By Anna Andersen

Wichita is not a movie town. Even when the city is named on film, other places stand in: the “Wichitas” in 1987’s “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles” and 2005’s “The Ice Harvest” are really in Illinois. That's what makes “King Kung Fu,” a zany martial arts romp shot in Wichita in 1976, such a fun watch for locals. It's now available on Blu-ray in 4K from Reel Vault.

The titular ape (martial arts teacher John Ballee in a gorilla suit) learns kung fu in China from his master, Alfunku (Jim Erickson), and comes to the United States as a goodwill gesture, like a panda that can do roundhouse kicks. On his way to a zoo in New York City, he stops in Wichita for a Midwest exhibition. Two wannabe journalists, Bo Burgess (Billy Schwartz) and Herman (Tim McGill), decide to engineer their big break by letting the ape escape and wreak havoc, aided by comely Pizza Hut waitress Rae Jean Fey (Maxine Gray), and opposed by stoic policeman Captain Duke (Tom Leahy doing a John Wayne impression). 

Shenanigans ensue, taking the audience on a tour of Wichita at the time: We see the former Central Library, Century II, and the Sedgwick County Zoo, all less than 10 years old when the film was shot. There's a shootout scene at Cowtown, with King Kung Fu taking the role of Wild Bill Hickock, and a fight scene at a baseball game at Lawrence (not yet -Dumont) Stadium between the Iowa Oaks and the Wichita Aeros. An incredible sequence shot at now-defunct amusement park Joyland takes us for a point-of-view ride on the 1949 wooden rollercoaster. The film's climax is a showdown atop the Holiday Inn, then the tallest building in Wichita, between King Kung Fu, Bo and Herman, and Captain Duke in a police helicopter, with genuinely great stop-motion animation pulling off some ambitious effects. 

Throughout, the restored footage looks fantastic, colorful and clear, and the photography, sound, acting, and score are all good quality for the low budget. The gorilla in the room, though, is that it is a martial arts film made by white people in the 1970s. As such, it has a couple of racist jokes, stereotypical music, and a white actor playing a Chinese character—although it should also be said that Erickson is not wearing offensive makeup or putting on a thick accent.

The Blu-ray includes a half-hour making-of documentary by Nathan Light, director of the Hutchinson-set found footage horror “The Harvest Broadcast.” Composed of interviews with late producer Bob Walterscheid, writer/director/cinematographer Lance Hayes, and actors McGill and Erickson, the doc follows the film from conception to its eventual 1987 theatrical release. While it could use intertitles to explain the contributors' backgrounds, it captures a few fun anecdotes about the production, like the multiple cease-and-desists from Paramount, which released its big-budget “King Kong” remake starring Jeff Bridges in December 1976.

As Walterscheid says in the documentary, “King Kung Fu” itself accidentally became a documentary of Wichita at the time. Despite a few flaws, it's worth watching for how it puts the city back in the picture, letting it represent itself in a lighthearted, irreverent, but earnest way.

The Details

“King Kung Fu” in 4K

Reel Vault released a restored version of the 1987 low-budget flick on Blu-ray in spring 2026. The list price is $24, and the Blu-ray is available from outlets including Best Buy and Amazon.

Anna Andersen co-hosts Your Favorite Bad Movie Podcast with their husband. They have four cats named Brains, Hamburger, Twinkle, and Zazzle.

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