The Seven Commandments of Kung Fu

Despite the grand, Biblical-sounding title, 7 COMMANDMENTS OF KUNG FU is nothing more than a bog-standard and cheapjack effort from Taiwan. It tells a tired old storyline and is so cheap that the action sequences lack bite and excitement. Only genre completionists are going to want to bother with this one.

Li Yi-Min plays the usual eager student whose old master teaches him ring training among the stock kung fu styles. Chang Yi once again essays the role of the old white-haired master who meets up with our protagonist and proceeds to teach him the seven 'rules' of kung fu, all of which are common sense such as "watch out for ambushes". However, there's a twist in the tale leading to a fraught climax...

The best part of this movie are the strenuous training sequences, in particular one stand-out bit in which the hero has built a massive praying mantis out of straw and proceeds to kick it to pieces. Sadly the rest of the production is below par. I can ignore the inanity of any storyline as long as the action is good, but here it really isn't; it doesn't help that a grainy, fullscreen print ruins the fight choreography and renders the whole thing a choppy mess.