Vengeance Video DVD Synopsis: The Yao family are China's foremost fighting family. Their territory has come under threat from Mongol invaders who have enlisted the help of four Eagle Claw masters to help them. Now the Yao's must use their famous Yang Spear formation to win the deadly battle. Without doubt one of the best Wu Shu movies ever to come out of the mainland. A movie made by Wu Shu champions.

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Views: Set during the last days of the Sung dynasty, this early 80's mainland production highlights some entertaining moments, a cast of hundreds, and plenty of fantastic kung-fu battles. As the Chin forces overrun the land killing innocent people and taking down anyone who gets in their way, they soon find themselves up against the Yao family who have been the only ones able to hold-out. In a bid to bring down the esteemed general Yao and teach him a lesson, the Chin army kidnap the mother of the Yao family – an act that forces the general's five sons into action, who use their famed martial arts skills to devastating effect!

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Starring 8 of China's top Wushu champions, Yao's Young Warriors is a colourful and fun showcase for the martial arts talent involved. Made by the Hua Wen Film Company, who were behind the similarly styled South Shaolin Master (1984) and Arhats In Fury (1985), this historical piece was directed by Wang Zhi Yu, the same man behind films such as Between Tears And Laughter (1964), The War Of The Boundary (1978), and Little Mad Guy (1982). While it doesn't contain a plot that requires a lot of thinking and easily gets muddled with what little there is, Yao's Young Warriors plays like a lesser version of the popular Shaw Brothers classic 14 Amazons (1972) and 8 Diagram Pole Fighter (1984), or even Saving General Yang (2013) to some degree. The fight choreography is handled by first time martial arts director Wang Jin Bao, who doesn't do a bad job at all in bringing some exciting fight action to the show. There are, at times, moments of overly staged choreography and showmanship, but it certainly doesn't distract from the genuine martial artistry on offer – unlike the often cheap looking and busy costumes that highlight some very odd and useless headgear. From impressive one-on-one fights to large scale battles, including a great finale that definitely saves the best for last.

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One of the leads is played by Xun Feng, a Chinese actor who had made an impression in the famed Shaolin Temple (1982) movie that came out just a year before and launched Jet Li into the limelight. Xun is joined by Wushu brothers Zhang Xi Ling and Zhang An Chi, as well as a ton of first time actors who don't do a dreadful job overall – and a couple of whom also helped with the choreography. The film is neatly shot though and I must give kudos to this cheap DVD release from Vengeance Video who have delivered a pretty decent print with no less than 3 language options – English, Cantonese, and it's native Mandarin with optional English subtitles. Yao's Young Warriors may have its flaws, but as a film from a team of first-time stars and film-makers I think they've done a pretty damn good job...

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Overall: An exciting Wushu piece, Yao's Young Warriors isn't perfect but it will keep kung-fu fans entertained and is worth the watch at least once!

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DVD Extras: Trailers, Photo Gallery