The Terror of the Tongs (1961)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Anthony Bushell

Writer:

Jimmy Sangster (writer)

Release Date:

15 March 1961 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Deadliest, Diabolical Brotherhood of Terror!

Plot:

A secret society of Hong-Kong at the beginning of the century called "The Red Dragon Tong" kidnaps the...

Plot Keywords:

Hong Kong | Captain | Murder | Slavery | Extortion

Cast

Geoffrey Toone	...	Capt. Jackson Sale
Christopher Lee	...	Chung King
Yvonne Monlaur	...	Lee
Brian Worth	...	District Commissioner Harcourt
Ewen Solon	...	Tang How - Tong Leader's Aide
Marne Maitland	...	Beggar
Marie Burke	...	Maya
Richard Leech	...	Insp. Bob Dean
Charles Lloyd Pack	...	Dr. Fu Chao, tong member
Barbara Brown	...	Helena Sale
Burt Kwouk	...	Mr. Ming
Bandana Das Gupta	...	Anna Chang, housekeeper
Roger Delgado	...	Tang Hao, tong enforcer
Andy Ho	...	Lee Chung
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tom Gill	...	Beamish
Eric Young	...	Confucius

Also Known As:

Terror of the Hatchet Men (USA)

Runtime:

Germany:75 min | Norway:75 min | USA:80 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White (USA, theatrical prints) | Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Finland:(Banned) (1961) | Norway:16 | West Germany:18 | USA:Not Rated | UK:X

Filming Locations:

Bray Studios, Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire, England, UK

Company:

Hammer Film Productions

Quotes:

The Tong Leader: Have you ever had your bones scraped, Captain? It is painful in the extreme I can assure you.

Decent little Hammer rarity

Terror of the Tongs is a largely unknown Hammer film and, as such, isn't one the great studio's best films. It is, however, a more than decent entry in Hammer's oeuvre, and is well worth seeking out for Hammer fans. The film takes place in Hong Kong, and director Anthony Bushell does a fairly good job of capitalising on the mystery of the eastern culture. The most prominent thing about this film is no doubt the fact that it stars the great Christopher Lee - as the Chinese head of 'The Tongs'! It's a hilarious performance, and while Lee doesn't exactly convince the audience that he's Chinese, it brilliantly shows off his charisma and ability to hold the audience's attention. The plot focuses on a secret Hong Kong society known as 'The Red Dragon Tong'. They kidnap the captain of a ship in Hong Kong harbour while he's trying to restrain the people who kidnapped his daughter. We then follow the attempt to free him from the Tong; but this isn't a group of amateurs, as the society is big and powerful and freeing the captain isn't easy.

The film actually isn't a lot like what I've come to expect from Hammer, as it's all played out rather seriously and there's not a hint of anything even resembling supernatural activity. The film doesn't reflect particularly well on the Chinese people - as despite being set in Hong Kong, there's hardly any natives on the cast list and the Chinese characters don't get to much that has any bearing on the plot. The atmosphere is nothing to write home about, although director Anthony Bushell manages to create just about enough tension to keep things ticking over. The acting is generally below average, with only Christopher Lee coming out of the film with any credibility - which is amazing considering the nature of his role. The film doesn't have a great deal of bite - in spite of a torture sequence and numerous scenes of drug use - although it mostly isn't boring. Overall, I can't say that The Terror of the Tongs is even near to being Hammer's finest hour, but it's a decent little rarity and worth tracking down for Hammer fans.