72 Violentos Rebeldes

THE 72 DESPERATE REBELS is a mildly crazy Taiwanese martial arts movie starring the unlikely-named Barry Chan as the erstwhile hero whose job it is to take out a huge pirate gang led over by a hulking leader who dresses as a monk. What follows is a film fill of glitz, glamour and cheese, not to mention plentiful action; the problem is that it was done on a very low budget, which means it's all rather silly and inconsequential.

The action scenes are adequate but far from the best the genre has to offer. Bai Ying and Chen Sing play in support. One of the supporting characters is called the Ghost Killer and proves to be a rival to Chan. The only part of the film I really liked is the character of the pirate leader, who has been clearly inspired by Richard Kiel's Jaws in the Bond films, as he has the same power teeth and imposing, over the top presence. There are some crazy antics at the climax involving his character which did raise a few smiles but overall this is a lacklustre movie.