Let the blood flow freely!
And boy does it ever in Masked Avengers, a martial arts bonanza which features blood drinking, satan worshiping, and a whole lot of bloody trident action! Not for the faint of heart, Masked Avengers, once again directed by Chang Cheh, features three of the “venoms” in some solid roles as they band together to stop the spread of a violent gang which no one knows the identity of save for the golden masks they wear.
Oh, it also features some kick ass fight choreography from Kuo Chui, Lu Feng, Chiang Sheng and Chu Ko as they are cut loose to fight with tridents, more booby traps, darts, and acid! The film is loaded with kung fu spectacle thanks to a solid production design from the studio, leaving the finale with one of the best set designs used. The inner sanctum of the evil gang is absolutely unforgettable.
Thanks to the cinematography from Johnson Tsao, Masked Avengers is also one of the darkest martial arts films the Shaw Brothers Studio ever put out as a gang of mask-wearing killers roam the countryside committing all sorts of heinous crimes against a local community. The gang, when they aren’t killing, hang out in a run-down temple and lie in wait. 
What they are waiting for is anyone’s guess. They are truly vile and disturbing individuals. But the truth is that they don’t know each other’s identities and, as a result, are all the more dangerous for it. It is up to Chi San Yuens (Chiang Sheng), Kao Yao (Phillip Kwok), and Chang Chung (Chin Siu-Ho) to end this reign of terror. Little do they know that it’s going to involve a temple full of all sorts of booby traps and metal doors which can cut a man in two!
Masked Avengers is now on blu-ray thanks to Shout Factory’s Shaw Brothers Collection, Vol 4 which includes another 12 classic martial arts films that highlight this explosive box set comprised from the famous Shaw Brothers' library and featuring some of their greatest stars including The Five Deadly Venom’s stars Phillip Kwok, Sun Chien, Lu Feng, Chiang Sheng, and Lo Meng and A Better Tomorrow's Derek Yee and Ti Lung. Many of these visually spectacular films are debuting for the first time on Blu-ray. Heroes meet villains in edge-of-your-seat duels in this exciting array of some of Shaw Brothers' best!
Alongside House of Traps and Five Element Ninjas, this is Shaw Brothers at its darkest!
Home Video Distributor: Shout Factory
Available on Blu-ray - December 19, 2023
Screen Formats: 2.35:1
Subtitles: English
Audio: Mandarin: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
Video: MPEG-4 AVC
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; 12-discset
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
The godfather of the kung fu film, Chang Cheh, started a winning streak by making the internationally renowned film, The Five Venoms. He followed that hit with many more high-flying films featuring the same cast in new roles. But of all the Venoms movies, this one stands out as perhaps the most chilling. Masked killers are wreaking havoc and instilling terror with their vicious weapons of choice: razor-sharp, gut-shattering tridents. Only three fearless fighters dare investigate, leading to mass murder and magnificent martial arts.
Video
Masked Avengers arrives on Blu-ray from Shout Factory sporting an HD remaster sourced from the original 35mm camera negatives and looks wonderful. Interiors are strong. Colors pop throughout, but it is the blood effects - burning bright in the transfer - which seal the deal on this one. It’s full of great atmosphere thanks to the quick-footed script and looks visually eye-popping due to the 1080- upgrade. Black levels are strong throughout, bringing out nice details in both the loud and quiet moments of this epic adventure. The tracking shots are glorious to behold in 1080p. Blacks are solid and shadows maintain their lines. Even the costumes are noted stitch by stitch.
Audio
Fans get a Mandarin Mono DTS-HD track with new subtitle translations and an English Dubbed DTS-HD track with SDH subtitles.
Supplements:
Commentary:
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See below for the breakdown of this release.
Special Features:
Loaded with plenty of satisfying supplemental items, this release slaps with a lot of martial arts madness!
- NEW Audio Commentary With Film Critic Ian Jane
- NEW “Avenging Force” – An Interview With Veteran Shaw Actor Chu Ke
- Celestial Trailer
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Composite Blu-ray Grade
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MPAA Rating: R
Runtime: 92 mins
Director: Cheh Chang
Writer: Cheh Chang; Kuang Ni
Cast: Phillip Chung-Fung Kwok; Siu-Ho Chin; Sheng Chiang
Genre: Action | Drama
Tagline:
Memorable Movie Quote:
Distributor: Shaw Brothers
Official Site:
Release Date: December 1982 (United States)
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: December 19, 2023
Synopsis: The masked gang have created a menace, killing many people, now it is up to Philp who once worked for the masked gang to destroy them.
