Dragon Superman

Taiwan | 1968 | 90 min. | Satoru Kobayashi, Shao Lo-hui

Women love him. Men want to be him. And when the fearsome Cosmos Gang crosses him, nothing will stop our masked, motorcycle-riding hero from doling out justice in this swinging, hard-punching, and high-flying 1968 Taiwanese actioner.

Come to the May 19 screening for a chance to win physical media goodies from Scarecrow Video!

Tickets

Select showtime for pricing and tickets.

Sunday, May 19, 2024

  • Limited Availability
  • On Standby
  • Matinee

Have you been complaining about there being too many superhero films recently? Well, you haven’t seen Dragon Superman. An explosion rips through the night as a frightened man runs down a deserted city street. A gang of mysterious masked men, known only as the Cosmos Gang appear, kill the man, and seize his briefcase. The next day, crusading journalist San Lin-jun and staff photographer Mr. Mischief attend an exhibition of valuable jewels at the Hsin Pao Department Store. Wouldn’t you know it, the Cosmos Gang strikes again—stealing the jewels and eluding police capture. San Lin-jun vows to bring these villains to justice, employing the guise of masked crimefighter, Dragon Superman. He soon discovers the Cosmos Gang’s plot to extort an ancient Incan artifact from department store owner, Liu Ching-yun, by kidnapping his granddaughter. But when the Gang also abducts Mr. Mischief and Li-yun, a beautiful blind chanteuse who just so happens to have captured Lin-jun’s heart, they unleash the full fury of Dragon Superman. Heavily influenced by Japan’s tokusatsu films with nods to American noir, Dragon Superman is exhilarating pulp cinema cut from the same spandex as luchador El Santo and the Green Hornet.

2K digital restoration, courtesy of TFAI

—Dan Doody

  • Original Language Title: 神龍飛俠
  • Director: Satoru Kobayashi, Shao Lo-hui
  • Principal Cast: Kuei Chih-pang, Liu Ching, Pai Sha, Lai Te-nan, Chen Tsai-hsing, Kang Ming
  • Country: Taiwan
  • Year: 1968
  • Running Time: 90 min.
  • Producer: Liu Bai-fan
  • Screenplay: Kobayashi Satoru, Chen Hsiao-tao
  • Cinematographers: Hamano Masayuki
  • Editors: Minami Jin
  • Music: Tseng Chung-ying
  • Website: Official Film Website
  • Filmography: まぼろし探偵 (1960)
  • Language: Taiwanese Hokkien
  • Has Subtitles: Yes
  • International Sales: Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute