THE INVINCIBLE EIGHT

Lo Wei has an impressive catalog as a director, and he is someone I find reliably entertaining. He is often criticized because of his notorious failing out with Bruce Lee, and clashes with Jackie Chan's whose talents people feel he misused (though I must admit to enjoying movies like The Magnificent Bodyguards). And this concern over this drama frequently spills into points about his direction. But I think he is one of the more competent directors from that era of martial arts film making, and he was always good at keeping the action grounded in good storytelling. And while he did have conflict with stars like Chan and Lee, he also had a talent for building movies around stars (there is a strong case for him missing Jackie Chan's talent, but he succeeded i my opinion when it came to stars like Bruce Lee, Cheng Pei Pei, Lisa Chiao Chiao, Li Ching, and Jimmy Wang Yu). Films like Shadow Whip (1970), Dragon Swamp (1969), Fist of Fury (1972), Death Valley (1968), Black Butterfly (1968), The Big Boss (1971), Vengeance of a Snowgirl (1970), are all really good films, and all made within a period of about five years. Even his later movies following the Bruce Lee kerfuffle, the ones starring Jimmy Wang Yu in particular, like A Man Called Tiger (1973) and The Tattooed Dragon (1973), are still wildly entertaining.

In The Invincible Eight, he takes this skill for storytelling and utilizing talent, to craft a memorable tale of revenge, with an impressive ensemble cast. One of Golden Harvest's first films, it is filled with sharp action, memorable characters and has a clever twist that heightens the stakes. I have reviewed it before there, but I have reworked that review based on a dual viewing of the Eureka and 88 Films releases of it. 

You can see my review at easternKicks HERE to find out my thoughts.