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Ring of Fury (1973)

by Cinema Reclaimed
19 May • 05:00pm

A cinematic slice of Singapore’s past is brought to one of the last remaining old cinema spaces. Ring of Fury (1973) a Mandarin-language martial arts action spectacular was shot entirely on location will screen for the first time at People’s Park Theatre in Kreta Ayer which opened a few years before the film.

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Ring-of-Fury-1973

Ring of Fury, 1973, 78 mins, PG, In Mandarin with English subtitles.

Timing: Sunday, 19 May | 5pm
Venue: Kreta Ayer People's Theatre, 20A Kreta Ayer Rd, Singapore
Fee: $10
Registration Link: https://shf24ringoffury.peatix.com

Inspired by Bruce Lee’s Fists of Fury (1972) producer/director team Tony Yeow and James Sebastian embarked on an ambitious plan to make Singapore’s first martial arts action movie. They were fortunate to find Karate master Peter Chong to play their hero – a humble hawker wronged by local gangsters who enacts his bone-crushing revenge and attempts to unmask the ultimate criminal mastermind. Shot on a low-budget with tons of energy and invention, Ring of Fury is a tour through many great locations, some lost forever, including: Esplanade Satay Club, Labrador Park, Tampines Quarry, Jurong Bird Park, and many more.

Ring of Fury was never released in local cinemas after it was made because it was banned by the censors at that time for its depiction of gangsterism (now it’s a PG!), but this afternoon we can imagine an alternate history in which it premiered triumphantly at the People’s Park Theatre in Kreta Ayer, which opened in 1969.

Part of the programme Cinema Reclaimed: DREAM PALACES. Ring of Fury is courtesy of the Asian Film Archive who restored the film in 2017. Thanks to Kreta Ayer People’s Theatre.

Cinema Reclaimed
Cinema Reclaimed is the film strand of Heritage Festival which began in 2020. Each edition reflects the festival’s themes, with previous programmes on Medicine & Modernity, The Temptations of Travel, and last year’s focus on sports and transport - Driving, Kicking & Punching. This year’s theme is DREAM PALACES, on the architecture of cinemas in Singapore and they way films capture the built environment. Curated by Ben Slater with research and curatorial support from Toh Hun Ping.