# The Avenging Eagle (冷血十三鹰)
**The Avenging Eagle** (冷血十三鹰) is a 1978 Hong Kong wuxia film produced by [Shaw Brothers Studio](https://www.edgepedia.org/shaw-brothers-studio), directed by Sun Chung, written by [Ni Kuang](https://www.edgepedia.org/ni-kuang), and starring Ti Lung, Alexander Fu Sheng, and Ku Feng. It was released in Hong Kong on 13 September 1978.[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) The screenplay adapts a wuxia novel by the Taiwanese author Qin Hong (real name Huang Zhenfang, born 1936), whose novel shares the film's Chinese title, literally "Cold-Blooded Thirteen Eagles".[2](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2021/02/12/the-avenging-eagle-1978/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | 冷血十三鹰 (Lěng Xuè Shí Sān Yīng); English title The Avenging Eagle, also released as Cold Blooded Eagles[3](https://classickungfumovies.com/products/the-avenging-eagle-a-k-a-leng-xue-shi-san-ying-1978) |
| Release | Hong Kong, 13 September 1978; Shaw Brothers Studio[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) |
| Director / writer | Sun Chung; screenplay by Ni Kuang, adapted from a novel by Qin Hong[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) • [2](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2021/02/12/the-avenging-eagle-1978/) |
| Cast | Ti Lung, Alexander Fu Sheng, Ku Feng, with Johnny Wang Lung-Wei, Eddy Ko Hung, Shih Szu, and Yue Wing[3](https://classickungfumovies.com/products/the-avenging-eagle-a-k-a-leng-xue-shi-san-ying-1978) |
| Action directors | Tang Chia and Huang Pei-chih[3](https://classickungfumovies.com/products/the-avenging-eagle-a-k-a-leng-xue-shi-san-ying-1978) |
| Hong Kong box office | HK$2,028,488, ranking 20th for the year[4](https://kungfutube.info/13277) |
| Awards | Best Editing (Jiang Xinglong) at the 16th Golden Horse Awards, 1979; Ti Lung won an outstanding actor award at the 25th Asian Film Festival, 1978[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) |
| Remakes | New Cold Blooded Thirteen Eagles (1993); a Weinstein Company remake announced in 2013[5](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E6%96%B0%E5%86%B7%E8%A1%80%E5%8D%81%E4%B8%89%E9%B9%B0/5957473?fromModule=lemma_inlink) • [6](https://dongying.dzwww.com/yl/201307/t20130724_8685532.htm) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Yue Xihong (Ku Feng) is the cruel leader of the Iron Boat Gang, who takes in orphans and trains them as killers; only thirteen disciples survive his strict training, becoming the "Cold-Blooded Thirteen Eagles" who terrorize and kill on his behalf.[11](https://asianmoviepulse.com/2021/04/film-review-the-avenging-eagle-1978-by-sun-chung/) In the Ming-dynasty setting of the novel's premise, the Eagles assassinate martial artists in the struggle over a coveted manual, the Seven Stars Blood-Piercing Technique.[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html)
**Defection and pursuit.** Qi Mingxing (Ti Lung), one of the Eagles, retains a shred of conscience and, unable to tolerate Yue's indiscriminate killing, leaves the gang. Yue treats him as a traitor and sends the others to hunt him down.[12](https://moviecool.asia/film/y1o9UNl-dHkj) The film opens with Qi near death in a desert, where he is given water by a wanderer, Zhuo Yifan ([Fu Sheng](https://www.edgepedia.org/fu-sheng)), and repays the kindness by stealing his horse; the two meet again and gradually form an alliance.[7](https://kungfumovieguide.com/the-avenging-eagle/) • [2](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2021/02/12/the-avenging-eagle-1978/) Zhuo's true identity, connected to a family the Eagles destroyed, is revealed through flashbacks as the story progresses.[11](https://asianmoviepulse.com/2021/04/film-review-the-avenging-eagle-1978-by-sun-chung/) • [13](https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Avenging-Eagle-Blu-ray/363623/) The two men kill the pursuing Eagles and finally confront Yue, who dies at their hands; in the ending, Zhuo forgives Qi, but Qi, unable to forgive himself, forces Zhuo's twin blades to kill him in atonement.[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html)
## Production
The film was made at Shaw Brothers, the Hong Kong studio founded by [Run Run Shaw](https://www.edgepedia.org/run-run-shaw), who is credited as supervisor; Mona Fong is credited as producer on some listings.[7](https://kungfumovieguide.com/the-avenging-eagle/) • [1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) Sun Chung directed from a screenplay by Ni Kuang, one of the most prolific screenwriters of the Shaw era, based on the novel by Qin Hong.[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) • [8](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3273509/fan-favourite-shaw-brothers-martial-arts-film-avenging-eagle-spaghetti-western) The on-screen credit names Chin Hung (Qin Hong) as the story source alongside Ni Kuang as screenwriter; the romanization led at least one retrospective reviewer to search for a nonexistent [Jin Yong](https://www.edgepedia.org/jin-yong) connection before the Taiwanese novelist's identity was established.[2](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2021/02/12/the-avenging-eagle-1978/)
**Crew and cast.** Action direction was by Tang Chia and Huang Pei-chih, cinematography by Lam Nai-choi, and editing by Chiang Hsing-lung.[3](https://classickungfumovies.com/products/the-avenging-eagle-a-k-a-leng-xue-shi-san-ying-1978) • [1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) Ti Lung, born in 1946, was by 1978 one of Shaw Brothers' most prominent stars, having risen under director Chang Cheh and later worked with [Chu Yuan](https://www.edgepedia.org/chu-yuan) and Sun Chung.[9](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/Chinese/Ti-Lung_c.pdf) Alexander Fu Sheng, who had made a long run of films with Chang Cheh, made this film with a new director.[7](https://kungfumovieguide.com/the-avenging-eagle/) Ku Feng, a Shaw character actor known for wily older villains, played the gang leader.[10](https://cinemastrikesback.com/review-avenging-eagle-aka-long-xie-shi-san-ying-cold-blooded-eagles-hong-kong-1978/)
## Style and action
The film is structured around a succession of duels, each Eagle fighting with a distinct weapon: Ti Lung's character uses a three-section staff, Fu Sheng's uses concealed double sleeve knives, and the Eagles wield ball-and-chain, chain dagger, throwing hatchets, and paired shield-and-blade fighters; Ku Feng's Yue wears golden claw gauntlets in the final battle.[10](https://cinemastrikesback.com/review-avenging-eagle-aka-long-xie-shi-san-ying-cold-blooded-eagles-hong-kong-1978/) • [7](https://kungfumovieguide.com/the-avenging-eagle/) A set-piece fight takes place in an inn in a ghost-town setting that reviewers have compared to the films of King Hu.[7](https://kungfumovieguide.com/the-avenging-eagle/)
**Visual approach.** Sun Chung made notable use of outdoor location work, including cliffs, ravines, and mountains, a departure from the set-bound standard of Shaw productions of the period.[10](https://cinemastrikesback.com/review-avenging-eagle-aka-long-xie-shi-san-ying-cold-blooded-eagles-hong-kong-1978/) His signature camera trick places the lens close behind a fighter so that dodged blows appear to strike directly at the camera in extreme close-up.[10](https://cinemastrikesback.com/review-avenging-eagle-aka-long-xie-shi-san-ying-cold-blooded-eagles-hong-kong-1978/) The film also employs tracking shots, jump cuts, and slow motion, and one review notes an experimental freeze-framing of actors during fights.[7](https://kungfumovieguide.com/the-avenging-eagle/) • [10](https://cinemastrikesback.com/review-avenging-eagle-aka-long-xie-shi-san-ying-cold-blooded-eagles-hong-kong-1978/) Although not a Chang Cheh film, it is often described as bearing the influence of Chang's masculine aesthetic in its character design and fight choreography.[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) The desert opening and lone-wanderer structure have led critics to compare its atmosphere to a spaghetti Western.[8](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3273509/fan-favourite-shaw-brothers-martial-arts-film-avenging-eagle-spaghetti-western)
## Reception and legacy
The film was not particularly well received at the time of release but later became a favorite among Shaw Brothers fans.[8](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3273509/fan-favourite-shaw-brothers-martial-arts-film-avenging-eagle-spaghetti-western) It earned HK$2,028,488 at the Hong Kong box office, ranking 20th for 1978.[4](https://kungfutube.info/13277) At the 16th Golden Horse Awards in 1979 it won Best Editing for Chiang Hsing-lung and was nominated as an outstanding feature film; Ti Lung received an outstanding actor award at the 25th Asian Film Festival in 1978.[1](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html) • [12](https://moviecool.asia/film/y1o9UNl-dHkj) Reviewers have ranked it among Sun Chung's best works and among the strongest Shaw Brothers swordplay films not directed by Chang Cheh or Chu Yuan.[11](https://asianmoviepulse.com/2021/04/film-review-the-avenging-eagle-1978-by-sun-chung/) It was released on Blu-ray in 2024 as part of Arrow Video's Shawscope Volume Three set, with commentary by film producer Frank Djeng.[13](https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Avenging-Eagle-Blu-ray/363623/) • [8](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3273509/fan-favourite-shaw-brothers-martial-arts-film-avenging-eagle-spaghetti-western)
**Remakes.** A remake, New Cold Blooded Thirteen Eagles (新冷血十三鹰), directed by Xu Fa and Lu Dongqing and starring [Yang Li](https://www.edgepedia.org/yang-li)-ching, Liu Zi-wei, and Ren Shih-kuan, was released in Hong Kong on 11 November 1993.[5](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E6%96%B0%E5%86%B7%E8%A1%80%E5%8D%81%E4%B8%89%E9%B9%B0/5957473?fromModule=lemma_inlink) In 2013 the Weinstein Company announced, in partnership with Hong Kong's Celestial Pictures, plans to remake The Avenging Eagle and [Come Drink with Me](https://www.edgepedia.org/come-drink-with-me) with international casts, scripted by John Fusco, with shooting planned for 2014.[6](https://dongying.dzwww.com/yl/201307/t20130724_8685532.htm)
## References
1. [《冷血十三鹰》电影基本介绍 (Maigoo)](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1225980.html)
2. [The Avenging Eagle (1978), Silver Emulsion Film Reviews](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2021/02/12/the-avenging-eagle-1978/)
3. [The Avenging Eagle A.K.A. Leng Xue Shi San Ying (1978), Classic Kung Fu Movies](https://classickungfumovies.com/products/the-avenging-eagle-a-k-a-leng-xue-shi-san-ying-1978)
4. [冷血十三鷹（1978）, Kungfu Tube](https://kungfutube.info/13277)
5. [新冷血十三鹰, 百度百科](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E6%96%B0%E5%86%B7%E8%A1%80%E5%8D%81%E4%B8%89%E9%B9%B0/5957473?fromModule=lemma_inlink)
6. [韦恩斯坦将重拍邵氏经典 (大众网, 2013)](https://dongying.dzwww.com/yl/201307/t20130724_8685532.htm)
7. [The Avenging Eagle (1978), Kung Fu Movie Guide](https://kungfumovieguide.com/the-avenging-eagle/)
8. [Fan-favourite Shaw Brothers martial arts film The Avenging Eagle like a spaghetti Western, South China Morning Post (2024)](https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3273509/fan-favourite-shaw-brothers-martial-arts-film-avenging-eagle-spaghetti-western)
9. [香港影人小傳檢索：狄龍, Hong Kong Film Archive](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/Chinese/Ti-Lung_c.pdf)
10. [Review: The Avenging Eagle (Hong Kong 1978), Cinema Strikes Back](https://cinemastrikesback.com/review-avenging-eagle-aka-long-xie-shi-san-ying-cold-blooded-eagles-hong-kong-1978/)
11. [Film Review: The Avenging Eagle (1978) by Sun Chung, Asian Movie Pulse](https://asianmoviepulse.com/2021/04/film-review-the-avenging-eagle-1978-by-sun-chung/)
12. [《冷血十三鷹》(1978), MovieCool](https://moviecool.asia/film/y1o9UNl-dHkj)
13. [The Avenging Eagle Blu-ray Review, Blu-ray.com (2024)](https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Avenging-Eagle-Blu-ray/363623/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Action and adventure films (individual works) › Martial arts films › Released 1943 to 1985*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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