Biography

Also known as Charlie Chan. No, he's not the famous detective, nor is he "Phillip Ko" (a.k.a. Kao Fei), as many publications have incorrectly listed him. He can either thrill you or put you to sleep (which isn't very often), depending on whom he's fighting. He will probably always be remembered as the "Snakefist-stylist" (Hsia Sa) in Snake In The Monkey's Shadow (1978), even though he's been in more movies, that were just as memorable.

He, finally, got to play the lead villain in the under-rated The Cheeky Chap (1980), in which he gave (in my opinion) probably the best performance of his career. Though, he was very good in Snake In The Monkey's Shadow (1978), when Wilson Tong appeared on the screen, you kind of forgot all about him. It seems that in most of the films he's appeared in, there is always someone there, to outclass him or steal his spotlight.

I, initially, remember seeing him in The Chinese Godfather (1974), fighting along side Chan Wei-Man and again in The Chinese Mack (1974) (this time as Chan's teacher). He has gone up against some pretty good competition in various films, including Wang Jang-Li (in Secret Rivals-2 (1977), Wang Tao (in Death Duel Of Kung Fu (1979)), and Jackie Chan (Snake In The Monkey's Shadow (1978)). Like many after the end of the kung-fu era, his star started to fade a bit and he was regulated to modern roles, where he just didn't seem to fit in. ​