After the lighter tones of AVENGING WARRIORS OF SHAOLIN and INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN (where the audiences saw the comedic side of the Venoms actors), Chang Cheh returned to the dark side for his most gloomy and brutal movie ever, MASKED AVENGERS. Despite the lack of Lo Mang and Sun Chien, MASKED AVENGERS is considered a Venoms film. The absence of these two allowed other actors in the Shaw Brothers stable to step up, like Chin Siu Hao (TWO CHAMPIONS OF SHAOLIN, TEN TIGERS OF KWANTUNG, HOUSE OF TRAPS), Chu Ke (HOLY FLAME OF THE MARTIAL WORLD, BLAST OF THE IRON PALM, THE WEIRD MAN), and Wong Li (CHINESE SUPER NINJAS, FLAG OF IRON, THE CHINATOWN KID). Unfortunately, MASKED AVENGERS came out in 1981 when Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung were atop the box office. Kung Fu comedies were all the rage and a dark film like MASKED AVENGERS failed to garner he box office receipts and critical raves of it’s predecessors THE FIVE DEADLY VENOMS and RETURN OF THE FIVE DEADLY VENOMS. MASKED AVENGERS officially marked the beginning of the end of the Venoms era. At the close of the 1990’s, Ground Zero/NS Video released a collection of Venoms pictures on VHS, which marked the first time in history you could pick up the Venoms rarities in your local music or video store, instead of dealing with video bootleggers. Just in time for the 20^th anniversary of MASKED AVENGERS, NS Video released the film (and a host of other Venom movies) on DVD in 2001.

A band of marauding Kung Fu warriors wearing golden masks send the people of the Ming Dynasty into panic. These bloodthirsty cultists torture and kill any one who crosses their path or seeks their identities, which are secret. After the gang capture and kill a respected family, the government sends Chi San Yuen (Chiang Sheng) to investigate. Chi San Yan searches for clues about the gang. His search leads him to the rich nobleman, Lung Yun Chi (Lu Feng) who promises to cooperate with the investigation. Chi San Yan continues his investigation, but his men soon die mysterious deaths. He figures out that the gang is responsible, and vows to solve the mystery of the cult. Chi San Yuen’s officer Liang Yung (Chu Ke) discovers that Lung Yun Chi’s cook, Kao Yau (Kuo Chi) is more than just a mere cook. Liang Yung pays close attention to Kao Yau, and eventually they become friends. During the investigation, allegations point toward Kao Yau. The cook reveals to Liang Yung that he is indeed an ex-member of the hated gang. He implicates Lung Yun Chi as the head of the gang, and keeps watch over the villain by posing as his cook. Meanwhile, Lung Yun Chi schemes to get Kao Yau back into the gang. As Liang Yung gets close to uncovering the truth, Lung Yun Chi orders the death of him. The cult dispatches some of their best fighters to kill him. After a brave attempt at survival, Liang Yung falls victim to the deadly weapons of the cultists. Kao Yau discovers the body of his friend, and is determined to put a stop to the madness. He tries to forge an alliance with Chi San Yuen. One of the officers accuses Kao Yau of being the killer to plant dissent into everyone’s mind. Kao Yau informs Chi San Yuen that there is a traitor in their midst. After revealing the identity of the traitor, both men join forces to launch an assault on hidden palace of the gang. Lung Yun Chi prepares a warm reception for the both men, and unleashes the fighting mad-cultists to dispose of their enemies!

MASKED AVENGERS is essentially a retelling of the original THE FIVE DEADLY VENOMS, without the gimmick of the individual Venom characters and powers. The original intimidating Venoms masks are thrown out in favor of similar golden masks for the clan of evil doers. However, the main plot device is still the same—these masked martial arts cultists do not know each other’s identity. This creates suspense not only for the heroic characters out to stop the evil ones, but even the masked cultists themselves don’t know who their brothers really are. One of the most memorable moments in the film is when Kuo Chi quits the cult. His superiors immediately promise to hunt him down and kill him. Under his mask, Kuo Chi laughs and says they’ll never track him down, since they don’t know who he truly is. MASKED AVENGERS begins as an ensemble movie. The death toll whittles this cast down to the final Venoms players which culminates with a wicked display of martial arts superiority in the final showdown. Lu Feng always portrays villains (except in INVINCIBLE SHAOLIN) and here he delivers his penultimate evil character. His character is a rich and powerful elitist, which is all a front for his cult leader position. Chiang Sheng is the only surviving member of the task force to survive the onslaught of the cultists. But the real hero of MASKED AVENGERS is Kuo Chi. He begins the movie as an evildoer himself, and through the turn of events that unfold, Kuo Chi becomes the central focus and ultimately the demise of the gang, with some assistance from Chiang Sheng.

MASKED AVENGERS shares other things in common with THE FIVE DEADLY VENOMS. The movie is not driven by the fight sequences (there’s plenty of that though) but by interaction of the characters and the mysterious circumstances surrounding them. The fights themselves are of the typical top-notch Venom variety, but they take a back seat to the complex plot and intrigue of MASKED AVENGERS. The storyline is mullet-faceted and requires more than a single viewing to soak it all in. Literally, if you go to the fridge to get a beer and come back, you will miss some important detail that furthers the plot. Chang Cheh doesn’t miss a beat here, and MASKED AVENGERS is one of his finest films. Cheh is at his best when telling a story in a very bleak atmosphere and serious tone, something that he maintains throughout the picture. Cheh inserts the highest amount of violence and bloodshed into a Venoms film yet. The masked cultists use sacred tridents to kill their victims, so we constantly see these nasty weapons coming through the chests of their victims. The masked cultists perform such evil deeds as capturing families and slaughtering them in front of their loved ones, raping women (off-screen), and drinking the blood of their victims. These masked cultists behave like a rogue group of Satanists who rejoice in debauchery, murder, and general chaos. MASKED AVENGERS is clearly the closest thing Chang Cheh has come to a horror film. With his penchant for death and brutality, Cheh is a natural for an atmospheric film like this one.