User Reviews

A rival film to Sammo Hung's MAGNIFICENT BUTCHER, featuring the same real-life character who was a student of the famous and celebrated martial artist Wong Fei Hong. BUTCHER WING is a somewhat cheaper production but not without merit; it has fun fight scenes and lots of goofy humour which recommends it somewhat.

From the outset, it's clear that this is the lesser film of the two. Ming-Tsai Wu is an acceptable screen fighter but he's certainly no Sammo in the acting stakes so there's a bit of a vacuum in the centre of the film. However, what we do get are lots of knockabout comedy scenes and those wonderful training montages which never disappoint. The bit with the 'paper drop' trick is simply done but a real highlight for me.

BUTCHER WING is enlivened in the audio stakes thanks to recurring 'Wong Fei Hong' theme alongside music stolen from Dario Argento's SUSPIRIA. Lee Hoi San (PROJECT A) plays the stock villain role and is very good too, and the climax involves a traditional two on one bout which is inevitably the best part of the whole thing.

While there are plenty of Wong Fei Hung movies, this is a story about Wong Fei Hung's most famous disciple, Lam Sai Wing (aka Butcher Wing). It is obvious the lead actor was chosen because he is a little chubby, and he also looks a bit like a pig. He is not much of an actor, but his kung fu skills are decent. He has some good forms and is light on his feet, but his movements are kinda slow. The rest of the actors are good at kung fu and also good at doing comedy, so overall the movie is enjoyable.

Lam Sai Wing (pronounced Au Wing in the movie) is friends with a young man (Han Kwok Choi) and the 2 of them learn from a kung fu teacher (Jason Pai Paio). While Wong Fei Hung is not named, Jason Pai Paio is basically playing the role of Wong Fei Hung. Pai Paio teaches the 2 young men kung fu so they can defend themselves from local goons. When the pair accidentally finds a bunch of opium, they now have to face the evil and powerful Lee Hoi San. The 2 final fights are definitely worth sticking around for. This movie wouldn't be nearly as good if it didn't have the great Lee Hoi San as the villain. He gives one of his better performances and looks nearly invincible. Jason Pai Paio is a dang good kung fu performer, but even he looks like a little boy in his fight against Lee Hoi San. And I love what Mark Pollard says on kungfucinemadotcom about how he is the Christopher Lee of kung fu cinema. Lee Hoi San was in countless movies, and every once in a while he gives an amazing menacing performance like this. He kind of reminded me of Chang Shan in Shaolin Raiders of Death. The good guys do everything they can to beat him, and even after they immobilize him, Lee Hoi San still manages to dish out plenty of final blows before his death.