David Chiang won't be smiling when he realize he's in this movie for 12 minutes.
The Boxer From Shantung is a 1972 martial arts film from Shaw Brothers, directed by Chang Cheh and starring Chen Kuan-tai (from Flying Guillotine) as the titular protagonist, also co-starring Chang's long-time collaborator and megastar, David Chiang, in a surprisingly small role despite his popularity at the time.
Chen plays Ma Yong-zhen, a labourer and country boy, who longed for a life of wealth and success. Travelling to Shanghai in an attempt to make it big, Ma ends up becoming the head honcho of local triad boss, Brother Tam-si (David), right in the middle of a gang war about to break out. Climbing to the top of the triads, Ma learns that power comes at a price.
David Chiang and Chen Kuan-tai will collaborate with Chang Cheh once again in the following year's Blood Brothers (1973), but this time with the roles reversed (so Chiang in this film plays Chen's superior, and in the latter film it's the other way around).
The movie has a remake, Hero (1997), starring Takeshi Kaneshiro and Yuen Biao as the characters portrayed by Chen and Chiang, respectively.
The Troper From Shantung:
- Agonizing Stomach Wound: Suffered by both Brother Tam See and Ma Yong-zhen, respectively by a dagger and an ax. Both of them succumbs to their injuries after that, although the latter puts up a long and intense fight for some 12 minutes before going down.
- The Cavalry Arrives Late: Unfortunately in the final battle, Ma's comrades and followers arrived in the teahouse just in time to witness Ma succumbing to his injuries, having killed everyone except one rando. They then ganged up to hack the rando to death.
- Chairman of the Brawl: In the final battle, chairs are used by both Ma and faceless mooks alike to bash each other out.
- David vs. Goliath: To prove himself as a fighter, Ma had to enter a wrestling ring to challenge it's current champion, a hulking Russian brawler some two meters tall who had defeated every challenger before Ma. Of course Ma wins the brawl.
- Dead Star Walking: Brother Tam, played by David Chiang. He was at the peak of his career at that time, having headlined multiple hits for Shaw Brothers, and audiences are no doubt surprised when he dies at the end of the first act.
- Decapitated Army: Averted in the final battle; after Ma had killed Chin-fa, the rest of his mooks instead continues fighting to avenge their leader.
- Do Not Go Gentle: Both Brother Tam and Ma.
- Tam, after getting stabbed and realizing his bodyguards are bribed by Chin-fa, retaliates by killing the one who stabbed him, and then taking on every single one of them. He managed to kill all ten assassins after him, but realizing he's fated to die all by himself, he then puts on a Dying Smirk and sits down accepting his fate.
- Ma, in the final battle, despite being heavily wounded, managed to kill as many enemies as he can, including Chin-fa, and hold his own until all except one faceless mobster are dead.
- Foil: There is a clear distinction between the two main leads, Brother Tam (David Chiang) and Ma Yong-zhen (Chen Kuan-tai). Brother Tam is already a high-ranking, well-known, powerful mob leader right at the start of the film, while Ma is a dock worker and coolie who started low and worked his way to the top. Brother Tam is calm, collected, while Tam is a hothead and a brawler. At the moments of their respective demises, Brother Tam knows he very well won't make it out alive, so after killing everyone, he merely sits down and calmly accepts his fate; Tam on the other hand goes out in a rage, brutally hacking and slicing everyone in his way, suffering an agonizing death by his final scene.
- Lured into a Trap: Ma's meeting with Chin-fa at the end of the film, to discuss the circumstances of Brother Tam's demise and the subsequent power struggle that follows, turns out to be an assasination attempt by Chin-fa to eliminate all his potential rivals, with the intent of killing Ma in the process.
- Naïve Newcomer: Ma, a dock worker from the outskirts who travelled to Shanghai with the intention of making it big. He ends up becoming part of the local triad and a legendary fighter and killer in the mob.
- One Last Smoke: Brother Tam's last actions before he dies is to take a long, extended smoke. While smiling. As he Dies Wide Open.
- Protagonist Title: Chen Kuan-tai is Ma Yong-zhen, the Boxer from Shantung,
- Punch Parry: Between Ma and the Russian brawler. Seen here
◊. - Red Oni, Blue Oni: Ma Yong-zhen and Brother Tam, respectively.
- Smoking Is Cool: Brother Tam is depicted smoking in most of his scenes, and he is the top gangster and mob leader of Shanghai for the first half of the film.
- There Is No Kill Like Overkill: At the end of the final battle, Ma's friends and followers arrives at the teahouse to witness Ma succumbing to his injuries, everyone in the building except one random mook dead. Cue a dozen of them ganging up, slicing and hacking that last mook into bits using hatchets, knives and clubs.
- Walking Shirtless Scene: Ma doesn't wear a shirt in all of his action scenes. The studios are apparently trying to make Chen Kuan-tai another Ti Lung, what with Chen removing his shirt to expose his abs so often in his movies.
- White Shirt of Death: In his final scene, Brother Tam wears a white shirt, which gets stained (with a close-up on a red patch in his chest where he was stabbed) entirely with his blood as he dies.
