I love this movie so much

ridiculous rating

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

THE HOT, THE COOL AND THE VICIOUS is another workable kung fu film from director Lee Tso Nam, with plenty of action to see it through and a political back story that remains fast-paced and involving. The story sees Don Wong playing a killer who arrives in a town that's ruled by an iron fist. Of course, character motivations are kept secret and there are surprises in store throughout, along with a big helping of fight scenes. Flash Legs Tan plays an ally of Wong's while Tommy Lee is the outlandish villain of the piece complete with blue make-up, a scarred appearance, and fright wig. I found the female characters well served by the story as they're important in their own right rather than just being token villainess or damsel in distress type parts.

Tan's fan-friendly kicking style is on display as soon as the opening credits get out of the way. As Captain Lu of The Security Corps, he has to round up local ne'er-do-wells. Meanwhile, Bai Yu Ching (Don Wong), an "infamous killer," gets out of jail, defends himself in a tavern, and is warned by Lu to stick to the straight and narrow- or else. The tavern brawl, it turns out, was staged by Ching and friends. (Ching is secretly an undercover agent.) Lu's fiancé and her mother are attacked by Nan Shan and his men and the older woman is killed. Lu then asks his boss, Yuen- who also happens to be Nan Shan's father- to turn Nan over to him. Yuen agrees, but is, of course, lying. Meanwhile, Ching's partner, Tae, "tortures" a prisoner to get information from him by TICKLING HIS FEET; the man talks... Enter Mr. Loong (Tommy Lee, the fight choreographer for the movie), an albino hunchback with golden hair who limps around looking like a Tom Savini zombie from George Romero's 1978 classic, DAWN OF THE DEAD. Loong's voice reverberates eerily, further adding to his overall creepiness. Wong says of Loong: "He's a gold-haired gorilla." The comparison is apt: the limping gait and hunched back DO lend Loong an ape-like aspect. He's also as STRONG as a gorilla... and almost as smart. Director Lee Tso Nam has crafted another martial arts masterpiece- a very solid ten.

A fairly complex plot for a kung-fu movie involving the arrival in town of a wandering killer. Meanwhile all kinds of subplots are happening, from a counterfeiting gang, and the spoilt son of the local town boss killing an old woman. Top kicker Tan Tao Liang is the police chief and has to track down the young man, while his father tries to cause difficulties. All the characters have a nice little back-story. Top kicker Tan Tao Liang has a dark past, and owes his status as chief to the town boss, while smirking killer Don Wang is hired by the same boss to stop him - but does he have an ulterior motive? Special mention must be made to the albino 'hunchback' Tommy Lee (no, not THAT Tommy Lee) who has some cool jumping powers. The fight scenes are OK - top kicker Tan Tao Liang obviously has some great leg action. The end sequence fight between our 3 characters is very entertaining and well executed - with a vicious death for the loser! It also has some resolution at the end - usually kung fu films of this era stop dead after the last baddie dies.

THE HOT, THE COOL AND THE VICIOUS (1976) is a plot-packed kung fu movie, made in Taiwan, that pits some relatively unsung kung fu stars against a pair of formidable villains. It's got solid fight sequences, a fast-paced narrative and lots of attractive performers, including a trio of impressive leading ladies.The main plot thread is actually less interesting than the subplots. Pai Yu Ching (Wong Tao/billed as Don Wang) plays a wandering `South Fist' fighter with a reputation as a killer who enters a town where the righteous Northern Leg fighter Captain Lu (Tan Tao Liang) runs the police force under the auspices of iron-fisted town boss Yuen (George Wang). We learn early on that Pai is actually an undercover agent seeking to root out a counterfeit ring run by Yuen. When Yuen's wastrel son causes the death of Lu's fiancee's mother, Captain Lu incurs Yuen's wrath by demanding he turn over his son. Meanwhile, a Miss Lee (Sun Chia Lin) dresses in a ninja outfit at night to try to kill Captain Lu to avenge the death of her brother, the former Captain, who was killed, through no fault of Lu's, while trying to arrest Lu for killing a man in self defense. There's also a very sexy landlady (Leu Shou Jen) with her sights set on Pai Yu Ching, but with a hidden agenda. Whew!It's essentially a police drama with elements of the western (including a ghost town with weed-strewn streets) transposed to the kung fu film. It works because all the characters and their interactions are consistently interesting and the actors are very good. (It helps that the English dubbing is well above par for this kind of film.) Pai and Lu are seemingly on opposite sides but become solid allies once the various truths are known. Yuen is the tyrannical town boss and a worthy villain who lashes out at Lu once his son is in trouble. Yuen's partner in crime is the blond-wigged albino Mr. Lung, played by the film's fight choreographer Tommy Lee (no relationship to the rock star of that name!).There are lots of fights, most highlighting Tan Tao Liang's phenomenal high kicking. Few of the fights, however, are extended ones, until the last two bouts in which Tommy Lee opposes first Tan and then both Tan and Wong Tao.A number of cast members are worth singling out. Tan Tao Liang (aka Delon Tam) is tall and long-limbed and executes some amazing kicking and leg power. Wong Tao is only a competent fighter but has classical movie star looks and a winning smile. (Think Tyrone Power doing kung fu rather than swashbuckling.) Tommy Lee is a flamboyant villain and a good fighter. The three lead actresses are all quite beautiful, especially Leu Shou Jen (also in SECRET RIVALS), who plays the landlady. Sun Chia Lin, as Miss Lee, gets to do some fighting.The overall plot is not the most compelling but it does make for a thoroughly enjoyable kung fu film, maybe not one of the greatest, but certainly above average. A follow-up of sorts can be found in CHALLENGE OF DEATH (1978) with several of the same cast members and the same director (Lee Tso Nam).