After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Blistering performances.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

THE SNAKE STRIKES BACK is an ultra-cheesy martial arts collaboration between Hong Kong and South Korea. It was shot by Godfrey Ho back when he was still making SNAKE IN THE EAGLE'S SHADOW rip-offs before he went into ninja overload. This one sees Elton Chong playing the usual martial arts student determined to beat a powerful master (guest star Eagle Han) and hunting for possession of a mystical book. Bizarrely, the special styles featured here include a power to gain a pot belly, as evinced in the old beggar trainer character played by Mike Wong. It's odd, to say the least, although the snake style is less memorable. The film as a whole is cheap, silly, and badly dubbed, which is very much par for the course, although fans of this low rent genre might just get a kick or two out of it at times.

I cannot begin to describe how happy this film made me. Trouser-tents were had at the sheer awesome-ness of this film. Not only were there characters introduced that were completely irrelevant to the plot, but the main character metamorphosed into a kick ass, belly-toting warrior, straight from the "koong-fu" womb of Chuck Norris. The quality of the film is definitely the best I have seen for a long time. The characters are fully developed, with incredibly detailed backgrounds to each. One man gets thrown through a house, while another gets impaled with his own symbols. A classic example of modern day filming that exceeds many greats, such as Indiana Jones 4, Wild Wild West and even Batman&Robin. Arnie as Mr Freeze was not as good as Elton Chong as Chinese Martial Artist #1.

Snake Strikes Back is a fairly typical example of a standard second-rate old school Hong Kong kung fu comedy. The fight scenes are very decent, but the comedy is so insufferable as to be strictly for Asian sensibilities. The cross-eyed younger brother is unbearable to watch; in my opinion the entire comedy aspect of this movie doesn't work at all, and detracts terribly from the overall impression.The good part is the kung fu, which is not bad at all. Occasionally it gets very silly, though, as when the old pot-bellied master claims that real kung fu power lies in the belly, and the young student's stomach starts swelling at the end, signifying that he's reached the higher level. That is impossible to take seriously.4 out of 10.

I picked this title up yesterday along with another 10 Hong Kong Collection Dvd's for a pound each ($1.50approx)and this was the first one I watched. It's starting to show it's age and the dubbing was dreadful but who watches low budget Kung Fu for acting or script quality. The story revolves around a fool Sui who wants to learn the art of the Absolutes Kung Fu and whoever becomes master becomes the keeper of the secret book of the Invincible Snake Fist, another prize that goes along with the title is a secret weapon a mega belly (I kid you not). The story is quite good the action is fast and often and the laugh's are around for all to see. The film stars Eagle Han, Elton Chong & Kim Miou my only complaint is that Sui keeps on having to fight the same people over and over again to gain control of the book. My score 6/10 not the best but well worth the money I paid out for the film.