Blu-ray Synopsis: In the 36 Deadly Styles, a young man must learn a deadly new martial art to avenge the death of his father. (92 Mins)

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Views: Opening with an attack on kung-fu star Nick Cheung Lik (A Tooth For A Tooth), 36 Deadly Styles quickly jumps into the typical story-line of that era of a kung-fu student learning a new style to defeat an evil martial-arts-master for revenge. Clearly inspired by the success of Jackie Chan's Snake In The Eagles Shadow and Drunken Master for Seasonal, Joseph Kuo went as far as to hire the same superstar bad guy (Hwang Jang Lee) for the film. In fact, the wonderful Simon Yuen himself had also been cast – as seen in promotional materials before production had started – but was later replaced with the great Fan Mei Sheng, much like with his role in Magnificent Butcher (which was directed by his son, Yuen Woo Ping). Interestingly enough, 1979 was one hell of a busy year for Simon Yuen with 12 or 13 titles on the go, and only a few across 1980 before his death in December of the same year – literally worked to death after the success of his roles in the aforementioned Seasonal titles, leaving behind an impressive 340+ titles to his name. As it turns out, Hwang himself only had a limited amount of time on set and was pretty much doubled for the most part – as seen by the many wide-shots and angles taken to help hide his character, not to mention the large 'Silver Fox inspired' wig used to cover his face (and only one of many from the bizarre collection of wigs on show here) until the big reveal towards the end when the man himself finally appears. Regardless, 36 Deadly Styles does contain a good amount of kung-fu action and some fun comedy, along with a disturbing scene involving the skinning of a snake which is actually quite gross. This is down to Yeung Chak Lam, trying to make himself some medicine to aid his injuries from a past fight against super-kicker, Hwang Jang Lee. While it may open with a dark and serious tone, there is a lot more comedy on offer here than usual for a Joseph Kuo movie (along with music from the famed Pink Panther show), but 36 Deadly Styles does mature eventually and finds a more serious tone for the last 30 minutes – both in story and choreography!

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Although there may be better kung-fu films out there, the action in 36 Deadly Styles certainly doesn't fail to entertain and displays some beautifully choreographed fist-to-foot action courtesy of fight director Max Lee Chiu Jun. Lee, who starred in classics such as Snake In the Eagles Shadow, The Magnificent Butcher and Drunken Master (as well as a brief role here as Nick Cheung's father), started life in the industry as a bit-player for Shaw Brothers in 1969. His first foray as a choreographer was on Kung Fu's Hero (aka Angry Dragon) in 1973 that starred Nick Cheung Lik and Bolo Yeung, with 36 Deadly Styles reuniting them almost 6 years later. After some choreography work on Jackie Chan's Master With Cracked Fingers, Lee joined forces with Kuo once again for Dragon's Claws that saw him get the chance to work with Hwang Jang Lee one more time, before sticking with Kuo for The Unbeaten 28 and Shaolin Temple Strikes Back. Here, Lee brings a hefty amount of tight, fast, and hard-hitting kung-fu to the screen that makes the most of its fantastic cast members – all of whom deliver some incredible moves. The grand finale in particular is worth the ticket price alone as a host of fighters face-off against each other including Nick Cheung Lik, Hwang Jang Lee, Fan Mei Sheng, Jack Long, Mark Long, and Jeannie Chang...

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Father to the wonderful Fan Siu Wong (Story Of Ricky), Fan Mei Sheng, co-stars as a tea-house owner who had dealt with Hwang previously - happens to run into him again for the end battle. His daughter is played by Jeannie Chang, who joins forces with Lik to take revenge and gets the chance to throw some pretty sweet moves herself. Chang had only started her film career with Kuo in The Mystery Of Chess Boxing (shot just before 36 Deadly Styles) where she starred alongside Kuo regulars Jack Long and Mark Long, as well as Lee Yi Min and Simon Yuen himself. Like many of the other cast members, Chang would stick with Kuo for a few more films including World Of The Drunken Master and The Unbeaten 28. Of course, Mark and Jack Long (who really need no introduction) get to go toe-to-toe near the end, with Mark getting greyed up this time and Jack once again talking about retiring as a kung-fu master. Their big fight looks almost like it was cut in from another film altogether, but apparently Mark's character is brother to Hwang Jang Lee's – so it works. As with the most of his roles, the underrated Nick Cheung Lik does a fantastic job in his role as Wai Chi and while he's no Jackie Chan, he still manages to pull-off some comedic moments and deliver some fantastic moves that will please fans of old-school kung-fu cinema.

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This Kuo classic finally had the restoration and respect it deserved, when it was released as part of the Joseph Kuo Collection from Eureka Video called Cinematic Vengeance. I've actually never seen the film look as amazing as it does on this Blu-ray, and it could easily get mistaken for a film made in the last year thanks to its sharp quality, strong colours, and the original ratio on offer. While it may have some minor flaws here and there – not to mention plenty of unintentional comedy thanks to its charade of wigs – 36 Deadly Styles is a highly enjoyable kung-fu flick that deserves a watch!

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Overall: While not as polished as other Joseph Kuo films, 36 Deadly Styles still hits the mark and delivers some great kung-fu action!

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Blu-ray Extras: Audio Commentary with Mike Leeder & Arne Venema

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Watch my unboxing video of this Eureka Video release HERE

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Buy your copy HERE