Chen Kuan Tai:

From Chinese Boxing to the Chinese Box-office
by Dale Berry

Chen Kuan Tai (In Cantonese, Chan Goon Tai), was never a typical Shaw Bros. martial arts star. He didn't begin as the usual graduate of the studio acting school, learning kung fu to augment his show business career. Nor did he come to the screen from one of Shaw's talented stunt teams, although he did work there. Unlike others, Chen was a martial arts star before he ever set foot on the studio lot. A fireman from Canton, Chen had began training in the martial arts at the age of eight, specializing in the hard, Monkey kung fu-style known as "Gibbon Fist." Years later, he would be one of the few fighters onscreen to demonstrate his style's true power and grace, never resorting to the familiar prancing-about of most film Monkey-stylists

In 1969, after winning the East-Asian light-heavyweight championship in Singapore to great acclaim, it was only natural that the movies would come looking for him. At that time, the martial arts movie was exploding in the Asian film industry, and inevitably Chen was approached by the veteran film-director Chang Cheh. The young champion soon found himself breaking into movies with a bit part in the last of the old, classic, black & white Wong Fei Hung films, WONG FEI HUNG BRAVELY CRUSHING THE FIRE FORMATION (1970). This would prove to be a good experience, exposing Chen to some of the Hong Kong film industry's most talented fight directors (the "Dragon-Tiger Masters" Yuen Siu-tin and his disciples Tang Chia and Lau Kar Leung), and also to the series' stars (Kwan Tak Hing and Shek Kin [the evil Master Han from ENTER THE DRAGON]) - men who were martial arts legends in their own right. Even for a tournament champion, Chen Kuan Tai was in heady company.

A second, minor film, DUEL OF TIGER VILLAGE (1970) shortly followed, as Chen learned to refine his considerable fighting talent for the camera. That same year he signed with the Shaw Brothers Studio, making appearances in Chang Cheh's VENGEANCE (which introduced the famous stars Ti Lung and David Chiang) and Wang Yu's breakthrough film, THE CHINESE BOXER. This last picture was the first movie to feature a plot centered exclusively on barehanded martial arts, thus creating the modern "kung fu movie," as we know it.

His own breakthrough came two years later, when he was "loaned-out" to independent producer-director Ng See Yuen to make THE BLOODY FISTS. This low-budget flick caused enough of a stir for Shaw's to feature Chen as the lead in the Chang Cheh directed BOXER FROM SHANTUNG (1972), which became a box office hit. A sequel, MAN OF IRON, followed the same year, and the light-heavyweight champ was now officially a movie star. In a short time, Chen Kuan Tai had developed into a real screen presence, projecting an appealing aura of both power and vulnerability that clicked with audiences. Often, he was cast in the role of a strong and simple man, caught up and betrayed by events that were beyond his control, and forced to confront a corrupt, seemingly untouchable Higher Authority. He was an Everyman, and moviegoers loved him for his common touch.

However, it was when he performed kung fu that he truly shined. Where others looked as if they worked hard to appear skillful, Chen would make the most complicated fighting look effortless. His moves had a fluidity and control lacking in other performers; he seemed as if his feet could walk on air while his hands were crushing rocks. Watching Chen Kuan Tai on screen, there is never any doubt that the viewer is witnessing a genuinely powerful martial artist at work.

Chen joined with Ti Lung and David Chiang, again under director Chang Cheh, to deliver a string of films that are well remembered today, including THE WATER MARGIN (a.k.a. SEVEN BLOWS OF THE DRAGON, 1972), BLOOD BROTHERS (a.k.a. DYNASTY OF BLOOD,1973 ), HEROES TWO and MEN FROM THE MONASTERY (both 1974). Now becoming firmly established as an actor, Chen moved on to work with nearly every major director at Shaw Bros., on material that ranged from period thrillers to modern romantic comedies. The kung fu film was never far from his heart though, and in 1977, Chen wrote, directed and starred in THE IRON MONKEY, the film which probably showcases his technical skills to their finest. (The film was remade in 1993, without Chen and without accurate Monkey kung fu, and there is no comparison.) Honorable mention must also go to Chen's work with director and innovator Lau Kar-leung on the classic CHALLENGE OF THE MASTERS (1976) and EXECUTIONERS FROM SHAOLIN (1977), probably the actor's best-known films internationally.

Playing both heroes and villains, Chen Kuan Tai stayed with the Shaw Brothers Studio until the end, when it ceased film production in the early eighties. This was not the end of his career, however: his popularity remained solid, and he would continue on as an actor and director into the 1990's, even branching off into the realms of Production Manager and Producer. But it is, and will always be, Chen Kuan Tai's legacy as a consummate martial artist that will cement his image as one of the screen's legendary great ones.

CHEN KUAN TAI FILMOGRAPHY: Actor:

1. WONG FEI HUNG BRAVELY CRUSHING THE FIRE FORMATION [1970]
2. DUEL OF TIGER VILLAGE [1970]
3. VENGEANCE [1970]
4. THE CHINESE BOXER [1970]
5. THE WATER MARGIN [1972]
6. ALL MEN ARE BROTHERS [1972]
7. THE BLOODY FISTS [1972]
8. BOXER FROM SHANTUNG [1972]
9. MAN OF IRON [1972]
10. FOUR RIDERS [1972]
11. BLOOD BROTHERS [1973]
12. THE IRON BODYGUARD [1973]
13. HEROES TWO [1974]
14. MEN FROM THE MONASTERY [1974]
15. THE TEA HOUSE [1974]
16. FIVE TOUGH GUYS [1974]
17. THE SAVAGE FIVE [1974]
18. THE FLYING GUILLOTINE [1975]
19. LOVER'S DESTINY [1975]
20. BIG BROTHER CHENG [1975]
21. THE IMPOSTER [1975]
22. THE BLOODY ESCAPE [1975]
23. EIGHT MAN ARMY [1976]
24. CHALLENGE OF THE MASTERS [1976]
25. KING GAMBLER [1976]
26. THE IRON MONKEY [1977]
27. EXECUTIONERS FROM SHAOLIN [1977]
28. CRIPPLED AVENGERS [1978]
29. IRON FISTS [1979]
30. BIG BOSS OF SHANGHAI [1979]
31. KILLER CONSTABLE [1980]
32. THE HERO TATTOOED WITH NINE DRAGONS [1981]
33. THE BATTLE FOR THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA [1981]
34. AMBITIOUS KUNG FU GIRL [1981]
35. WINNER TAKES ALL [1982]
36. ROLLS, ROLLS I LOVE YOU [1982]
37. GANG MASTER [1982]
38. HUMAN LANTERNS [1982]
39. A LIFE OF NINJA [1983]
40. DEADLY DUO [1983]
41. THE BLACK MAGIC WITH BUDDHA [1983]
42. LITTLE DRAGON MAID [1983]
43. LOST GENERATION [1983]
44. CHALLENGE OF THE LADY NINJA [1983]
45. RETURN OF THE BASTARD SWORDSMAN [1984]
46. I WILL FINALLY KNOCK YOU DOWN, DAD [1984]
47. SHANGHAI 13 [1985]
48. FORTUNE HUNTERS [1987]
49. JUST HEROES [1989]
50. SLEAZY DIZZY [1990]
51. ANGEL MISSION [1990]
52. THE FORTUNE CODE [1990]
53. TODAY'S HERO [1991]
54. GHOST KILLER [1992]

• THE IRON MONKEY [1977]

1. THE SIMPLE-MINDED FELLOW [1976]
2. THE IRON MONKEY [1977]
3. BIG BOSS OF SHANGHAI [1979]
4. DANGEROUS PERSON [1981]
5. RETURN TO ACTION [1990]

• FORSAKEN COP [1990]

1. RETURN TO ACTION [1990]
2. BLOOD STAINED TRADEWIND [1990]

NOTE: The list of films may not be complete. Several earlier titles may yet prove to be locked away in the Shaw Bros. Studio film vaults, or withdrawn from circulation and unheard of since their initial release.

About Dale Berry:
Dale Berry is a writer and swordsman based in Bakersfield, CA