Director: Jeong Chang-hwa
Screenplay: Yip Yat-Fong, Kim Ha-Rim
Starring: Kwan Tak-Hing, Nora Miao, Chao Hsiung, Carter Wong, Whang In-sik, Sammo Hung, Lily Chen Ching, Lee Kwan
Country: Hong Kong, South Korea
Running Time: 86 min
Year: 1974
BBFC Certificate: 15
No other actor is quite as synonymous with one role as Kwan Tak-hing. He portrayed the martial artist folk hero Wong Fei-hung in at least 77 films (a world record). The initial run of these ran between 1949, with Story of Huang Feihong part 1 and 1970, with Huang Fei Hong: Bravely Crushing the Fire Formation. After this, Kwan went into semi-retirement, opening a martial arts school and several herbal centres.
However, Golden Harvest lured Kwan back into his famous role in 1974, with The Skyhawk (a.k.a. Huang Fei Hong xiao lin quan, which translates to ‘Wong Fei-hung’s Shaolin Kung-fu’). Although it only made a modest 1 million HK dollars at the local box office, it was still the most successful Wong Fei-hung film up to that point (bear in mind the original series came before the kung-fu boom that followed The Big Boss in 1971) and Kwan ended up featuring as the character in another handful of films, including The Magnificent Butcher and Dreadnaught.
Also featuring a young Sammo Hung, who acted as martial arts choreographer on the film, The Skyhawk is not one of the better-known kung-fu movies Golden Harvest put out at the time, so it’s great to see Eureka giving it a new lease of life on Blu-ray.
I got hold of a copy to see how it held up.
In the film, master Wong Fei-hung (Kwan Tak-hing) and his disciple Fatty (Sammo Hung) travel to Thailand to visit an old friend, Chu (Chao Hsiung). Chu is the owner of a shipping business that is being threatened by a local crime boss named Ku (Hwang In-shik). Ku wants to use Chu’s business as a front for his nefarious activities. With the dock workers, who are loyal to Chu, getting in his way, Ku hires a mercenary hapkido master (Hwang In-shik) to help get what he wants.
Meanwhile, Wong takes on Leo Hsiao Sze-Tzu (Carter Wong) as a new student after he is injured by the hapkido master. Leo and Fatty join up to try to stop Ku’s reign of terror, whilst Wong takes a peaceful approach. That is until Ku and the hapkido master push things a step too far…
Whilst largely following the old Wong Fei-hung movie formula, the shift to Thailand, the criminal’s factory(ish) front and increased production values, not to mention the shoehorned-in role for Nora Miao, all point towards cashing in on the success of The Big Boss as much as the Wong Fei-hung series.
The Wong Fei-hung aspect keeps it from feeling like a cheap Brucesploitation film though. Plus, the Thailand locations are put to incredibly good use, making for a film that looks far more attractive than most kung-fu movies of the era. It really is a feast for the eyes at times, particularly in this beautifully remastered transfer.
The Skyhawk was directed by Jeong Chang-hwa (credited as Cheng Chang-ho) who, most famously, helmed the classic King Boxer which kickstarted the kung-fu boom in the US, before Bruce Lee’s films made it over there. Jeong injects a similar energy into this film. Rarely five minutes go by without a fight scene and there’s enough variation in setting and style between them to keep the action from growing stale.
A young Sammo Hung was still finding his way as a fight choreographer here with action that perhaps lacks character. However, we must remember that kung-fu movie fights, in general, were still largely quite scrappy and unimaginative in 1974, unlike those that would follow towards the end of the 70s and throughout the 80s.
The cast makes the most of Sammo’s choreography though. Kwan was in his 70s when making the film, so he’s doubled for the more acrobatic moves but he’s still given some fighting to do. He came from a Peking Opera background and had martial arts training, so was able to look convincing as a fighter, even at that ripe old age.
Carter Wong was an actual martial artist too, before moving into acting (he trained the police in martial arts). He shows his skills here, with some convincing fight scenes. His student role is meatier than Sammo’s, as Golden Harvest seemed more keen to promote him as a star. Hwang In-shik is perhaps even more impressive as one of the chief villains though. His great kicking ability makes for some athletic moves.
Granted, the story is nothing new and, generally, it’s not one of the more inventive entries to the genre but The Skyhawk is handsomely mounted, loaded with fights and dramatically satisfying. As such, it’s an all-round solid old-school kung-fu classic.
Film: 
The Skyhawk is out now on on Blu-Ray in the UK, released by Eureka as part of their Eureka Classics series. The film looks stunning; crisp and clear, with beautiful rich but natural colours, though the grain struggles a little in darker shots. You get both Cantonese and Mandarin audio options, as well as an English dub. I opted for the Cantonese track and, whilst it suffers from the usual limitations of Hong Kong soundtracks of the era, it sounds relatively clean and clear.
LIMITED EDITION BLU-RAY INCLUDES
– Limited Edition O-Card slipcase featuring new artwork by Darren Wheeling [2000 Copies]
– 1080p HD presentation on Blu-ray of the original Hong Kong theatrical cut from a brand new 2K restoration
– Original Mandarin mono audio
– Cantonese and English audio options
– Optional English Subtitles, newly translated for this release
– Brand new feature-length audio commentary by Asian film expert Frank Djeng (NY Asian Film Festival)
– Brand new feature-length audio commentary by action cinema experts Mike Leeder & Arne Venema
– Selected scene commentary with Blade Po, film critic and Research Director at the Hong Kong Film Archive
– Trailer
– Reversible sleeve design
– A Limited Edition collector’s booklet featuring new writing by James Oliver [2000 Copies]
Frank Djeng’s commentary is, as ever, loaded with facts about those involved in the film, whilst explaining any cultural quirks that some may have missed on first viewing. He also talks a little about Wong Fei-hung.
Mike Leeder and Arne Venema provide their usual deep dive into The Skyhawk. As on the countless other tracks they’ve appeared on, they have a laugh whilst talking over the film, discussing those involved and segueing into personal stories about the cast and crew or locations. Like Djeng, they also discuss the life of the real Wong Fei-hung.
There’s also a 20-minute interview with Blade Po, a film critic and Research Director at the Hong Kong Film Archive. This plays over clips from the film like a select-scene commentary, though his comments don’t directly reference the actions on-screen. It’s an illuminating and informative track, placing the film in the context of where it stands among the work of the cast and crew, as well as within the martial arts genre.
James Oliver’s essay in the booklet is excellent, as usual. He discusses the importance of Kwan Tak-Hing in the Hong Kong film and entertainment industry and how The Skyhawk places among his work.
So, Eureka again put a lot of effort into releasing a kung-fu classic. I very much appreciate them digging out slightly more obscure titles like this, so this comes highly recommended.
Disc/Package:
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