# Tiger Boy
**Tiger Boy** (虎俠殲仇; *Huxia jianchou*) is a 1966 Hong Kong black-and-white martial arts film written and directed by Chang Cheh for Shaw Brothers, regarded as a forerunner of the new *wuxia* (Chinese martial-arts fiction genre; the article's core claim is that this film pioneered its modern form) genre that transformed Hong Kong action cinema in the late 1960s.[1](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/English/Chang-Cheh_e.pdf) It was Chang's first martial arts film and the screen debut context for two actors he would make into stars, Jimmy Wang Yu and Lo Lieh.[2](https://mvd.cloud/press/ARROW/BOOKLETS/48273_7_SHAW_BROTHERS_BOOK_INNER_PAGES_WATERMARKED.pdf) The film is now believed to be lost.[3](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/chang-cheh-visionary-of-death/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | 虎俠殲仇 (*Huxia jianchou*)[4](https://mubi.com/en/us/films/tiger-boy-1966) |
| Director and writer | Chang Cheh, who also did the action choreography himself[1](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/English/Chang-Cheh_e.pdf) • [3](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/chang-cheh-visionary-of-death/) |
| Studio | Shaw Brothers (Hong Kong) Ltd[1](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/English/Chang-Cheh_e.pdf) |
| Release | 16 February 1966, Hong Kong[5](https://www.silveremulsion.com/review-series/ongoing-review-series/shaw-brothers-martial-arts-films/) |
| Format | Black and white, 96 minutes, Mandarin dialogue[2](https://mvd.cloud/press/ARROW/BOOKLETS/48273_7_SHAW_BROTHERS_BOOK_INNER_PAGES_WATERMARKED.pdf) • [6](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E8%99%8E%E4%BE%A0%E6%AD%BC%E4%BB%87/3461871?fromModule=lemma_inlink) |
| Principal cast | Jimmy Wang Yu, Lo Lieh, Chin Ping, Margaret Tu Chuan, Cheng Lui, Tang Ti[7](https://www.senscritique.com/film/Tiger_Boy/17148910) |
| Status | Believed lost[3](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/chang-cheh-visionary-of-death/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
The story is a revenge narrative. Fifteen years after his father is murdered by the villain Chief Chin Pa-wang (Tang Ti), the young knight-errant Tiger Boy (Jimmy Wang Yu) returns, trained in martial arts and traveling under the assumed name Chiang Hsiao-san.[6](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E8%99%8E%E4%BE%A0%E6%AD%BC%E4%BB%87/3461871?fromModule=lemma_inlink) • [7](https://www.senscritique.com/film/Tiger_Boy/17148910) On his way he rescues a young woman, Jiang Xiao-Qing (Margaret Tu Chuan), from a band of bandits, and discovers that their leader is Jin Peng (Lo Lieh), the son of his father's killer, who also covets the young woman.[4](https://mubi.com/en/us/films/tiger-boy-1966) • [6](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E8%99%8E%E4%BE%A0%E6%AD%BC%E4%BB%87/3461871?fromModule=lemma_inlink) The rescued woman falls in love with the hero, who promises to return after completing his revenge; the story culminates in his decision to enter his enemy's birthday banquet alone.[6](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E8%99%8E%E4%BE%A0%E6%AD%BC%E4%BB%87/3461871?fromModule=lemma_inlink) Chin Ping plays the hero's childhood sweetheart.[9](https://iloveshawbrothersmovies.blogspot.com/2017/06/commentary-001-tiger-boy-1964-1966.html)
## Production
Chang Cheh joined Shaw Brothers in 1962 as chief screenwriter and co-directed his first film, the *huangmei diao* musical *The Butterfly Chalice*, in 1965.[1](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/English/Chang-Cheh_e.pdf) He did not care for the musical genre, and the following year the studio assigned him an experimental work in a different mode.[3](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/chang-cheh-visionary-of-death/) In his own words, "My fourth film was Tiger Boy (1966), which Shaws assigned to me as an experimental work."[8](https://popcultmaster.com/2017/12/25/the-hong-kong-john-ford/) The experiment was conducted cheaply: the film was shot in black and white on an extremely low budget, unusual for a Shaw Brothers production at the time, and was made without any of the studio's established stars or a martial arts director.[2](https://mvd.cloud/press/ARROW/BOOKLETS/48273_7_SHAW_BROTHERS_BOOK_INNER_PAGES_WATERMARKED.pdf) • [3](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/chang-cheh-visionary-of-death/) Chang choreographed the action himself, relying on the basic skills and athleticism of his two young leads, Jimmy Wang Yu and Lo Lieh, and exaggerating the fights only a little.[2](https://mvd.cloud/press/ARROW/BOOKLETS/48273_7_SHAW_BROTHERS_BOOK_INNER_PAGES_WATERMARKED.pdf)
Dating the film requires care. It was filmed in 1964 but not released until 16 February 1966, after Sir Run Run Shaw was satisfied that the new genre could succeed; the film received a limited release on that date.[9](https://iloveshawbrothersmovies.blogspot.com/2017/06/commentary-001-tiger-boy-1964-1966.html) • [10](https://iloveshawbrothersmovies.blogspot.com/2017/03/review-5-magnificent-trio-1966.html) Some references give 1964 as the production year[11](https://kungfumovieguide.com/profile-chang-cheh/) and the Hong Kong Memory project lists it as 1965, calling it Chang's second film after *The Butterfly Chalice*[12](https://www.hkmemory.hk/en/collections-shaw_brothers_movies-behind_the_screen-backstage_crew-chang_cheh.html), while the Hong Kong Film Archive, MUBI, and most filmographies date the release to 1966.[1](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/English/Chang-Cheh_e.pdf) • [4](https://mubi.com/en/us/films/tiger-boy-1966)
## Place in the new wuxia wave
Shaw Brothers launched its push into color *wuxia* films in 1965, announcing in its magazine *Southern Screen* that the theatrical, fantastical fighting of the past would be replaced by realistic action. The slate of films named in that announcement included *Temple of the Red Lotus* (1965), *The Twin Swords* (1965), *Tiger Boy* (1966), King Hu's *Come Drink with Me* (1966), and *One-Armed Swordsman* (1967).[13](https://www.valeorine.com/reference/chang-cheh) The Hong Kong Film Archive describes *Tiger Boy* as a forerunner of the new *wuxia* genre.[1](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/English/Chang-Cheh_e.pdf)
The film's significance lies in what Chang carried from it into his later work. He shot combat in a realistic way and renounced the usual theatrical approach, a style that won popular acclaim.[12](https://www.hkmemory.hk/en/collections-shaw_brothers_movies-behind_the_screen-backstage_crew-chang_cheh.html) The film also introduced the pairing of Chang with Jimmy Wang Yu, who became his first favored actor.[14](https://www.chinesemovies.com.fr/cineastes_Chang_Cheh.htm) Chang's breakthrough came the next year with *The One-Armed Swordsman* (1967), the first Hong Kong film to gross more than HK$1 million, which established the combination of [Japanese aesthetics](https://www.edgepedia.org/japanese-aesthetics), rebellious heroes, and *wuxia* conventions that *Tiger Boy* had tested on a small scale.[2](https://mvd.cloud/press/ARROW/BOOKLETS/48273_7_SHAW_BROTHERS_BOOK_INNER_PAGES_WATERMARKED.pdf) Chang and King Hu are identified as the two key advocates of the "new school martial arts movement" in Hong Kong cinema of the 1960s and 1970s; *Tiger Boy* was released in 1966, the year the [Cultural Revolution](https://www.edgepedia.org/cultural-revolution) began in China, a coincidence noted by the critic Sek Kei in assessing the timing of Chang's success.[15](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/18995340/19057014/newsletter22_e.pdf)
## Loss and availability
The film is believed to be lost, and it has never had a home-video release; it is listed as unavailable in Shaw Brothers martial arts filmographies.[3](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/chang-cheh-visionary-of-death/) • [5](https://www.silveremulsion.com/review-series/ongoing-review-series/shaw-brothers-martial-arts-films/) [Knowledge](https://www.edgepedia.org/knowledge) of its content therefore rests on period advertisements, studio publications, and Chang Cheh's memoir rather than on viewable prints.[9](https://iloveshawbrothersmovies.blogspot.com/2017/06/commentary-001-tiger-boy-1964-1966.html)
## Other works of the same name
*Tiger Boy* is also a 2015 children's novel by Mitali Perkins, illustrated by Jamie Hogan, about a Bengali boy named Neel who searches for a tiger cub escaped from a reserve in the Sunderbans, the mangrove forest region of India and Bangladesh; it was published by Charlesbridge (144 pages, ages 8 to 11 per [Kirkus Reviews](https://www.edgepedia.org/kirkus-reviews)).[16](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/mitali-perkins/tiger-boy/) • [17](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781580896603) A separate 1966 Hong Kong film of the same English title should not be confused with later films listed under the name on streaming platforms, which belong to other productions.[18](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/tiger-boy/YmARFcgRVFuk4RG541drU6/where-to-watch/)
## References
1. [Hong Kong Filmmakers Search: Chang Cheh, Hong Kong Film Archive](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/6.-Research-and-Publication/06-02-Filmmakers-Search/English/Chang-Cheh_e.pdf)
2. [Shawscope booklet, Arrow Films](https://mvd.cloud/press/ARROW/BOOKLETS/48273_7_SHAW_BROTHERS_BOOK_INNER_PAGES_WATERMARKED.pdf)
3. [Chang Cheh: Visionary of Death, The Chinese Cinema (Sean Gilman)](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/chang-cheh-visionary-of-death/)
4. [Tiger Boy (1966), MUBI](https://mubi.com/en/us/films/tiger-boy-1966)
5. [Shaw Brothers Martial Arts Films, Silver Emulsion Film Reviews](https://www.silveremulsion.com/review-series/ongoing-review-series/shaw-brothers-martial-arts-films/)
6. [虎侠歼仇, Baidu Baike](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E8%99%8E%E4%BE%A0%E6%AD%BC%E4%BB%87/3461871?fromModule=lemma_inlink)
7. [Tiger Boy (1966), SensCritique](https://www.senscritique.com/film/Tiger_Boy/17148910)
8. [The Hong Kong John Ford, Pop Cult Master](https://popcultmaster.com/2017/12/25/the-hong-kong-john-ford/)
9. [Commentary #001: Tiger Boy (1964/1966), I Love Shaw Brothers Movies](https://iloveshawbrothersmovies.blogspot.com/2017/06/commentary-001-tiger-boy-1964-1966.html)
10. [Review #5: The Magnificent Trio (1966), I Love Shaw Brothers Movies](https://iloveshawbrothersmovies.blogspot.com/2017/03/review-5-magnificent-trio-1966.html)
11. [Chang Cheh profile, Kung Fu Movie Guide](https://kungfumovieguide.com/profile-chang-cheh/)
12. [Chang Cheh, Hong Kong Memory](https://www.hkmemory.hk/en/collections-shaw_brothers_movies-behind_the_screen-backstage_crew-chang_cheh.html)
13. [Chang Cheh (1923–2002), Valéorine Encyclopedia](https://www.valeorine.com/reference/chang-cheh)
14. [Chang Cheh filmography notes, chinesemovies.com.fr](https://www.chinesemovies.com.fr/cineastes_Chang_Cheh.htm)
15. [Newsletter 22, Hong Kong Film Archive](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/18995340/19057014/newsletter22_e.pdf)
16. [Tiger Boy review, Kirkus Reviews](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/mitali-perkins/tiger-boy/)
17. [Tiger Boy by Mitali Perkins, Publishers Weekly](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781580896603)
18. [Tiger Boy: Where to Watch, Moviefone](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/tiger-boy/YmARFcgRVFuk4RG541drU6/where-to-watch/)
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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 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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