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The Savage Five

1974 · 96 min

A tense, story-driven martial arts film where the threat to a village builds steadily, with bursts of action and a mounting sense of injustice.

Overview
A pacifist village is beset by bandits in this martial arts thriller. "Savage Five" hands-down rivals the ornateness of "Kid With The Golden Arm" and the twist-heavy "Five Deadly Venoms". The always great David Chiang plays a lesser version of his Rover character from "Duel Of The Iron Fist", and Ti Lung, looking incredible here, is at his physical best. Accolades to Chen Kuan Tai and Wang Chung in great sympathetic roles, too. A kung fu classic where the actual martial arts display takes a back seat to the mesmerizing story.

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How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • darkstrength 2 of 3
  • earneststrength 2 of 3
Pacing
brisk, 3 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • survival
  • justice
  • violence
  • betrayal
  • power
Places
  • small town
  • countryside
Era
period
Audience
adult
Form
  • ensemble
Content intensity
  • Gore mild
  • Language mild
  • Violence strong
  • Sex none
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action7
Horror3
Humour2
Realism5
Romance1
Tension7
Darkness6
Complexity5
Emotional weight6

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Where to watch in the UK

Rent or buy
  • Amazon Video

Streaming data from JustWatch.All options on TMDB

Details

Genres
action
Directed by
Chang Cheh
Written by
Ni Kuang, Chang Cheh
Starring
David Chiang Da-wei, Ti Lung, Chen Kuan-tai, Danny Lee Sau-yin, Wong Chung, Wai Wang, Wong Ching, Chiang Tao
Music
Frankie Chan Fan-kei
Cinematography
Kung Mu-To
Runtime
96 min
Country
Hong Kong
Languages
Mandarin

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