The early 1970s saw the Hong Kong movie industry changing gears from traditional swordplay films to more gritty and violent fare. Chang Cheh's 1970 release Vengeance! is a prime example of this. The second onscreen pairing of Ti Lung and David Chiang proved why they earned their their nickname of the "Blood Brothers", as a majority of the frames here are awash in the Shaw Brothers' trademark day-glo ketchup colored fake claret.

Actually, Ti and Chiang share very little screen time together, as Ti's character is quickly killed off, which forms the impetus for Chiang to come looking for revenge. And revenge he does, resulting in a swath of destruction which gives this film an ambiguous moral compass. At times, we feel that maybe shouldn't be rooting for Chiang because of his methods. But it's those very same methods which make the film so fun to watch.

The action scenes have a very western feel to them, with knife fights and brawls taking the place of kung fu. It's probably no coincidence that the soundtrack lifts music from James Bond films. But director Chang Cheh still makes his presence very much felt, in both good and bad ways. Good in that this film has some extremely technically well-done sequences; the death of Ti is some of the best shot and edited footage from this period.

The bad comes from the ham-handed way Chang treats the lone female character, Chiang's love interest, who is played by Alice Au. Chang was never known for strong female characters in his movies, and this is no exception, with the romantic scenes being plodding and awkward, managing to derail a lot of the momentum built up.

Things do rebound very nicely during the blood-soaked finale, a sequence that influenced generations of directors to come, such as John Woo (The Killer) and Quentin Tarantino (Kill Bill). It's a powerfully violent piece of film that still manages to excite and resonate, showcasing the barely contained cinematic chaos that would become the essence of Hong Kong film-making during its' "golden age".

RATING: 7