Mang quan gui shou (1979) User Reviews

Funnier Than Most, But Better Than Few

[jmverville · 5/10 · 14 December 2004]

One's impression while watching this film is fairly mixed: there were many parts that made it funnier than the typical Kung Fu film (intentionally so) which kept me interested in the film. Furthermore, the acting is not as bad as typical of its' genre, and I found some of the characters especially expressive and entertaining.

However, the fault of the film is that it falls victim to many of the errors of its' genre: the quality being grainy and questionable, the simplicity of the plot and having shocking simplicity in the archetypes of good & evil, and furthermore, being overall rather corny.

But if you can stand for a typical Kung Fu B movie, this is not so bad; I found it entertaining and its' martial arts were not very shabby, either. And furthermore, the film did not fall victim to any ridiculous subplot or love-story, nor was it ruined by an overwhelming personality clogging up the story, which can easily kill other films. For what they have, a decent film. If you see it for what it is, it is not hard to watch and enjoy it. Decent for anybody who has an attachment to the genre.

Take The Quiz

[vudukungfu · 5/10 · 24 July 2006]

There was a Quiz at the end of the DVD I got of this film. It was rather funny to find a 70s movie on a DVD with an interactive quiz on it. If you got a question about the movie right, the next screen had a still of one of the characters from the movie smiling. If you got it wrong, they showed a bad guy wagging his finger at you, or something. That alone was worth the three bucks I laid out at the yard sale for this somewhat watchable venture into Artsploitation. The Female Ninja in this movie was one of the other nice features, she seems skilled at acrobatics, without actually having any stage presence or confidence with the arts.

One of the better films starring Ho Tsung-tao (Bruce Li)

[InjunNose · 6/10 · 18 March 2018]

When Jackie Chan became a Hong Kong superstar in the late '70s, Bruce Lee imitators like Ho Tsung-tao (Bruce Li) and Huang Kin-lung (Bruce Le) found themselves obliged to change with the times. Wearing a yellow tracksuit and clumsily flailing a nunchaku no longer impressed audiences; now they demanded more complex, ambitious fight choreography, resulting in the emergence of a few decent films from the Bruceploitation camp. One of them was "Blind Fist of Bruce", in which Ho plays a browbeaten bank manager who learns kung fu from a blind beggar (Simon Yuen, Jackie Chan's tipsy sifu in "Drunken Master") to fend off a gang of criminals led by Tiger Yang and Chiang Tao. There's nothing earth-shatteringly good here, but the lengthy final fight is worth sticking around for, and the film as a whole is a considerable improvement on Ho's earlier work. He could have joined the ranks of mid-level stars like Don Wong Tao and Tan Tao-liang had he not already been fatally typecast as a Bruce Lee clone.

Martial arts mediocrity

[groovycow · 7 September 2003]

I saw BLIND FIST OF BRUCE in Brentwood's fantastic 10-pack format, and it has set the standard for my viewing of these films. While not a terrible chop-socky movie, there isn't really much in BLIND FIST to set it apart from the rest.

BLIND FIST OF BRUCE stars Bruce Li (no, NOT Bruce Lee unfortunately) in what is labeled a "tribute to the formula that made Bruce Lee a star!" Li plays a banker whose town is set upon by a ruthless gang. Sound familiar? It should, as indeed this formula has been used for well over a hundred kung-fu movies. At times, BLIND FIST reminded me of Jackie Chan's MASTER WITH CRACKED FINGERS, but the two are incomparable in terms of action. While Li plays his part competently enough, his two "teachers" (who soon enough become gang members themselves) have that sort of chop-socky comic relief that doesn't hold well with American audiences.

There are enough characters to keep BLIND FIST interesting, including a blind man who has mastered the martial arts, a geisha and her kung-fu maid, and Li's aforementioned cat-fu and dog-fu mentors (they teach him such moves as "peeing dog" and "licking yourself"). Also, the film has enough of those beat-em-up moments for the audience to hate the bad guys and to side with Li and his blind teacher. Unfortunately, there is simply nothing too special about BLIND FIST OF BRUCE.

While not bad, I would recommend this movie only to die-hards like myself, rather than as an entry-level feature. Instead, watch MASTER WITH CRACKED FINGERS or, even better, FIVE DEADLY VENOMS. :)

Fake, dumb and corny that would make Ed Wood proud

[jordondave-28085 · 2/10 · 11 May 2023]

(1979) Blind Fist Of Bruce DUBBED MARTIAL ARTS PERIOD PIECE

The fights are crap as well as the thin plot line, which the reason why it's called "Blind Fist Of Bruce" is because his English name is Bruce Liang, and has participated in starring on many Bruce Lee named movies even though it has nothing to do with the martial arts star. It stars Bruce Liang, as I forget as the defense owner of his own bank. Only then the bank itself is to be taken over by an evil man. He even has to put up with some scheme with his supposedly friends who hired someone to rob of it's money. They pretend to be his friend until he gets his ass kicked by the next guy. The next thing you know he fights with the main henchman four times, and fights the main baddie two or three times, whereas every time the bad guys kick his ass he would always train some more until he succeeds in beating them,. What's flaky and unrealistic is that all the fights are just as mediocre as the first one. And that sometimes the other person would move slow so that the other person would like catch up as all the fights are choreographed.

Reasonably decent film, above average for the genre

[aggie80 · 7/10 · 2 April 2004]

Probably the biggest asset to the film is Bruce Li and Siu Tien Yuen who plays The Blind Master. I really enjoy his comedic additions to the films. A number of pretty Chinese girls in this movie, a cut above the normal. A number of familiar faces in the cast that one will recognize from other movies of the era.

Typical elements: Unusual training methods, high flying leaps and bounds, some weapons work. Magic type fighting with blinding powders. The final death of the villian is an amazingly choreographed fight scene involving a long scarf and the blind man as well as the hero weaving around the baddie. Hey, I said it was amazing, not good!

And it is always interesting to hear the quantities of money being discussed. "You owe us $10,000!" Sort of like hearing "1 Million Dollars" in an Austin Powers' movie.

Starts off slow, but it gets better

[gorthu · 4/10 · 18 April 2009]

Bruce Li stars as a man who learns kung fu from 2 incompetent teachers. They teach him a bunch of fake animal styles and he finally figures out that they are fakes. With goons taking over the town Li has to find a good teacher to learn kung fu quick. Enter Simon Yuen.

The first hour has some decent comedy, but the action is not good at all. Bruce Tong has a nice cameo at the start, but then there are a bunch of weak fights. But then out of nowhere Bruce Li has an awesome fight with Kong Do and 2 other guys. Then Tiger Yang shows up. Yang's first fight is good, but the final fight is a disappointment. The rest of these words I am typing so that the reivew is long enough to be posted. Come one now. Work with me here. Am I there yet?

good traditional style kung fu movie

[palace_master · 7/10 · 20 April 2005]

I believe that this show deserves a higher rating than the 4.4 that it has right now, I give it a 7. I collect kung fu movies and have seen a lot of them. I enjoyed this Bruce Li movie because it was of the traditional kung fu storyline that is set sometime in the past in a village - along the lines of Fists of Fury, etc. It has solid fighting action and an awesome long lasting fight at the end when Bruce and his blind kung fu master kill the bad guy. Personally, I enjoy the silly jokes and gags that are in kung fu movies. I notice that a lot of western people complain about Chinese humour and bad acting in kung fu movies, but I never have a problem with it. This movie kept my attention all the way through - and that's a good thing. Here in Canada, there's a company that stamps legitimate copies of this movie and they sell for only $2. It's definitely worth your toonie, but there is no dolby sound in the soundtrack; so all of the monoural sound comes out of your centre channel speaker.

I hate False Advertising

[erogers0405 · 6/10 · 9 July 2006]

The movie would have been fine, but my boyfriend got it as part of a box set and it said this was a Bruce Lee movie. It's one thing to expect a martial arts movie, it's another to expect a Bruce Lee movie. Anyway, if you go in prepared for it, it's probably gonna be good.

As he said, not a good entry level movie, I think it's better to start with one that's really amazing or that you know is good, then work your way to other lesser-known movies. This way you can develop an appreciation for the art without getting bored early on. Check out someone as breath-taking as Bruce Lee or as fun and entertaining as Jackie Chan.

cheesy kung fu that's worth a good laugh

[rawce · 8/10 · 5 May 2003]

This movie is about an old blind kung fu master (Bruce Li... not to be confused with Bruce Lee) who who mastered the art of blind fighting. Anyway, if you're looking for a good laugh rent this movie. It is definitely falling in the category of B film, but on a good-cheesy-fun scale I give it 7/10.

Neat kung fu comedy with a top turn from Sam Seed

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 29 November 2015]

First off, the title of this film is a bit of a misnomer. It makes it sound like just another Bruceploitation flick, the kind of which were being churned out regularly during this period in the wake of Bruce Lee's death. Yes, Bruce Li does star, playing a character who looks and acts very much like Bruce Lee did in this own movies, but there the similarities end. BLIND FIST OF BRUCE is actually a comedy/period kung fu flick that has much more in common with the movies Jackie Chan was making during this era, like SNAKE IN THE EAGLE'S SHADOW. In case you weren't convinced, the casting of DRUNKEN MASTER's drunken master himself, Simon Yuen (aka Sam Seed, aka Yuen Woo-ping's dad!) only make clear the similarities.

The plot is a well known one: a good guy falls foul of a gang of evil and ruthless fighters and, finding himself not skilled enough to beat them, he sets about training until he can. It's as simple as that. Of course, there's more to it, such as the inclusion of some pretty girls and the introduction of a 'master killer' type character in the final third, but this really is a straightforward movie. It's quite notable for including loads and loads of comedy throughout. Some of it is actually awful, like Li's pseudo 'masters' who try to teach him dog and cat kung fu (!), but some of it is genius – and the best bits are those that involve Simon Yuen, playing pretty much the same character as he did in the Jackie Chan film, except that he's blind here.

Okay, so Yuen is clearly doubled for all his fights, but that doesn't matter because it's the comedy he excels at. Watching him trick and trip our hero while training him is great fun, as are the scenes where Yuen displays his skills with props, like his famous teacup trick. This good natured guy lifted a lot of films during this period before his untimely death, and I never get tired of watching his talents. He makes this film what it is.

The action is plentiful and ranges from average to good. It tends to get better as the film progresses, so that we end on an absolute high as Li and Yuen team up to tackle a killer known only as 'Tiger'. Watching them beat him with a scarf, sticks and plenty of weird moves is plenty of fun and there's good cinematography here too. Bruce Li is a favourite of mine, seeming more credible than most and a better actor and he doesn't disappoint. BLIND FIST OF BRUCE is a neat film for the fans.

Pretty good martial arts film

[rudeboy8080 · 18 March 2001]

'Blind Fist of Bruce' is a good, watchable martial arts film. Ho Tsung Tao portrays a once wealthy bank manager who's robbed of everything he ever had by a gang of martial arts extortionists. He seeks the help of an elderly and blind martial arts master (Charasmatically played by Yuen Siu Tien). The twist is that the leader of the extortionists, Tiger, was once a pupil of the martial arts master. Years before, Tiger blinded his kung fu teacher after he exiled him from the school. This film contains a few mediocre scenes, but the good fight scenes and decent acting make up for it. Director Kam Bo could have put a liitle more detail into the film (Maybe he could have used fake tears on Soo Ching when she mourns Miss Hong's death). Still, this movie is pretty good and it's a lot better than most of Ho Tsung Tao's early work as Bruce Li in the early 70's.

Interchangeable kung fu film

[Wizard-8 · 7 May 2017]

If you have seen your share of Hong Kong kung fu movies from the 1970s, there is no real reason to see this particular one, because you will have seen practically everything in this effort before in the other examples. The production values look like it was hastily filmed in back alleys, the bad dubbing is not awful enough to be even worth a few laughs, and the story has elements like a kung fu master at first reluctant to train the hero in expert fighting skills so he can get revenge against bully villains... do I have to go on? There are only two bits of interest in this entire exercise. The first is that it's painfully clear that the character of the blind kung fu teacher is doubled during the more complex martial arts / acrobatic moments, and that the soundtrack uses (almost certainly without permission) music from spaghetti westerns, such as Ennio Morricone's music for the Sergio Leone western "Duck, You Sucker". Watch that movie instead of this one.