| The Mighty Peking Man | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Ho Meng-hua |
| Written by | Kuang Ni |
| Produced by | Runme Shaw |
| Starring | Danny Lee Evelyne Kraft Hsiao Yao Ku Feng Lin Wei-tu |
| Cinematography | Tsao Hui-chi Wu Cho-hua |
| Edited by | Chiang Hsing-Lung Pepita Fairfax Thom Noble |
| Music by | Frankie Chan De Wolfe |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Shaw Brothers Studio |
Release date |
|
Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Mandarin |
| Budget | HKD 6,000,000-$1,000,000 USD[2])(estimated) |
The Mighty Peking Man (猩猩王) (Mandarin: Xīngxing Wáng – which translates to "Gorilla King" in English) is a 1977 giant monster film produced by Shaw Brothers Studio to capitalize on the craze surrounding the 1976 remake of King Kong. It stars Danny Lee and Evelyne Kraft.
Plot[edit]
Lu Tiem reads in the newspaper that a giant footprint was found in the Indian part of the Himalayas. In a flashback, Utam the Mighty Peking Man (aka Goliathon) is seen destroying buildings, throwing rocks, and causing an earthquake-like rampage.
A party from Hong Kong, headed by Johnny is exploring the Indian side of the Himalayan mountains. They ask the Himalayan people about what happened the precedent year and meet other animal species (bears, monkeys, etc) and fight against elephants who are the "bodyguards" of Utam. Johnny and his partners manage to take Utam to Hong Kong,
Cast[edit]
Cast adapted from Shaw Brothers Volume 1 box set.[3]
- Danny Lee as Chen Zhengfeng
- Evelyne Kraft as Ah-wei
- Hsiao Yao as Wang Cuihua
- Ku Feng as Lu Tien
- Lin Wei-tu as Chen Shiyu
- Norman Chu as Ah Long
- Wu Hang-sheng as Ah Pi
- Chen Ping as Lucy
- Ted Thomas as The Commissioner
- Steve Nicholson as Commissioner's aide
Production[edit]
The Mighty Peking Man had a budget of six million Hong Kong dollars for the Shaw Bros. studio.[1] The film took over a year to complete and was shot in Mysore, India.[1] The climatic confrontation scene was shot at the Connaught Centre in Hong Kong, which was then the tallest building in the country.[4]
Release[edit]
Mighty Peking Man was released on August 11, 1977 in Hong Kong where it was distributed by Shaw Bros.[3][1] It was released as Goliathon in its release in the United States in 1980.[3][5][6]
Both Chungking Express and Mighty Peking Man was one of the two Hong Kong films released by Rolling Thunder, Quentin Tarantino's home video label in 1999.[7] The film grossed $17,368 on its 1999 North American theatrical re-release.[8]
Reception[edit]
Variety reviewed a 100-minute long Cantonese-language version of the film stating it was an "interesting if not unique Hongkong-made escapist entertainment for the inquisitive middle-of-the-roaders audience of other countries." and "it is high camp, Chinese style and for this reason it just might make it in less demanding markets."[1]
In retrospective reviews, Roger Ebert gave the film three stars out of a possible four in the Chicago Sun-Times, and, incidentally, actually upgraded his rating for the thematically similar Infra-Man:
"Mighty Peking Man is very funny, although a shade off the high mark of Infra-Man, which was made a year earlier, and is my favourite Hong Kong monster film. Both were produced by the legendary Runme Shaw, who, having tasted greatness, obviously hoped to repeat. I find to my astonishment that I gave Infra-Man only two and a half stars when I reviewed it. That was 22 years ago, but a fellow will remember a lot of things you wouldn't think he'd remember. I'll bet a month hasn't gone by since that I haven't thought of that film. I am awarding Mighty Peking Man three stars, for general goofiness and a certain level of insane genius, but I cannot in good conscience rate it higher than Infra-Man. So, in answer to those correspondents who ask if I have ever changed a rating on a movie: Yes, Infra-Man moves up to three stars.[9]
Footnotes[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Willis 1985, p. 321: "Review is of a Cantonese-language 100 minute version viewed in Hong Kong on April 10, 1977"
- ^ Siddique, Sophia; Raphael, Raphael (24 February 2017). Transnational Horror Cinema:Bodies of Excess and the Global Grotesque. Springer. ISBN 978-1-137-58417-5. Retrieved 10 May 2020 – via books.google.com.
- ^ a b c "Mighty Peking Man". Shawscope Volume One (booklet). Arrow Video. 2021. p. 24. FCD2076.
- ^ "Trivia". Shawscope Volume One (booklet). Arrow Video. 2021. p. 25. FCD2076.
- ^ "Stewart & Everett Theatres Area Movie Guide". The News and Observer. 17 February 1980. p. C-V.
Coming: "Goliathon" - PG
- ^ "Stewart & Everett Theatres Area Movie Guide". The New and Observer. 24 February 1980. p. 6-V.
"Starts Friday at Many of these Theatres! [Goliathon]
- ^ Abrams, Simon (2021). "Film Notes". Shawscope Volume One (booklet). Arrow Video. p. 25. FCD2076.
- ^ "The Mighty Peking Man". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (30 April 1999). "Mighty Peking Man". rogerebert.com. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
References[edit]
- Willis, Donald, ed. (1985). Variety's Complete Science Fiction Reviews. Garland Publishing Inc. ISBN 978-0-8240-6263-7.
