Overview: More than four decades ago, “one of the strangest and most shocking martial arts movies ever witnessed” (DVD Talk) drove 42nd Street audiences into a stunned frenzy. Today it remains an “amazing” (Severed Cinema), “genuinely jaw-dropping” (High-Def Digest) “undisputed masterpiece” (Grindhouse Database), and is officially licensed on disc in North America for the first time.

When a cruel crime boss chops off the arms of a peasant (Sung-Chuan Shen aka Frankie Shum, who was born with Thalidomide Syndrome) and acid-dissolves the lower limbs of a henchman (Chao-Ming Kang aka Jackie Conn, born with small, deformed legs), the two disabled men train under a mysterious master to combine themselves into one unstoppable fighting machine and battle their way to vengeance.

Chung Chien Li (THE GUY WITH THE SECRET KUNG FU) and Mu-Chuan Chen (THE IRON MONKEY) co-star in “the FREAKS of martial arts cinema” (1000 Misspent Hours) directed by Chi Lo aka Joe Law (THE DRAGON LIVES AGAIN), newly scanned in 4K from the interpositive with 3 hours of revealing Special Features produced exclusively for this release.

Blu-ray Verdict: The Crippled Masters, for me, qualifies as one of the weirdest entries in the Kung Fu genre, which was so popular in urban grindhouses in the early to mid-70’s. Despite the 1984 copyright date, this curiosity obviously was filmed at least 10 years earlier and no doubt played a rat infested, inner city theater or two.

No actors or technicians were originally credited on the New Line print (which is still very much in circulation, although this new Severin version does bring them rightly to the fore), but longtime fans will obviously spot some genre vets in supporting roles. The actually crippled stars (an armless man and his near-legless partner) probably made this one picture and then faded into obscurity.

A secret Kung Fu society banishes one of its members, but not before cutting of the poor unfortunate fellow’s arms. Soon, the individual who presided over this cruel punishment is, himself, banished, suffering an acid bath that nearly disintegrates his legs. Improbably, they end up as partners under the tutelage of an ancient, alcoholic-looking master who teaches them kung fu, to help them to exact revenge on the leader of the secret society who ordered their mutilations.

Also figuring into the plot is the search for the 8 Jade Horses, statuettes that imbue one who understands with great kung fu powers. Each side wants them, including a government investigator sent to find them. This sets the stage for several interminable and amateurish chop-socky set pieces as the film lunges and kicks towards its conclusion.

As usual, the dubbing of this Hong Kong production is atrocious and the sound effects accompanying the various blows sound like those of a poorly produced video game. However, the chief interest of this film is its sheer political incorrectness, as it exploits the humiliations experienced by the poor unfortunate cripples cast in the lead roles.

One of the most interesting things about this film are indeed the two stars, Frankie Sum (Lee Ho) and Jack Conn (Tau). Sum was a thialidomide baby leaving him born with underdeveloped arms. Conn’s legs were left small and withered due to developmental problems during his mother’s pregnancy. The result is a film watched with the same voyeuristic interest that you have watching Tod Browning’s Freaks. It’s at times so disturbing you can’t look away. Their acting is at best wooden (though Sum’s work with the staff is pretty cool) but give them credit for trying.

Sadistically sick, but in a cheesy sort of way, it’s a definite guilty pleasure. Best viewed with a cold six pack handy! [S.Z.]

Special Features:
Audio Commentary With Frank Djeng, Co-Producer Of ENTER THE CLONES OF BRUCE
Audio Essay By Cult Cinema Critic Lovely Jon
Unleashing The Legends: The Godfathers Of Kung Fu Distribution – Interview With Temple Of Schlock’s Chris Poggiali
Original Trailer
New Line Cinema U.S. Trailer
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1
Runtime: 92 mins
Audio: English Mono, Mandarin Mono
Subtitles: English SDH, English
Region: A/B/C

Official Purchase Link