Not Scared to Die (1973) User Reviews (11)

Words cannot describe the 'badness' of this movie

[AwesomeWolf · 1/10 · 20 November 2004]

Version: English dub.

Woah. I bought this movie for $10 - it had Jackie Chan on the cover (at the time, I didn't recognize the cover of "Eagle Shadow Fist" was also the cover of "Battle Creek Brawl"), and the blurb talked about Jackie Chan. So I'd never heard of it before - $10 isn't much for a movie I've never heard of, or so I thought.

So I put the movie on. Where's Jackie? And who is that guy who is apparently the main character? Wait, that guy looks like a very young Jackie Chan - wait, that guy IS a very young Jackie Chan (the young Jackie is shown in small photos on the back, in contrast the older Jackie on the front). Anyway, so Jackie isn't the main character, I can still enjoy this movie, right?

Wrong, so very wrong. Story wise, it is similar to Bruce Lee's "Fist of Fury", and Jackie Chan's sequel "New Fist of Fury". Unfortunately, "Eagle Shadow Fist" lacks a real plot, and any watchable action sequences. The dubbing is bad, and not even in a funny way. Simply put, "Eagle Shadow Fist" is just horrible. It should not be viewed by ANYONE - this includes Jackie Chan fans, martial arts fans, b-movie fans, etc. NO ONE should watch this movie. Don't even buy it for 50 cents.

1/10. Have I mentioned that this is one horrible movie, and should not be watched by anyone?

One of Hong Kong's darker memories...

[abentenjo · 27 May 2002]

Set amid the turbulent China years of Japanese occupation during the Second World War, we follow a group of actors / resistance fighters who are kicked from their theatres and into shabby hideouts. It's from here they fend off the appallingly presented Japanese (one's depicted with a Hitler moustache) who's only intent, it seems to me, is to generally rape, maim, kill and terrorise. The only reason this one hasn't sadly been banished for the rest of eternity is due to a sprightly support from our man Jackie, but even hardened Chan fans may find this pulp a little hard to swallow. To simplify – this is a bad, bad film.

Great - A Splarshy Review

[jacobstaggs · 9/10 · 13 February 2020]

Eagle Shadow. Fist is a great movie. Every actor gives a great performance. The action is superbly choreographed. The movie has great emotional resonance. Compared to Jackie's other Chinese vs Japanese movie New Fist of Fury, Eagle Shadow Fist presents very clear motivations to fight whereas NFOF had the protagonists fight the Japanese because they don't want to change the name of their school. In Eagle Shadow Fist, the Japanese rape and murder innocents. They steal money from the Chinese and kill children. One thing that differentiates Eagle Shadow Fist from lots of martial arts films is that most of the protagonists can't fight whatsoever. That creates great sympathy for these characters. The storyline and pacing in the movie are great as is the music and the way it is implemented. Jackie has a small supporting role in the film and he does decent. The movie is fully engaging and one of the best martial movies I've seen. I liked it as a child and it still holds up extremely well to this day. 9/10. P.S. the final moves in the ending battle are beyond great.

Typical Early 70s kung fu

[cdwegner · 4/10 · 9 November 2015]

This movie is a typical low budget 70s Kung fu with the Chinese heroes against the Japanese occupying army and local bad guys.

It is pretty mediocre compared to some of the great 70s Bruce Lee and Sonny Chiba flicks that came out during that same time period.

Jackie Chan is really young in his movie and doesn't get much screen time. You can tell that he is going to be big though. His personality shines through.

This was recently broadcast under the name Eagle Shadow Fist. This version claimed to be the unedited /director's cut.

It is decent if you need a kung fu cheese fix.

It's a 1973 martial arts film!

[tyrrellpaul · 8/10 · 17 February 2011]

I love this film as I do all early martial arts films.

This film is typical of the 1970's style of early martial arts films, ie not much plot, same plot as other films, more choreographed fighting than dialogue, bad dubbing, etc etc, because of this it is what it is, and highly enjoyable too.

Don't be fooled by the film cover Jackie Chan is not the lead actor and does not get much screen time nor do you see him fight up close much, but you can still see the development of his unique style.

All in all its still a great movie. Try and get the US uncut version so the fight scenes don't feel too disjointed and enjoy it for what it is.

Those who out and out disparage the film should appreciate that without these early films Chan would not have developed as he has.

Horrible garbage..stay away from!

[heartofmetal · 1/10 · 4 March 2004]

Now,I'm not a real huge fan of martial arts movies but love the well done movies with J.Chan (like both Drunken Master flix) whom I find to be simply amazing. Do NOT let this movie fool you..this is NOT a Chan movie eventhough he appears in it. Fight sequences are very bad along with everything else including totally unneccessary scene where kids are brutally murdered.Chan does very little fighting and when does,he is beaten down fiercly.Plot is weak (but that's ok if fighting is decent..which is not) Just a total blower of a movie. I got this for about $3 on dvd and I have to say,it was not worth one tenth of what I paid. PURE CRAP.DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I couldn't stand more than 40 minutes of this

[callanvass · 1/10 · 18 December 2013]

Jackie made a few early duds in his career, with movies that didn't deserve a talent of his caliber. From what I saw, it's a boring historical drama set in Japan during WWII. Jackie isn't the star in this movie, and he's merely a supporting player. He has a hideous looking army cut with short hair. You have to remember that this was very early in his career. I just wish Jackie had a lot more to do. The fights from what I saw looked very routine and unexciting. There was one dubbed line that made me cringe with how bad it was. "Shut up you b*****ch. Better wipe your ass clean!" when a woman stumbles into some water. I get this was done in the early 70's, but so many of these early martial art films are crude. I realize this isn't a very good review, but its god awful, and I couldn't finish it. I'm a huge Jackie Chan fan myself, so I'm not even sure if die hard Jackie fans can finish this

DUD

This movie is not good.

[jgusw · 2/10 · 15 December 2000]

This was not a good movie. I'm ashamed to have it in my video collection. If you're a Jackie Chan fan, then stay away from this movie, because you might not be one after seeing this trash! So, don't subject yourself to this garbage and watch something more entertaining; like Barney.

Not even worth it for Jackie

[Leofwine_draca · 3/10 · 13 December 2023]

EAGLE SHADOW FIST is one of the very earliest movies in the career of Jackie Chan, one where he's actually got a largish role rather than a mere cameo as in the likes of ENTER THE DRAGON. The story offers the usual historical backdrop of a repressed China under the cruel Japanese regime, where various partisans decide to rise up and save their town from the imperial forces. Chan has a supporting role as one of the township heroes, but the main good guy role is taken by regular Shaw villain Wong Ching. The action is undistinguished and the plot largely dull, which is a pity given the familiarity of the cast.

absolutly brilliant

[carl-60 · 10/10 · 9 October 2002]

this film is by far one of jackie chans best films, the fight coreography is superb. not to mention the picture quality on the video its outstandingly good. i would buy many copies of this film as its really good. if anyone was thinking of staying in and renting a film this is the one that you want. its really good.

Worth a watch!

[lridinger · 8/10 · 19 January 2023]

If you're a major Jackie Chan fan and are willing to give every movie of his a watch then at least check this out! Jackie was no more than 18 years old when he made this. The problem most people have with this is the picture quality and the dub. This poor movie is stuck with the English dub originally given to the U. S. audience and the print looks like it is on a projector. Eureka or 88 Films or Pearl River please give this movie its chance! This movie is always paired with Master With Cracked Fingers, Fantasy Mission Force and Rumble In Hong Kong aka Police Woman aka The Heroine. These movies all need the blu ray restoration at least once and please give us the original Mandarin and Cantonese soundtracks while you're at it! Much appreciated!