''The Scorpion King'' (released in Hong Kong as Operation Scorpio) (Chinese: 羯子戰士) is a 1992 Hong Kong

martial arts film Martial arts films are a subgenre of action films that feature numerous martial arts combat between characters. These combats are usually the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often are a method of storytelling and character expres ...

directed by David Lai, and starring

Chin Kar-lok Chin Ka-lok, sometimes credited as Chin Kar-lok (Chinese: 錢嘉樂, Pinyin: Qián Jiālè, born 6 August 1965), is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, and television presenter. Chin was born in Hong Kong, the younger brother of actor an ...

Lau Kar-leung Lau Kar-leung (28 July 1934 – 25 June 2013), was a Chinese actor, filmmaker, choreographer, and martial artist from Hong Kong. Lau is best known for the films he made in the 1970s and 1980s for the Shaw Brothers Studio. His most famous wor ...

and Kim Won-jin. The film was released on 12 November 1992.

Plot

Budding comic book artist Yuk Su (

Chin Kar-Lok Chin Ka-lok, sometimes credited as Chin Kar-lok (Chinese: 錢嘉樂, Pinyin: Qián Jiālè, born 6 August 1965), is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, and television presenter. Chin was born in Hong Kong, the younger brother of actor an ...

) finds himself living out the fantasies of his alternate world when he saves a young girl from an illegal prostitution racket. After he was expelled from medical school his father took Yuk Su to one of his father's friends to help him keep up with his education. Soon he found a teacher (

Lau Kar Leung Lau Kar-leung (28 July 1934 – 25 June 2013), was a Chinese actor, filmmaker, choreographer, and martial artist from Hong Kong. Lau is best known for the films he made in the 1970s and 1980s for the Shaw Brothers Studio. His most famous wor ...

) who can help him live on his dreams and be a legendary hero. With the aid of his fecund imagination and the help of an aging kung fu expert Yuk Su becomes something even he had never dared dream, a hero in real life.

Cast

as Yuk Su / Yu Shu *

as Master Yat / Master Lo * May Lo as Jade * Kim Won-jin as Sonny Wang *

Fung Woo Bowie Woo Fung (born 18 January 1932) is a Hong Kong veteran actor and director with family roots in Guangdong, China. A matinée idol in the 1950s and 1960s, he began his acting career in long form Cantonese films 1953, becoming an overnight suc ...

as Uncle Chai * Victor Hon as Mr. Wang * Frankie Chin as Bull / Jean Pal * Steven Yuen as Inspector Hua * Tiffany Lau as Lan *

Lawrence Lau Lawrence Lau Juen-yee, GBS, JP (; born 1944) is a Hong Kong economist and the former Vice-Chancellor of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He was a non-official member of the Executive Council of Hong Kong from 2009 to 2012. Before joinin ...

as Fatty Hsing * Yuen Miu as Tallie *

Sai Gwa-pau Lim Gan (林根), better known in Hong Kong by his stagename Sai Gwa-Pau (西瓜刨) (7 October 1918 – 12 March 2001) was a Hong Kong film actor who played roles in over 600 movies from the 1950s onwards. His stagename "Watermelon Slice" refer ...

as Waiter * Wang Han-Chen as Uncle Jung * James Lai as Inspector Hua's son * Fung Yuen-chi as Loanshark in Su's dream * Yuen Tak as Hua's Henchman * Thomas Sin as Tien

Release

Fox released the DVD in the US on May 25, 2004.

Reception

J. Doyle Wallis of

DVD Talk DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman. History Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...

rated it 3/5 stars and wrote, "Extremely mediocre story is elevated by the action talent on hand, mainly Kim Won-jun, whose jaw dropping skills make the film worth owning for any martial fan." ''The Encyclopedia of Martial Arts Movies'' rated it 3.5/4 stars and wrote of the climax, "Although slightly marred by wire special effects, the bulk of the battle is breathtaking martial arts – perhaps some of the best ever filmed, and certainly the best of the year."

Styles

Taekwondo-A Korean martial art which focuses almost exclusively on kicks, Taekwondo was utilized by Sonny Wang and incorporated into his own signature style (kung fu that resembles a scorpion). Boxing-A basic sport that uses: 1. Jab 2. Cross 3. Hook 4. Uppercut This fighting style was used by Bull/Jean Paul in a fight against Sonny Wang following the attempted abduction of his father.

References

External links

* 1992 films 1992 martial arts films Hong Kong martial arts comedy films 1990s Cantonese-language films Police detective films Golden Harvest films Films set in Hong Kong Films shot in Hong Kong Films directed by David Lai 1990s Hong Kong films {{martialart-film-stub