1976 The Prodigal Boxer or Enter the Whirlwind Boxer or Prodigal Boxer 2 or The Young Hero of Shaolin
1976 Taiwan with Mang Fei, Doris Lung Chun-Erh, Dorian Tan, Liu Ping, and Wei Pin-Ao The most common title for this movie is The Young Hero of Shaolin and that causes confusion with the same title movie from 1984.
This movie starts out with a scene that makes you think you put a porn movie on by mistake. If you see that then you know you have the 1976 version with Mang Fei. It is important you know what you are watching here because this is one of the best martial arts movies ever. I consider it mandatory viewing for all fans of the genre. For movie fans who have wet their beaks with Jimmy and Jackie and Sammo and Bruce and Gordon Liu - all top names from the golden age of martial arts movies from 1967-1984 - this movie would be a good start to take a deeper drink. The fights are as good as they get for 1976 plus the plot and character development is also way above average for a martial arts movie. Why has this movie not be remade is my cry in the dark.
If you have heard of Bruceploitation then Mang Fei is an example of Fu Shengploitation. Many consider him Taiwan's answer to Shaw Brother's big star Alex Fu Sheng. Here he also takes the name of the historical figure Fong Sai Yuk but the name alone is historically accurate as also in the early Jet Li movies. Dorian Tan plays a most interesting character who actually develops through the movie from a simple one dimensional fighter looking for another fight to a man who learns the value of friendship.
I usually review these movies for fans of the genre and rate and recommend them accordingly but this movie I rate compared to all other movies made in 1976 and I rate it well above average and recommend it for anyone looking to spend 90 minutes watching a really good movie.
