THAT MAN FROM CHANG-AN (1967)

THAT MAN IN CHANG-AN (1967)

 During the Han Dynasty the Empress Lu wanted her nephew General Lu Kun to rule over the neighboring territory of Zhongdu instead of the current ruler King Dai even though King Dai was loved by the Han commoners. She issued an edict calling for King Dai's execution and for General Lu's to take over of the area with the assistance of Imperial troops. It should have been a cake walk as King Dai had no idea the empress had any such intentions but for THAT MAN IN CHANG-AN. A dart throwing vigilante called THE MASKED MANhas followed the courier from the royal palace to General Lu Kun's residence (I guess he was suspicious of Empress Lu and had been spying on her) just in time to assassinate the courier, steal the edict, escape the resident soldiers barge into King Dai's palace past the king's small army and protective guards and warn the King of the conspiracy. Starting to sound ridiculous yet? Don't worry Yi Cheung is not finished with you. Yes, the same script writer that co-scripted COME DRINK WITH ME (1966) came up with THAT MAN IN CHANG-AN. If you decide to see this movie I assure you --you are in for a wild ride!

No, no, no -- he really says to the King : "I'm the Masked Man." I'm sorry --who the hell else would you be?

So, where were we? Oh, yeah --THE MASKED MAN is in King Dai's palace and trying to warn King Dai of Empress Lu's plans to replace him. The King's body guard and trusted general, General Tian Ying immediately calls THE MASKED MAN a liar and tries to kill him and orders the soldiers to attack him (yes, you are right in what you are thinking.) so he hurls the edict with one of his darts at a wall (not to close to the king, mind you) and tells him that it is Empress Lu's edict and is the prove the king needs that The Masked Man was telling the truth. Having warned the king, off he goes. The edict is retrieved by the Queen's sister Princess Wen Yang and as she hands it over to King Dai she suggests they in addition to preparing for the attack at home they also go to Chang-an for help. And wouldn't you know it, just before The Masked Man barged in, the Queen and King were discussing his mother's poor health and how they wanted to find the great doctor and alchemist(!) Zhuang Bai to treat his mother but where could they find him? Princess Wen Yang suggest she go to Chang-An for help under the guise of finding Zhuang Bai for his mother's treatment and while there get help. King Dai agrees to the idea and sends trusted General Tian Ying to accompany the princess and her maiden Hong Er to Chang-An. But...

"It says we're a 'comedy'. What in the world is a 'comedy'?"

A funny thing happens on the way to Chang-an. The trusted General Tian Ying is actually a traitor paid off by General Lu Kun to make sure things go his way. So General Tian disables the Princess' chariot and the princess and Hong Er fall over a cliff, only to be saved by this fellow Zhuang Bai, the doctor / alchemist they were looking as part two of their mission. So alls well that ends well but wait --there's more!! Hong Er does not trust this strange fellow (ever though the princess has to hint at her twice to not give him certain information) so Hong Er urge the princess to leave before daybreak and get to Chang-an and get help. But wait, when they get outside it is already daybreak and they end up getting caught again, because yeah, all those soldiers are still out there looking for at least, their bodies. So they get rounded up and taken back to Zhongdu. However even though General Tian helps capture Hong Er, Hong Er never tells Princess Wen Yang General Tian is a traitor because that would mess up a plot device set up for later on. By now everybody in the audience knows That Man in Chang-an, The Masked Man, and Zhuang Bai are the same guy and now he has to go to Zhongdu to save these mistrusting, ungrateful bit --uh royal ladies and still figure out how to save King Dai!

"I don't think we really look like men to them!"

Does the above plot summary sound long to you? You are correct sir, this movie clocks in at a loooooong one hour and fifty-one minutes! And unfortunately the acting talents don't make the time seem any shorter. The actors here seem very unremarkable for a Shaw Brothers movie although to be fair, Fang Ying does do a good job as Princess Wen Yang but the part is so typical royalty so it doesn't help the film as a drama.  In addition, with the exception of Tien Feng (King Dai Liu Heng) and Fan Mei Sheng (Cau Wu Winery waiter) only some of the bit part players are familiar to me. Kim Jin-Kyu is That Man in Chang-an / The Masked Man / Zhuang Bai. and Park Nou-Sik plays General Lu Kun. Allyson Chang Yen is the princess' aide Hong Er and they just don't ring a bell. Please let me be clear, their acting doesn't so much suck as it seems suited to something other than a drama. Yes, I am going to get to that in a minute. 

"Why are you all attacking only two at a time?"

But first, let's get to the fights! I counted 8 fight scenes scattered throughout the movie. For the most part, they are short scenes with the exception of the finale. Unfortunately the one and only one notable fight scene featuredAllyson Chang Yen as Hong Er fighting with double daggers against soldiers with spears as she applied very sophisticate maneuvering and quick-kill counters, I was very impressed with this and yes it did remind me of Cheng Pei Pei work in COME DRINK WITH ME (1967) but without the "dance-ness", just strictly slick but practical self-defense. The other fight scenes were by the numbers "one, two, three -kill" sword fights, rarely more than two attackers at a time no matter how many soldiers entered the scene. Watching this twice in a row was just too funny! The finale's under cranking was so last-minute it just looked weak and experimental and it very well could have been. Not good. 

"How much would you expect to pay to watch a movie this bad?"

So there you are, probably just like me when I was as I was writing this, waiting for me to recommend you not waste nearly two hours of your time watching this movie when three things start to bother me.  Number one: the "Keystone Cops" chase scene that opened the movie. Not a fight scene mind you, but a camp comedy chase scene where nobody gets hurt and I experienced a little belly laugh. Number two: Kim Jin-Kyu, the actor selected to play the lead actor really comes off as a comedic actor and not a dramatic hero type, things that make me go hmmmm. Number three: the healing scene with Kim Jin-Kyu and Ayllson Chang Yen. This is the funniest thing I have seen in any movie including full blown comedies --coincidence? What if...

Comedy or Drama?

I am going to recommend THAT MAN IN CHANG-AN (1967) but only as the first Shaw Brothers WUXIA COMEDY! There are just too many laughs that just can't be unintentional. Yes, all of the principal people involved in the production are past away so they cannot be questioned about it but "the proof is in the pudding". This movie is mad funny. With a little more work and deliberation this movie would have been revolutionary as a wuxia comedy in 1967 but also, so far, far ahead of its time. I don't know if Run Run Shaw would have released it because the risk back then would have been inconceivable. A brand new film genre with a brand new twist would have been just too much to gamble on overtly. Watch it and tell me what you think!

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UP NEXT:TRAIL OF THE BROKEN BLADE (1967)

COME DRINK WITH ME (1966)

COME DRINK WITH ME (1966)

COME DRINK WITH ME (1966)'s actual title is DA ZUI XIA (BIG DRUNKEN HERO) and is based on a Beijing Opera entitled The Drunken Beggar.

In an unnamed province in China during the Ming Dynasty, a ruthless band of bandits have come to power and are terrorizing the local towns. The governor sends armed troops and his special envoy Golden Swallow to deal with the bandits. After a particular battle, the bandits are nearly routed and their leader is captured along with two of the bandits' top commanders. The bandits retaliate by raiding the prisoner procession where the top commanders are being transported and kidnapping the lieutenant general who is also the governor's son. They write a petition to the governor demanding the release of their leader in five days time --or else!

However the petition is intercepted before it reaches the governor by his special envoy, Golden Swallow who also happens to be his daughter. Golden Swallow decides she will handle the bandits on her on and save her brother --or die trying. A deadly game of cat and mouse begins but Golden Swallow is at a distinct disadvantage for she knows neither where the bandits are hiding nor where they are keeping her brother.

During a battle with the bandits at an inn where she has stopped to rest, a rather scruffy drunken beggar runs into her just as a bandit throws a series of throwing knives at her from the level above them allowing them both to escape unharmed. Later that same night she catches the beggar sneaking into her room but he takes her aback with a request "I can't sleep, let's have a drink." He then steals her knives and hat as she chase him out of her room. Golden Swallow goes after the beggar to retrieve her items but when she returns to her room she catches three of the bandits trying to ambush her in her sleep and she chases them away as well. She then realizes that had she not encounter the drunk beggar she would have indeed have been fast asleep and at the mercy of her attackers.  Who is this drunken beggar ? What is his connection to the bandits? Why does he seem to be helping the Golden Swallow in her mission? These questions are what the rest of "COME DRINK WITH ME" is about.

COME DRINK WITH ME is very definitely a King Hu (he is credited as "King Chuan") production as he both co-wrote the screen play and directed the movie. The talents of his crew and actors have proven themselves in many other projects since but the magic here in the characterizations are undeniably spot on and even in future projects do not recapture the characters as they do here (yes, there is a sequel). 

That said, Cheng Pei-pei as the Golden Swallow does an excellent job coming across as a military brat with too much fight and not enough thought. She also does look a bit masculine (make-up and costume staff take a bow) and photos of her in modern dress and made-up surprise me with their gorgeous beauty. Yuen Hua as the drunken beggar is okay but does not deliver a notable performance. Even though I have no reference to draw on of previous depictions, I must say, he never really seems to be quite drunk enough to be disarming and Golden Swallow's martial arts look a bit more lethal than his by comparison. Chan Hung-lit is the Jade Face Tiger and is the villain that eats up the most screen. He plays an intelligent bad-ass and almost makes you want to root for him. Yeung Chi-hing is Abbot Liao Kung. Even though I have only seen four classic Shaw Brothers movies so far, the pattern is a big bad super villain shows up after the movie is half over and he is the one to beat. Yeung Chi-hing plays that super villain but the "super" is unimpressive, to me but fails to spoil the movie. The rest of the villains are just victims for the heroes to go through and are the usual Shaw Brothers cast members some of whom you will recognize.

GOLDEN SWALLOW CIRCLE OF DEATH!

Ahh yeah, here we go --fight time. I count six fight scenes in COME DRINK WITH ME, pretty evenly distributed through the film. They are not all created equally, however. The first fight scene is the raid on the prisoner's procession and is brutal, cruel but economical with but a few moves to show the viciousness of the bandits.  Golden Swallow's has three fight scenes and they are masterpieces of effective double dagger martial arts and yet have the simplicity of a military designed combat system. "Drunken Cat" ( the name he tells Golden Swallow to call him to the delight of the laughing children) has two fight scenes that work when his martial arts are displayed at the level of master, however when the film tries to depict grand master level skills, the film techniques of the day (1966) just are not convincing enough, I am sorry to say --but I do understand.

The word "classic" is a very over-used word when it comes to old movies but COME DRINK WITH ME (1966) is seen as a classic unanimously by critics and "fu-fans" alike. Far from being a perfect movie what gets everyone excited about seeing this movie is its ability to draw out the hero in all of us knowing we too would rise to the challenge should a loved one of ours be threaten by arrogant thugs. COME DRINK WITH ME is absolutely a must-see!

If you liked this review please comment on the blog, become a follower of the blog, join me on my Facebook account by sending me a message first and then a friend request so I know who I am friending (  https://www.facebook.com/Michael529P   ) and like my Facebook page: SHAW Brothers Kung Fu Movies 1965-1986. I thank you and would appreciate it very much!

NEXT UP: GOLDEN SWALLOW (1968)