Cheap Hand of Death (DVD) (John Woo) Price

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Customer Reviews of Hand of Death

Tan Tao Liang!!!
Great film, but a bit misrepresented. This is not a Jackie Chan movie. He is in the film, but by no means is he the star. Tan Tao Liang is the hero. Great villains. James Tien is so convincing with his mini blade. How does he spin that thing?!?!! This is also a rare opportunity to see Sammo Hung as an evil counterpart to Tien in the film. Tan Tao Liang kicks are amazing. This is a a great tale of heroism and patriotism. Sounds strange, but the English voice overs match perfectly with how the characters act. That can be a problem with many martial arts films. Make sure you get the Leg Fighters too!

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Interesting film but has its boring moments too
The action in this film was very continuous but when there was no action sequences it got kinda of boring. YOu can really see John Woo's style beginning to build up. He clearly is starting his signature characters where they start to bond with brotherhood sacrifice and friendship.

Best parts: Last fight scene was the climax of the film

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Great fight scenes, some shaky acting.
Hand of Death (aka Countdown to Kung Fu)'s main weakness is that its main character is almost devoid of personality. By contrast, the supporting players are mostly highly watchable, creating an imbalance. Nevertheless, on the strength of tremendous fight choreography and a fairly tight plot, Hand of Death is a must-watch for martial-arts fans.

No surprise about the fight sequences, since the choreographer is Sammo Hung, who's been called "the Orson Welles of action". The various styles of fighting are incorporated seamlessly into the film, and ever-shifting locales keep the fights interesting. Veteran martial-arts actor James Tien steals the entire show as villain Shi Shao-feng, projecting charisma and complexity aplenty, playing a truly formidable opponent. Unfortunately, Tan Dao-liang as the lead character is weak, the character underdeveloped and passive, and Woo himself (under his Chinese name Wu Yu Sheng) doesn't fare well even in a small role as Zhang Yi, the resistance leader who is rescued by the good guys. Good thing, then, that Woo had enlisted Jackie Chan (strangely billed as Chen Yuen-long in the film), who walks off as the strongest protagonist character in the whole film with his athleticism, dogged earnesty, and genuinely charming sense of humour. Hung also has a role as an evil henchman, and his fight scenes are amazing as ever, his unorthodox fighting style always interesting to watch.

Hand of Death is an important and entertaining Woo movie, where he already shows a panache for directing better action scenes than anybody else. Aside from his very '70s, infuriating overuse of the zoom lens, his work on Hand of Death is highly impressive, making this film a good solid entry in his back log.