Men of the Dragon is a made-for-TV movie that attempts to cash in on the burgeoning martial arts craze of the 70s. The plot is essentially swiped from Enter the Dragon, but it is handled well, if on a TV budget. The Hong Kong locale made for a nice change of pace for productions of this era, which were often either studio-bound or shot in or around Los Angeles.
The film features brother and sister Jan and Lisa Kimbro, who have returned to Hong Kong. Lisa goes off shopping while Jan is reunited with childhood friend Li-The. Lisa finds herself abducted (after getting a few licks in) and the boys go in search of her. They eventually track her down to (where else?) a fortified private island, where she is to be sold into slavery. The Men of the title aren't particularly adept at stealth infiltration, so they are soon at the mercy of the villain, Balashev and his henchmen Tao. Everything climaxes in a bit of martial arts mayhem.
Everything about the film is competent, if unspectacular (compared to similar motion pictures of the era). It has the luxury of being a fresh idea for television. Jared Martin and Robert Ito carry much of the plot and do a credible job, though Martin is a bit lacking in charisma for the hero. Ito is a fine supporting actor, as he would showcase on Quincy, in the near future. Katie Saylor is mostly wasted, as her scenes are fairly brief and you don't get much of an impression of her character. Unfortunately, women's lib only went so far, so she ends up the damsel-in-distress. Joseph Wiseman is the Fu Manchu/Dr. No/Mr. Han wannabe, Balashev. Wisemen plays it with the appropriate reserve, much like his work in similar arenas.
At the time of the original broadcast, I was a child and greatly enjoyed the action and the setting. As a much older adult, the film is a pleasant diversion, but a pale imitator of Bruce Lee and Company, or Marvel Comics' Master of Kung Fu. It's a decent little B-movie that could have stood a little more polishing on the script. If it was intended as a series pilot, it failed in its task, as no series followed, nor was there a sudden influx of martial arts TV movies. The Kung Fu series pretty much had a monopoly on things (and shared the fight choreographer David Chow). If you catch it on TV, its worth watching. It's a decent candidate for a manufacture-on-demand DVD but would not likely support a commercial release. If nothing else, it is a unique specimen of 1970s television.
The film features brother and sister Jan and Lisa Kimbro, who have returned to Hong Kong. Lisa goes off shopping while Jan is reunited with childhood friend Li-The. Lisa finds herself abducted (after getting a few licks in) and the boys go in search of her. They eventually track her down to (where else?) a fortified private island, where she is to be sold into slavery. The Men of the title aren't particularly adept at stealth infiltration, so they are soon at the mercy of the villain, Balashev and his henchmen Tao. Everything climaxes in a bit of martial arts mayhem.
Everything about the film is competent, if unspectacular (compared to similar motion pictures of the era). It has the luxury of being a fresh idea for television. Jared Martin and Robert Ito carry much of the plot and do a credible job, though Martin is a bit lacking in charisma for the hero. Ito is a fine supporting actor, as he would showcase on Quincy, in the near future. Katie Saylor is mostly wasted, as her scenes are fairly brief and you don't get much of an impression of her character. Unfortunately, women's lib only went so far, so she ends up the damsel-in-distress. Joseph Wiseman is the Fu Manchu/Dr. No/Mr. Han wannabe, Balashev. Wisemen plays it with the appropriate reserve, much like his work in similar arenas.
At the time of the original broadcast, I was a child and greatly enjoyed the action and the setting. As a much older adult, the film is a pleasant diversion, but a pale imitator of Bruce Lee and Company, or Marvel Comics' Master of Kung Fu. It's a decent little B-movie that could have stood a little more polishing on the script. If it was intended as a series pilot, it failed in its task, as no series followed, nor was there a sudden influx of martial arts TV movies. The Kung Fu series pretty much had a monopoly on things (and shared the fight choreographer David Chow). If you catch it on TV, its worth watching. It's a decent candidate for a manufacture-on-demand DVD but would not likely support a commercial release. If nothing else, it is a unique specimen of 1970s television.