Bamboo Gods and Iron Men

One of the more obscure Blaxploitation titles, but not too shabby. James Iglehart plays professional boxer Cal Jefferson who's on honeymoon with wife Shirley Washington in Hong Kong. They bicker a bit and she's a prude, all in good fun. Cal saves a drowning (mute) Chinese man's life, and is repaid by his unwanted servility. Cal dubs him "Charlie" (his version of Chow-Li) and after Charlie proves his worth, he gets to tag along with the newlyweds. Meanwhile, there's a bald-headed dude, that's all into Eastern culture, and has stolen some magical, powerful substance, that of course[!], gets mixed up with Cal's luggage. There's some decent kungfu fighting, massage parlor scenes, the inimitable Eddie Garcia, kidnappings, and more kungfu fighting. Despite being of the generally more deliquent Phillipinian-lensed Blax-species, it features a sometimes tongue-in-cheek script with a good chemistry between the leads. I liked it! Not currently on VHS or DVD, so you'll have to go to one of your friendly internet sources for a copy.

Almost forgotten today, this combination of blaxploitation & kung-fu is pretty watchable. Not great or anything to really seek out, but it does manage to keep your attention throughout. The martial arts fights are "old school", but they manage to be both realistic and pretty exciting. The humor is pretty broad at times, but there is some amusement at times.

Strange that despite all the sexy ladies on display, there is only one sequence of nudity - and it's from the Asian lead! In fact, the Asian lead seems to be made fun of and pushed/slapped about a lot, and this treatment at times is a bit hard to sit through.

The screenplay shows signs of being hastily put together without being seriously reviewed for weaknesses and plot holes. For example, the origin of the Asian lead isn't really explained too much. Also, the movie ends with some minor but noticable plot threads left hanging. But the whole thing is lensed well (it looks more expensive than other Filipino movies of the era), and adding that to the other positives, people who have an interest in Filipino exploitation and/or drive-in exploitation will probably be pleased enough by this.

This movie has it ! The formula for fun and entertainment. OK so its lacking in some areas but for whatever it lacks it certainly makes up for in the humor and action department. This movie will certainly appeal to different range of people , including those who are into the Black Action movies of the seventies and fans of the seventies Martial Arts films. This movie is a combination of both genre's.

The film starts off with an interesting almost surreal beginning and kicks off with a super funky 1970's instrumental theme . The music is by Tito Sotto ! Tito Sotto who was also an actor ,later on became a senator in the Philippines. Among his other music work he composed the music for a film called Blind Rage , a movie which featured Leo Fong and Fred The Hammer Williamson. Anyway the other music throughout the movie ranges from good easy jazzy lounge to very funky.

The film itself starts off almost with a setting from a Hammer Horror film of the sixties or early seventies and one could almost think that they're in store for something like The Legend Of The Seven Golden Vampires which was a Hammer / Golden Harvest . But thats where the similarity ends.

Instead the movie is about an Black American newly wed couple , a champion boxer and his bride on their honeymoon . And they get caught up in events because of reasons that aren't apparent to them for quite a long time. Instead of being romantic with his beautiful bride (Shirley Washington) Cal Jefferson "The Champ" (James Iglehart)has to fend off assailants and can't understand why they are after him or what they want.

There is something that the bad guys are after and will stop at nothing to get. Something very deadly ! Along the way they inherit a Chinese Mute companion who gets caught up in events and the action. He happens to be a skilled martial artist and these skills of his are put to good use.

All of this puts a bit of suspense into the movie and along with some good fight scenes and some comic moments thrown in this movie makes for an enjoyable film.

There is a good memorable climax and ending to this movie. This all makes sense and if you've forgotten what the story was about for some reason then this will remind you.

There is a good cast in this movie , James Iglehart some will recognize as Randy Black from Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls 1970 ... Angels Hard as They Come 1971 (a biker movie) . The lovely Shirley Washington as his bride , also Marissa Delgado , Chiquito ,Eddie Garcia and Ken Metcalfe star in this film. Also as a bonus you'll see Vic Diaz in a cameo role as a hotel clerk.

Out of the movies of this type and in this genre I would say that this is definitely one of the better ones . I can see most people watching this and enjoying it only a few very fussy people would possibly be disappointed.

And if there was anything more funky than the theme , what about the title ?

BAMBOO .... GODS .... AND .... IRON .... MEN

Grungy but likable AIP blaxpoitation/chop-socky mashup, produced in the Philippines and destined for the stateside grindhouse/drive-in circuit.

Genial beefcake James "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" Iglehart toplines as a boxing champ honeymooning in Hong Kong who becomes the unwitting target of a murderous gang hellbent on recovering a priceless statuette. Needless to say, the bad guys get more than they bargained for since Brother Iglehart is one of the titular iron men. Our hero kicks ass, takes names, and wears the most eye-searing paisley shirts this side of Walter Matthau in EARTHQUAKE. Indeed, his threads alone seem weaponized to damage an opponent's optic nerves.

Bone-crushing action, mega-seedy locations and funkadelic music abound. Hardcore '70s action movie completists, take note.

Also in the house: Filipino comedy icon Chiquito as a cute mute, the ubiquitous Eddie Garcia (BEAST OF BLOOD's mad Dr. Lorca) and the inevitable and always welcome Vic Diaz.

"From Harlem to Hong Kong, they fear the name, the fame, the fury of Black Cal Jefferson, the Champ!" Cal Jefferson is on his honeymoon in the land of Bamboo Gods and Iron Men (i.e. Hong Kong) when they buy up a Buddha statue in a shop that a bunch of bad guys want, which leads to a bunch of boxing vs. Kung-fu fight scenes. BAMBOO GODS AND IRON MEN is a so-bad-it's-good kind of movie. The acting is embarrassing, the story is dumber than dumb, and worst of all, the fight scenes are soooooooo bad. Our hero even gains a mute helper buddy along the way after rescuing him, making the film even more stupid! This movie is strictly amateur hour, but like I said, it is so bad that I was able to enjoy it for its ineptitude. However, the movie did have a funky score that I legit enjoyed.