Dragon’s Claws (1979)

Posted in Reviews by - February 16, 2017
Dragon’s Claws (1979)

This cheap indie from Joseph Kuo has Hwang Jang-lee in top form as a Dragon’s Claw expert in search of an inscribed talisman which declares him the world’s best fighter. For some reason, Hwang and his cronies kill off Lau Kar-yung’s kung fu schoolmates, causing him and his mother to run for their lives. Lau (nephew of Lau Kar-leung, looking a bit like a cross between a young Jet Li and Donny Osmond) learns the Dragon’s Claw style from his mother (Yuen Qiu) and a dodgy old medicine man who ties him up, hits him with a big caber, and forces him to drink urine. (Clearly a case for social services). When both parents are slain, Lau troubles Hwang for a duel, and an extended brawl ensues. It’s another spin on the Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow formula, but the familiar cast make it presentable, matched by a few innovative moments of great choreography and some hilarious dubbing. “Old man, I came here to learn your strange blow.” Stuff like that.

AKA: Dragon Claws; Dragon’s Claw.

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Editor and creator of Kung Fu Movie Guide and the host of the Kung Fu Movie Guide Podcast. I live behind a laptop in London, UK.

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