, The Odd Couple), as Lau makes his way for Koo. As a stunning amount of moves are delivered the villagers attack the invading army, while Peng and Jing deliver their final moves on a mountain of old wine jars. As the battle continues, Koo proves even more menacing until Lau delivers a mix of final moves that only a Hong Kong film could do!

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With Benny Chan now gone, I can only hope that he got the chance to reap the rewards in knowing what a gem of a film he made with Call Of Heroes. In some ways, this could easily play as a follow-up to Chan's own Shaolin with its similarly set era and range of characters. It's an almost perfect piece and one of my (many) favourite Benny Chan films, and while he had been in the game from the late 1980s, I still feel we never got enough of what the man had to offer, in the grand scheme of things...

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Overall: Wonderfully made with powerful martial-arts-action, Call Of Heroes is a brilliant watch with a great cast and more!

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DVD Extras: Making Of Documentaries, Trailers, Gallery

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