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Five Deadly Venoms (1978)
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Movie Review by The Undertaker
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12.14.03
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This flick maybe one of the most recognizable kung-fu films ever! Yeah, it's pretty much a cult thing, but I don't know many people that don't remember this classic on either the big screen or old Black Belt Theater, which syndicated it on TV in many areas. Five kung-fu masters all with fighting styles from five poisonous reptiles and insects. All trained by the same master, some trained at different times, all wore masks so none really knew the other's identity. Snake, centipede, lizard, toad, scorpion are the Five Deadly Venoms and just as deadly as the names imply. Well, the Toad master was strong and impenetrable, not like most toads are all that deadly, right? Each guy has these cool ass skills. The plot is a wild mix of greed, who's who, and betrayal. The fights are awesome! The snake venom uses his snake style. The scorpion kicks like a scorpion's tail. The centipede has fast hands. The lizard clings to and can run up walls. The snake, scorpion, and centipede have all turned to evil. The lizard, toad, and the last young fighter the old master ever trained are out to stop the poison clans evil ways. It's really the young guy's job, as his old masters last request was to stop the evil of the clan which he trained. Good luck kid, you need it. Good thing he found the lizard to be an honest man, who also recruits the heavy hitting toad to help. Five Deadly Venoms probably put the Shaw Brothers films on the map here in the U.S. and it certainly spawned director Chang Cheh's most famous series and team of actors. No longer were they a bunch of acrobats from Taiwan, they were the Venoms, Venom Boys, Venom Mob, or whatever you wanna call 'em. Yes, it's worth seeing as are all the Venom films these guys played in.
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Rating: 7.6 out of 10.0 - 5 votes cast total
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