Kid with the Golden Arm (1979)
Kid with the Golden Arm is a 1979 Shaw Brothers kung fu film directed by Chang Cheh and produced by Mona Fong. It is one of the few Venom Mob films to include Wei Pai (Snake Venom). Paste included Kid with the Golden Arm at #20 in their list of the 100 best martial arts films. In their review, they wrote, “Honestly, Kid With the Golden Arm isn’t particularly complex or even all that original, but it’s pure, unadulterated old-school kung fu fun.” Stan Hall of The Oregonian called it a “surreal, action-packed period piece” with impressive fights, highlighting Silver Spear’s final battle.
Plot
The government asks Yang Hu Yun (Sun Chien) to escort a cargo of gold to a famine stricken area. The vicious Chi Sha gang announces their intention to hijack it by killing one of Yang’s employees. Yang describes to his men Chi Sha’s four chiefs, each of whom has mastered a style of fighting: Golden Arm (Lo Mang), Silver Spear (Lu Feng), Iron Robe (Wang Lung Wei), and Brass Head (Yang Hsiung). To protect the gold, Yang hires swordsman Li Chin Ming (Wei Pai), Ming’s girlfriend Miss Leng Feng (Helen Poon), Long Axe Yang Jiu (Shu Pei Sun), Short Axe Fang Shih (Chiang Sheng), and drunken master Agent Hai Tao (Kuo Chui).
On their way to meet with Yang, Long and Short Axe encounter the Seven Hooks gang and proceed to fight and kill three gang members each. Being competitive fighter neither wants to kill more than the other so they kill the last gang member together.
Before meeting with Yang, Leng encounters Iron Robe; Hai Tao appears and defeats her attackers, though he disappears once again before she can thank him. When Leng meets with Ming at a winery, the employees, which are Silver Spear, Brass Head, and several Chi
Sha gang members in disguise, attack them. Ming is poisoned by Sand Palm (Dick Wei) before they flee. Despite the commotion, Hai Tao enters and demands service. After defeating several gang members, he identifies the disguised owner and manager as Silver Spear and Brass Head. After they pull off their disguises, they invite Hai Tao to join their gang. When he refuses, they allow him to leave peacefully, still hoping to recruit him.
Cast:
- Sun Chien – Yang Hu Yun/Iron Feet
- Lo Mang – Golden Arms,
- Kuo Chui – Hai Tao, a government agent
- Lu Feng – Silver Spear, the second in command of the Chi Sha Gang.
- Chiang Sheng – Short Axe Yang Jiu
- Shu Pei Sun – Long Axe Fang Shih
- Wei Pai – Li Chin Ming, a swordsman
- Helen Poon– Miss Leng Feng
- Wang Lung Wei – Iron Robe
- Yang Hsiung – Brass Head
- Dick Wei– Sand Palm Fighter,