Five Deadly Venoms

Dir: Chang Cheh

1978

***

I think out of all the Shaw Brothers films, I like the ones directed by Chang Cheh the most. The story and concept behind 1978’s Five Deadly Venoms remains a firm favorite, however, I felt that the film itself never quite reached its full potential. The story begins with the dying master of the powerful Poison Clan (who is sitting in a pot of boiling water for no obvious reason). He tells his last pupil, Yang Tieh, that he regrets teaching him all of the various combat styles because it meant that he never truly mastered any of them. He then sends him on a crucial mission. Worried that the skills he has taught are being used to evil ends, he orders Yang to trace a retired colleague, Yun, and warn him that the fortune he amassed from the clan's activities is under threat from five of his former pupils, each an expert in his own lethal combat style. Yang must discover the whereabouts and true identities of these masked warriors, and decide which, if any, he can trust to join him in his mission. The five pupils are the Centipede, Snake, Scorpion, Lizard, and Toad. Centipede and Snake were the master's first and second pupils and they knew each other. Lizard and Toad were the fourth and fifth pupils respectively and they knew each other but Scorpion, the third pupil was unknown to the other four members. Before he dies, the master teaches Yang the strengths and weaknesses of each style. The Centipede is wriggly and quick, this style is a nice blend of defensive and offensive posturing. The strikes are so fast that it is almost as if he has a hundred arms and legs. The weakness of this style is to attack both the opponent's upper and lower body in a simultaneous assault. The Snake - On one hand: the mouth, venomous fangs emulated in precise finger motor control, designated to aim for the target's vulnerable spots with pin-point accuracy. On the other: the stinging whip of a rattling tail. Masters of this ability can even fight extremely well while lying on their back from the floor. The weakness of this style is to stop the "head" and "tail" (the opponent's two arms) from combining, as neither the head nor tail can function well individually. This usually meant pinning the two limbs, at an angle, as far away from each other as possible. The Scorpion represents a double threat. Kicks from the Scorpion style are just like the stinging tail of the namesake. When delivered by a master, a single kick can paralyze or even kill, let alone the strong pincer-style attack of the arms to contend with. The weakness in this style is not clearly revealed as Yan Tieh is cut off from his explanation but one can assume (by watching The Scorpion in his bout with Yan Tieh and The Lizard) that it would be to stay out of reach of The Scorpion's damaging kicks and make him come to you. The Lizard style has an emphasis on speed and gravity. It is best known for the ability to walk on walls, and can fight with ease from such positions, even maneuver in such a way that can rebound off such sources to both dodge assaults as well as strengthen own attacks. The Toad is primarily a defensive pose. The Toad is invulnerable to just about any form of damage, including blades and puncture. They can even bend solid metal. The weakness of this style is that any master of the Toad style has a "weak spot" that when punctured, drains the user's Toad style benefits (most notably the iron skin.) This particular Toad’s weak spot are his ears but many thought the way to discover the weak spot in one's Toad style was to use an iron maiden. Yang Tieh arrives in the village just in time to see the Centipede and the Snake go to the Yun family house to steal the money. They murder the entire family when Yun refuses to divulge the location of his fortune. A witness sees the Centipede at the house. Later, the Scorpion investigates the scene and retrieves a hidden map. The Lizard, working as a policeman, recruits the Toad to help arrest the Centipede. After the Centipede is arrested and charged with murder, the Scorpion tells the Snake to frame the Toad for the murders. The corrupt judge sends the Lizard away on government business. The Snake pays an officer to make the witness commit perjury. The Toad is framed by the witness, who tells the judge that he saw the Toad at the scene of the crime. Toad refuses to confess, and his kung fu initially makes him invulnerable to their torture. The Snake devises a torture device to counteract it. When this fails, the Scorpion secretly cripples the Toad with darts to his weak spot (ears). Subjected to further torture, the Toad passes out, and his signature is forged on a confession. The Centipede is acquitted of the murder charges and goes free. The officer suffocates the Toad and hangs him in the cell as if he committed suicide. The Centipede and Snake kill the witness and the corrupt officer. Two Chinese policemen in the restaurant tell the Lizard what happened to the Toad, the witness, and the officer while he was gone. The Lizard's supervisor, Chief Constable Ma, encourages him to forget the issue, but the Lizard refuses. Yang identifies the Lizard, teams with him, and together they practice techniques to defeat the others. As Yang and the Lizard prepare to confront the Centipede and the Snake, the chief constable joins them. During the fight, he reveals himself as the Scorpion and reveals that he intends to kill everyone and keep the Yun fortune for himself. The Scorpion fatally injures the Snake and bribes the Centipede into helping him. Yang and the Lizard defeat the Centipede, and the Snake helps kill the Scorpion before he, too, dies. Yang and the Lizard retrieve the Scorpion's map from his corpse, vowing to use the fortune for good to restore the reputation of the Poison Clan. I’m going to be frank about this cult favorite. Most of the film is like a bad episode of Colombo and Agatha Christie gone wrong. The ninjas have skills but tact and subtlety aren’t two of them – which is a little ridiculous when you think about it. We know exactly who each man is from the beginning but the film still insists on making a thing of their identity reveals towards the end. It is one of the most predictable films I’ve ever seen – which is what is so frustratingly silly about the whole thing. Yang Tieh comes across like a Hong Kong version of Robin Askwith and the plot is thinner than the fake beards half the cast seem to be wearing. The film is really at its greatest when the gang starts fighting. The film is inter-cut with loads of slowed-down action sequences that sees the venoms walking on walls and kicking crockery in mid-air while wearing their individual animal masks. The masks are brilliant, indeed, it is the visuals and the fighting that make this such a great film, it’s only the plot, acting and script that let it down. I’m not a big fan of remakes, film makers should always make something new and original, but, I would love to see a serious modern remake of Five Deadly Venoms.