DVD Synopsis: Leung Kar Yan (aka Beardy - “Warriors Two & The Victim”) plays Ah Tung, a coolie who ends up in a brawl with Ah Yu (Lee Chiu) over a misunderstanding. The two become friends but their relationship is cut short when Ah Yu accepts a challenge to fight with several men under the leadership of a ruthless criminal named Black Eagle (Phillip Ko – 2The Loot & Legend Of A Fighter”) who are attempting to bully the townsfolk. (86 Mins)

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Views: The ever-lovable and hugely impressive Leung Kar Yan heads up this tale of kung-fu and revenge when his friend and boss are killed by a ruthless criminal who has been hired by a corrupt businessman who wants control of the towns supply routes. There's no denying that Cantonen Iron Kung Fu is a simple tale, told in countless amounts of Hong Kong and Taiwanese films from the same era – and most of which have proven to be mildly entertaining with low production values. Thankfully though, this isn't one of them!

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Cantonen Iron Kung Fu is a well-made movie, directed by veteran actor and director Lee Chiu. Starting off as an extra in a host of Shaw Brothers titles, Chiu quickly moved into more prominent roles only a couple of years after, starring in over 100 films over the next 30 years. At the same stage, he began working as a fight choreographer for films like A Tooth For A Tooth, Ways Of Kung Fu, and 18 Jade Arhats. The late 1970s saw him make the move to writer and director, which started with Cantonen Iron Kung Fu. From here, Lee would go on to direct over 50 movies from here such as Chin Kar Lok's Martial Arts Master Wong Fei Hung and Little Hero On The Run, Kung Fu From Beyond The Grave with Billy Chong, Full Metal Ninja, the Street Kids series, and Mission Of Condor with Moon Lee – as well as many more. For his first film as director, it's obvious that Lee Chiu wanted to impress and does so in pulling off a clean production with a decent cast and great kung-fu action. I can only imagine that Lee was keeping a close eye on the action as he directed, but the choreography for Cantonen Iron Kung Fu was left to choreographers Wynn Lau Chun Fai and Tsang Chiu Yue. An actor of over 130 films (including a role here), Lau honed his skills while starring in an incredible amount of Shaw Brothers films as well as the classic Snake In The Eagles Shadow, and Tsui Hark's Butterfly Murders before this. The turn-of-the-century would see him slide into the director's chair with films like My Wife's Bodyguard, Raping Triad, and Muay Thai Girls to name but a few, although I haven't seen any of these to comment. With only two credits to his name, it's likely that Tsang was more of an assistant to Lau on this project, as well as playing a role. Between them, they deliver a hefty amount of kung-fu fighting over the course of the story but definitely save the best for last when Leung Kar Yan and Phillip Ko get to go fist-to-toe in an incredible showdown – one of their many team-ups during their career.

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While hardly an A-list cast, Cantonen Iron Kung Fu still carries many recognisable faces throughout, most of which deliver decent performances and moves when it comes to the action. Of course, you can never go wrong with having the amazing Leung Kar Yan star in your film – a legendary star who is one of the best on-screen fighters (among many) that I've ever seen. This is ironic in itself since Leung has never had any formal training in kung-fu – something he himself has mentioned in many interviews – but he has an amazing knack for picking up and replicating moves that make him look like a master. Starting in the mid-1970s with a decent role in Shaolin Martial Arts for Shaw Brothers, Leung completed a few more titles for the studio before moving into independent productions like Five Kung Fu Daredevils, The Iron Monkey, Thundering Mantis, and My Life's On The Line, before striking up a solid relationship with the legendary Sammo Hung that kicked off with the fantastic Enter The Fat Dragon, and his solid performance in Warriors Two. With over 150 titles to his name, and no sign of slowing down (thankfully), Leung Kar Yan has gone on to kick-ass in many amazing titles, as well as work behind the camera with directorial efforts such as Profile In Anger, My Hero, Bogus Cops, and even helping out on Tiger Cage 2 and Mr. Nice Guy.

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The prolific Phillip Ko stars as Black Eagle, the big baddie of the show that really doesn't get to show his skills until the last 25 minutes (which are also filled with fight action). With a strong 250 titles to his name, many of which he also directed, Ko never failed to impress with his moves and acting – and more so in films of this period and style. It was a crying shame how his career started to crash fast in the mid-1990s, and a major loss when he passed in March of 2017. Veteran actor Wang Hsieh stars as Leung's master, with Wang Chung, Ting Wa Chung, Ching Kuo Chung, and Pang San rounding off things as his friends. Helping Ko in the bad corner is popular villain of that era, Ma Chin Ku, noticeable from a number of classic titles such as One-Armed Boxer Vs. The Flying Guillotine, Militant Eagle, Ninja In The Dragons Den, and A Fistful Of Talons. Ma would also star briefly in No Retreat, No Surrender 2 as well as serve as an assistant fight-choreographer on the Ng See Yuen production.

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While it may slip under the radar of many new fans to Hong Kong and Taiwanese cinema, Cantonen Iron Kung Fu may not be considered a true classic of the kung-fu world, but it proves to be a well-made movie that most definitely entertains, closing with an amazing final battle between two of the jaded screen's finest cinematic fighters!

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Overall: Packed with great kung-fu and a solid cast, Cantonen Iron Kung Fu is worth a watch with a fantastic final showdown between Leung Kar Yan and Phillip Ko!

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DVD Extras: Trailers​