AniInterview Sorry, this movie sucks

Smartorhypo Highly Overrated But Still Good

ThrillMessage There are better movies of two hours length. I loved the actress'performance.

Livestonth I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

t_atzmueller What Sergio Corbuccis "The Great Silence" ("Il Grande Silenzio") was to the genre of Spaghetti-Western two years earlier, "The Heroic Ones" is to the Eastern / Kung Fu film: it's breath-taking, ground-breaking and one of the best of it's kind. Like "The Great Silence", "The Heroic Ones" takes place in frozen tundra that, despite being beautiful to behold, makes you shiver just seeing it on the screen. The other similarity is the stylized violence that, despite being gory even by the standards of a genre that lives through violence, seems never quiet realistic, having something of a filmed fairy-tale. (Indeed, had ancient China been only half as violent as director Chang Cheh liked to depict it, the Chinese would today probably be extinct).Yet a third similarity is that both directors seem to have a certain antipathy towards their protagonists: Like in "The Great Silence", the heroes – David Chiang and Ti Lung – actually don't live to see the end of the film. Lung dies one of the most heroic death in Hong Kong film-history and the other, Chiang – as almost always, playing his amiable self, a drunken never-do-gooder with sheer unbeatable martial arts skills – being gorily quartered after being deceived by his villainous brothers.The rest of the cast features almost all of Chehs regulars, all playing as excellent as can be expected from them; if you're a seasoned martial arts fan, this almost is like a joyful family reunion (or, speaking on a more contemporary level, think "The Expendables"). Also watch out for a bald-headed Bolo Yeung (playing a grimacing bandit-chief) who has an (albeit) small, but impressive role.Together with "The New One-Armed Swordsman", "The Heroic Ones" remains one of Chehs most impressive works and one of the finest Martial Arts films ever produced in Hong Kong.Again, mentioning "The Great Silence" one final time: if "The Heroic Ones" struck your fancy, I can highly recommend Corbuccis film, whether you're a Western fan or not.

phillip-58 It's hard to add much to the other comments except to say that this is a very good film indeed. Yes the special effects look as cheap as the back lot sets but the actions ring true and as is the Asian film way heroic deaths seem preferable to a happy ending. David Chiang starts out as a carefree character ('Drunken Brother') but on the way to a bloody death has a touching understated romance, defeats Bolo Yeung in single combat and becomes someone you really care about. Just also to say a big thank you to Celestion for re-releasing this great film in such a good DVD print. Well worth watching. Ti Lung's rescue of his father is a classic fight against overwhelming odds and nearly succeeds. Shaws seem to have half of China as extras in this one scene alone. Production values in terms of interior sets and costumes were high, and a special word for the lovely dancing girls.

veganflimgeek First Let me say there is a real valid arguement that if you like serious good kung Fu movies you must own a region free DVD player. It's worth it. The celestrial picture re-issues alone make the money well spent. The heroic ones one of the films in this series that I was lucky enough to rent today. The recent region 3 re-issue is remastered so well that my friends who watched it with me did not believe me that the film was from 1970.Heroic ones is a must see for fans of high quality martial arts epics. The director was clearly trying to a eastern western feel with the opening credits,even the music. This brutal epic has massive battle scenes that are the size of big hollywood epic. Great half an hour battle with one man fighting hundreds. Good stuff.

Brian Camp THE HEROIC ONES (1970) is a large-scale 2-hour historical costume adventure set at the time of the Tang Dynasty in which the 13 sons of Tartar King Id fight on the side of the Emperor against assorted rebels. Directed by Chang Cheh, it's less a kung fu film than a fast-paced swashbuckler with a higher body count than any similar Hollywood epic. King Id is played by frequent Shaw Bros. villain Ku Feng, while his two favorite sons are played by David Chiang and Ti Lung, who would pop up as a team in several later near-epics also directed by Chang. The action centers around a campaign by the 13 sons to wipe out a rebel faction. The family is undermined, however, by treachery within the ranks when two of the sons, jealous of the 13th prince (David Chiang), make a secret alliance with a court member in league with the rebels. The twists and turns which follow culminate in a tragic and bloody ending. It's a spectacular, fabulous-looking production with a large cast, massive sets, lots of action and bloodshed, and a compelling story. While they weren't the Shaw Bros. studio's greatest kung fu stars, Ti Lung and David Chiang were both agile, athletic and energetic, twirling their swords, lances and spears with great flourish and fervor, and making superhuman acrobatic leaps with the help of convenient stuntmen. Other familiar Shaw Bros. actors appear in smaller parts, including Billy Tang, Lily Li and strongman Bolo Yeung (who is subdued and captured by the slender David in one far-fetched encounter). Be aware that subtitled prints have dramatic scenes and extended dance segments missing from the English-dubbed version, while the English-dubbed version has action scenes missing from the subtitled print.