House of Traps (1982)

I watched the dubbed English version (I usually prefer the original cantonese or mandarin soundtrack) but some Kung Fu-movies are obviously meant to be enjoyed like this. The dialogue is outright hilarious, unprecedented by any Kung Fu-flick I've ever seen so far (probably about the hundreds). The story is impossible to keep track of, I honestly still, after watching the whole movie, don't know who I was supposed to root for or who was bad and who was good. But in this movie, it just adds to the chaotic watching experience it is from start to finish. As usual with Chang Che's venom movies, there are so many characters introduced to us, and many of them look deceptively identical to one another that knowing who's who unless you are a die hard fan is pretty much impossible. That being said, the movie is practically devoid of fighting scenes, which came as a surprise to me. I read that a large proportion of the movie had to be cut out during the restoration, something that might explain the lack of action, but I honestly didn't mind, since the end fight (roughly 10 minutes) is amazing, and probably one of the absolute best fights in any venom movie. Just fast forward to that one if you're only in it for the fighting and marvel. The story? Eh.. well.. Chinese king (sic!) has many men, prince wants.. a throne..? Someone built a house of traps because someone died.. something is stored in there.. and the prince recruits men.. somehow, they fight! The end. Watch it for the laughs and the superb last fighting scene.

Chang Cheh's martial arts movies, more often than not, were built on solid foundations- and this holds particularly true for HOUSE OF TRAPS. The basic idea is a good one: that vital information (not to mention some purloined antiquities) are being kept hidden in a booby-trapped house. One by one, the seekers who enter in search of these treasures fall victim to these widely varied traps. Unfortunately, not enough time is spent exploring this house by either the characters in the movie or the filmmaker(s) to build any real tension or suspense- and the traps themselves are something less than they might've been. (A little more imagination in the devising of the traps would've gone a very long way here.) Still, HOUSE OF TRAPS is well worth a look for anyone interested in Old School Hong Kong film-making or the sometimes eccentric shenanigans of one of the most individual of all martial arts movie makers. (If you're interested in offbeat but still very interesting and entertaining movie-making, check out Cheh's part musical, part kung fu epic, HEAVEN AND HELL.) (And, if you're more into the straight-laced stuff, seek out THE LEGEND OF THE 7 GOLDEN VAMPIRES, which was directed by Roy Ward Baker, with help from Chang Cheh.)

In an effort to usurp the throne away from his Uncle, a villainous nephew conspires against him. A list of all those loyal to the nephew is compiled and placed inside a deathtrap filled pagoda for safe keeping. To pledge their loyalty to the cause, several national treasures are robbed by various thieves and placed in the House of Traps. A judge is sent out to investigate the nephew. Along the way, he is attacked by assassins to prevent the truth from being revealed. A handful of heroic secret avengers eventually join the fight to eliminate the villains and reclaim the stolen goods from the House of Traps.The final official Venom movie is a fun and often times bloody adventure. At this point in Chang's career he was apparently having a ball directing these comic book styled movies filled with elaborate weaponry and creative, gory scenes of violence. It's a shame the HK movie-going public didn't feel the same way. It was also apparent with Chang's succeeding films, the budgets were getting smaller with the ambitiousness of these later films hampered by the dwindling funds Shaw's were allotting him.The film is still a lot of fun. The centerpiece is the House of Traps itself with its many deadly snares. With each time someone dares to tread inside, more of the house's dangers are revealed. Also of note are the many intricate and wild weaponry on display. One of the best is an Umbrella that masquerades as a large drill and a claw-like weapon that conceals a cord that enables a man to move from one rooftop to the next. Also the costumes do not adhere to any known style of clothing from the time period. Chang once said reality did not interest him and this is most obvious in these later films from 1978 thru 1982.Sadly, with this being the final Venom film to feature the bulk of the original actors, the combatants don't get to intermingle very often. Only two, Kuo Chui as the Black Fox and Lu Feng as Butterfly Hua get to mix it up a bit. The two of them both play thieves who constantly try to one up the other to show their loyalty to the young usurper. Chui steals the show as the smart ass Black Fox and may or not be a secret agent also sent to look into the actions of the nephew.Wang Li, one of the 'Baby Venoms' as called by fans, doesn't get to show off his skills until the finale and the kicker of the Venoms, Sun Chien doesn't fight at all instead he plays the judge that is masquerading as a scholar investigating the case. Lung Tien Sheng who impressed as the Spearman in FLAG OF IRON (1980) doesn't get to do much till the end. Chu Ko, Chiang Sheng, Cheng Tien Chi, Chin Su Ho and Yu Tai Peng play the Five Rats who enter the film as undercover heroes. While there is action throughout, the bulk of it doesn't come until the finale.This film was very rare as the only way to see it until now was a tattered fullscreen tape with English subs that were barely legible. The new remastered DVD of course, looks great. An enjoyable film with an interesting premise, exotic weapons, the usual great fights and a nice smattering of gore.

I saw this movie on videotape. The copy of this film is terrible. Most of the time, I couldn't read the dialogue or saw what was going on. The most intriguing thing about the movie, as the the title suggest, is the house itself. Apparently, some royal king decided it would be best to hide a valuable artifact in a house filled with traps. Not only with bodyguards of swordsmen but with grounds that popped out with long spears and stairs that chopped off legs. The artifact is on top level of the house. I still don't get why anyone who knows about the trap insist on going up that way. Why couldn't they just go on top of the house and drop in from there like Tom Cruise did in Mission Impossible 2. The only reason to see this movie are the traps but you have to sit around for a long time to see that. It could've been more interesting if I knew what the characters were talking about. I couldn't tell why they were fighting each other. Anyone who has a better copy of this please tell me where they got it.