In 1910 Hong Kong Christopher Lee plays Chung King, an evil leader of tongs who will kill anyone who stands in their way of their slave and opium trade.

A sea captain (Geoffrey Toone) battles them when his daughter is murdered. Violence follows and then bodies begin piling up.

Unusual Hammer film--not really a horror movie--more like a violent action film. Lee is having a whale of a time playing King and Toone is OK in his role. Everyone else is pretty terrible--especially pretty Yvonne Monlaur and all the Asian actors. The low budget does show and the script is sort of scattershot.

I'm giving it a 7 because it's no longer than it needs to be (79 minutes),Lee is very good, there's some beautiful color photography and some pretty strong bloody violence for 1961--but then this IS a Hammer film.

Worth seeing on a slow day.

I recently saw TERROR OF THE TONGS as well as STRANGLERS OF BOMBAY, as they were both on the same DVD. The reason I watched the films was because Christopher Lee was in TERROR but was surprised to see that the other film was vastly superior despite having a cast of unknowns. The bottom line is that despite Lee and pretty color film, TERROR seems like a remake (of sorts) of the earlier film and STRANGLERS was just much better written and directed. Plus, TERROR really had major casting problems--so much that today's audiences would probably laugh at the choices.

TERROR OF THE TONGS is about Chinese gangs in Hong Kong that used assassinations (usually with a hatchet) in order to further the power of the Tong (which was similar to the Mafia or Yakuza). Despite being evil and ruthless, the locals don't want to do anything to try to stop them because of fear of reprisals. A ship's captain runs afoul of the Tong and his daughter is killed. He dedicates the rest of the movie to its destruction.

While there is plenty of action and excitement, the film has one huge strike against it. Despite being set in Hong Kong, the film looks amazingly non-Chinese--with Caucasian actors in almost all the main roles. Seeing 6 foot 7 inch Christopher Lee with his very aquiline nose playing the leader of the Tong seemed really silly. Despite the studio makeup artists giving him Asian-style eyelids, he looked about as Asian as Brad Pitt! And, to make things worse, the rest of the "Chinese" characters looked even less Chinese!! This didn't so much offend me (especially since I bristle at the notion of political correctness),but just seemed dumb---really, really dumb.

The reason, I assume, they picked Lee for such a ridiculous role was because he was available and affordable. Otherwise, it's quite the bizarre choice. However, despite him being so inappropriate for the role, a very, very similar character was reprised by Lee in the Fu Manchu pictures of the mid to late-1960s. The films are exciting but also suffer from too many main Chinese characters being Brits.

Overall, the film is exciting and watchable so it's a good film for adventure fans or as a time-passer. Just don't expect a lot of magic or high quality in this production.

Watching THE TERROR OF THE TONGS, I'm reminded why I love Hammer films in the first place: there really is no better place to go if you're looking for escapism. This is a colourful, fast-paced little pulp adventure packed with two-fisted action, horror, and intrigue. It boasts fine production values, an interesting plot (in essence a retelling of the earlier, lower-budgeted STRANGLERS OF BOMBAY),a good grasp of character and some fine dramatic touches. Yes, it may seem a little twee and dated to see the British actors dressed and made up as Chinese in this day and age, but to be honest that's all part of the appeal.

Fans of Hammer Horror sometimes forget that the studio didn't just make horror flicks – they started out by making drama and crime movies before hitting on horror, but during their reign they also made science fiction films, thrillers, prehistoric epics, and adventures. During the early 1960s, they often opted for the latter; Sony have just released a nice little package on DVD made up of two pirate adventures and two tales of Eastern terror. I can't wait to watch the other three.

THE TERROR OF THE TONGS is packed with incident and drama, so there's plenty going on in the short running time; indeed the incident in the last few minutes would usually take up twenty minutes of another film. That's the reason it's so much fun to watch. Hammer can't resist with the horrific touches, so although this is on the face of it a period drama, there are scenes of torture and bloodshed that wouldn't be amiss in a Dracula yarn. Another link to the horror is Christopher Lee, here playing the role of Chung King, the terrible leader of the Tong. Lee's role is an obvious prototype for his later, long-running turn as Fu Manchu in a film series throughout the '60s, and it's an interesting one.

Although Lee's performance takes place in a single set and he's sitting down for the most part, I was impressed by how he really puts across his character. He doesn't adopt an accent here, so it's a little odd hearing this Chinese guy speaking English without an accent, but Lee successfully humanises his character to a degree whereby you can't really hate him. I loved the way he remained calm throughout, even in the face of danger and death; his final scenes have an unexpected poignancy that you rarely find when it comes to chief villains in films.

The cast seems made up of British character actors of the period. Geoffrey Toone, a matinée idol, is the rugged hero, and although I disliked him at first, his character grows so much that I found him one of the finest things in the film by the end. Yvonne Monlaur is the love interest and seems to struggle a bit with her acting, but any male viewer will be so entranced by her beauty that he will no doubt overlook this deficit. Marne Maitland excels as the beggar hiding a secret, and Hammer regular Charles Lloyd Pack appears in one of his most memorable turns as a sinister Chinese doctor. Burt Kwouk's here, three years before he found fame with the Pink Panther and James Bond; also popping up is future Doctor Who Master Roger Delgado. Milton Reid steals all his scenes as a burly henchman.

The film's also interesting, not to mention controversial, for its political subtext, namely the depiction of the Chinese as either evil or defenceless, requiring the services of the British to come and help them out of trouble. I think Hammer realised this and deliberately had one of the British guys playing a traitor to muddy the waters a little. Today, the subtext would probably make some viewers think this is a racist film, but I find it a telling mark of the times. This is probably the closest a film has got to the spirit of the early pulps like those written by Sax Rohmer or Robert E. Howard, and for that reason I love it to bits.