REVIEW #8: THE SWORD AND THE LUTE (1967)

REVIEW #8:

 THE SWORD AND THE LUTE (1967)

Released on April 24^th, 1967, THE SWORD AND THE LUTE is part three of a trilogy that began with [TEMPLE OF THE RED LOTUS (1965) part one] and [TWIN SWORDS (1965) part two]. It continues the adaptation of Jiang Hu Qi Xia Chuan (Shang Xia), a wuxia novel written by Ping Jiang Bu Xiao Sheng. Produced by Sir Run Run Shaw, once again directed by Hsu Tseng-Hung and also once again screenplay and assisted directed by Shen Chiang. Song lyrics by Chang Cheh. There are no fight choreographers credited but Shaw Brothers spared no expense with this all-star cast extravaganza. Let’s get busy!

The Yin Yang Swordsmen

Chin Ping as "Gan Lianzhu"

Jimmy Wang Yu as "Gui Wu"

THE SWORD AND THE LUTE (1967) features three treasured weapons. Treasured weapons in wuxia tales are weapons made of the finest materials and include a mystical quality that can be viewed as sort of a super power. In this movie the treasured weapons are: The Invincible Sword (aka the fish intestine sword) which cuts all kinds of iron, The Phoenix Lute, a weapon of mass destruction that hurls scores of hair thin poisonous needles. The Phoenix Lute can only be destroyed by The Invincible Sword. Finally, there is The Seven Stars Stone, the Shen family heirloom that is the only way to heal someone injured by The Phoenix Lute. 

THE INVINCIBLE SWORD

THE PHOENIX LUTE

THE SEVEN STARS STONE

THE SWORD AND THE LUTE (1967) takes place some time after the conclusion of THE TWIN SWORDS (1965), which featured the Gan family’s raid on The Temple of the Red Lotus to rescue their third generation’s daughter, Gan Lianzhu from the clutches of the Red Lotus Clan. The movie begins with the Yin Yang Swordsmen (Gui Wu and his wife, Gan Lianzhu) leaving the Scarlet Maiden’s residence with two instructions: number 1. do not use the Phoenix Lute and number 2. destroy the Phoenix Lute with the Invincible Sword.

THE FLYING TIGER CLAN

On their way to the Gan Residence to use the Invincible Sword to destroy the Phoenix Lute, Gui Wu suggests they cut through the woods, doing so they run right into an ambush by the Flying Tiger Clan intent on robbing whomever would pass that area of the woods. The Yin Yang Swordsmen are highly skilled but the Flying Tiger Clan is present in great numbers. Seeing the men surround his wife, in spite the Scarlet Maiden's warning not to;  Gui Wu grabs the Phoenix Lute and fires into their attackers injuring many of them and causing them to retreat. 

Gan Lianzhu scolds Gui Wu

Master Wen spying on the Yin Yang Swordsmen

One of the Flying Tiger Clan’s members is unhurt but intrigued by such an astonishing weapon and he sneakily follows the Yin Yang Swordsmen as they leave the scene of the ambush and rest near a small waterfall. He overhears some valuable information and then realizes they have left a valuable prize unguarded! Let the games begin!

Yueh Hua as Shem Shuwen

"Where is the Seven Stars Stone?"

CAST REPORT:

the good: Chin Ping as Gan Lingzhu, Ivy Ling Po as the Scarlet Maid, Petrina Fung Bo Bo as Miss Sun / Gan Xiaoling, Jimmy Wang Yu as Gui Wu, Yueh Hua as Shen Shuwen, Lo Lieh as Du Ying, Pang Pang as Daxin.

the bad: Lily Ho Li Li as Wei Mei Er, Cheng Miu as Flying Tiger Chief Master Wei Fei Hu, Lee Wan Chung as Master Wen.

HONORABLE MENTION: Wu Ma, Lee Ho, Chang Pei-Shan, Tang Chia,  Liu Chia Liang, Liu Chia Yung as members of the Flying Tiger Clan.

SPOTTED: Cheng Kang-Yeh as a Shen family servant

Cheng Kang-Yeh is spotted!

FIGHT TIME: Despite Liu Chia Liang and Tang Chia both being present in this production, THE SWORD AND THE LUTE (1967) does not have any fight choreographers credited. Never the less I counted seven (7) fight scenes in the movie’s eighty-seven minutes making for a fun filled, action packed, wuxia extravaganza! For its time, the fight scenes are top notch and natural, making them easy to enjoy. I would certainly not expect any less with the many, highly experienced martial art actors on this project.

HONORABLE MENTION: The grand melee fight at the Master Shen's Aunt's Mansion is a tremendous scene of organized chaos, delightful! Also, Lily Ho Li-Li was a fantastic addition to the cast and her fighting ability lives up to the expectations for her character, bravo!

RECOMMENDATION: THE SWORD AND THE LUTE (1967) is an all-star cast, continuation of a great adaptation of a well-love Chinese novel. Not only is it presented here in great form but it is worthy, not only of a remake but adding additional chapters as well. Anyone of the major characters could also be spun-off into their own adventures. I highly recommend this movie for all viewers and collectors of wuxia movies at all costs. See you next time.

  

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NEXT UP: THE THUNDERING SWORD (1967)

REVIEW #003: COME DRINK WITH ME (1966)

REVIEW #003: 

COME DRINK WITH ME (1966)

October 1965 saw the first release of Shaw Brothers’ new genre of movies "wuxia" : TEMPLE OF THE RED LOTUS and in December of the same year a sequel followed: THE TWIN SWORDS. It would not be until the spring of 1966 that Sir Run Run Shaw would produce the next Shaw Brothers’ wuxia movie: COME DRINK WITH ME.

Released on April 7^th, 1966, COME DRINK WITH ME is an adaptation of a Beijing Opera called The Drunken Beggar. In fact, the Chinese translation of the actual title of this movie is Da Zui Xia or Big Drunken Hero. It’s director, King Hu Chin-Chuan also co-wrote the screenplay with newcomer Ting Shan-Hsi (who some sources say also co-directed the film). Han Ying-Chieh served as action director and played a small role in the film. This, Shaw Brother’s third wuxia film would become so well known that it is often mistaken as their first. We shall see why the film is a bona fide classic and is so well loved. Let’s get busy!

A highly skilled and well-organized group of bandits have suffered a defeat at the hands of the provincial governor’s troops, who capture the bandit’s leader and sentence him to death. The remaining bandits kidnap the governor’s son with the intent to trade the governor’s son for the return of their leader and write a petition outlining this request along with a deadline of five days. The governor’s military commander, who also happens to be his daughter, intercepts the petition and offers the bandits another option: release her older brother and surrender in exchange for leniency from the governor –or die!

In the midst of this turmoil is a drunken beggar and a Buddhist abbot fighting over the leadership of a clan whose grand master has died. As they each choose opposing sides, this story has just gotten even more interesting, thus a classic is born!  

Yueh Hua as Fan Ta Pei aka Drunken Hero

Yuen Chi-Hing as Abbot Liao Kung

CAST REPORT:

the good: Cheng Pei Pei as Commander Chang aka Golden Swallow. Yueh Hua as Fan Ta Pei aka Drunken Hero (Drunken Cat) 

the bad: Chen Hung-Lieh as Jade-Faced Tiger. Lee Wan-Chung as Smiling Tiger Tsu Kan. Yueng Chi-Hing as Abbot Liao Kung.

 HONORABLE MENTION: Cheng Pei Pei screen presence is absolutely fascinating to behold. A true movie star!

Simon Yuen Siu-Tin

SPOTTED: Simon Yuen Siu-Tin seasoned action director and actor in independent films including Wong Fei Hung films and destined to become best known in the United States as Sam Seed, the Drunken Master.  His career spanned 325 films and 30 years (1949 to 1979) according to Hong Kong Movie Database.

Han Ying-Chieh  ACTION DIRECTOR

FIGHT TIME: All right, time for my favorite part of the movie review: the fights! Han Ying-Chieh is the fight choreographer for COME DRINK WITH ME (1966) and I counted six (6) major fight scenes pretty much evenly distributed throughout the film. However, they are not all created equal. The first fight scene is the raid on the prisoner’s procession where they kidnap the governor’s son. This fight is brutal, cruel and “economically” shows the viciousness of this group of bandits. 

Golden Swallow's "game face"!

Golden Swallow has three major fight scenes and they are masterpieces of effective double dagger combat against multiple opponents. Drunken Hero Fan Ta Pei has two major 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 technology of 1966 just doesn’t do it justice but it is both understandable and forgivable. 

HONORABLE MENTION: Han Ying-Chieh has a small role as a henchman but is the action director of record for COME DRINK WITH ME (1966). However, it seems to me the director King Hu Chin-Chuan gets all the credit for how great the movie is but the fight choreography is always mentioned in the reviews of this undisputed classic. I think it should be a bit more balanced but it is just my opinion. 

RECOMMENDATION: “Mama told me there’d be days like this…” There will be movies such as this that are undisputed classics and as such no recommendations are necessary. Whether you are a collector or casual viewer of films, COME DRINK WITH ME (1966) is a "must see" and "must have". 'Nuff said!

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NEXT UP: KNIGHT OF KNIGHTS (1966)

BROTHERS FIVE (1970)

BROTHERS FIVE (1970)

BROTHERS FIVE (1970) (released March 26th), is produced by Runme Shaw, the elder of the two brothers. It is written by Lo Wei and I Kuang, two very skillful and talented screen writers with a deep understanding of the genre. The action direction is handled by Simon Chui Yee-Ang and Chu Yuan Lung (better known as Sammo Hung Kam-Bo) and they are also very skilled craftsmen to say the least and the whole kit and kabootle was directed by the very prolific Lo Wei. Let's get busy!

Flying Dragon Villa used to be a stronghold of justice for the common people. Under the leadership of Hero Gao Shi Yu, the knights of Flying Dragon Villa were known as defenders of the weak ands as upright people. Then came the villain Chief Long Zhen Feng who murdered Hero Gao Shi Yu and took over Flying Dragon Villa. 

However, one could not expect a man the likes of Hero Gao Shi Yu to go quietly into the night. On his death bed he he asked his close friend Yan Hang Kong to help his sons escape Flying Dragon Villa. Yan Hang Kong escaped with the five boys but they were pursued by Chief Long Zhen Feng and his men, The Four Evils of Ji Bei. Enlisting the aid of some martial art instructors, Yan Hang Kong separated the five brothers but told his young daughter, Yan Hsing Kung, all about Hero Gao and his five sons. After her father's death, she set out to find the locations of the five brothers and reunite them to take revenge with the help of a secret martial arts manual. Will she succeed? 

CAST REPORT

the good: Cheng Pei Pei as Miss Yan Loi Hsing Kung. Lo Lieh as Gao Xia, fifth brother. Chang Yi as Scholar Gao Zhi, second brother. Yueh Hua as Valet Gao Wei, fourth brother. Chin Han as Blacksmith Gao Hao, first brother. Kao Yuen as Security Chief Gao Yong, third brother. Sammo Hung as Security Escort Chu 

the bad: Tien Feng as Master Long Zhen Feng. Little Unicorn as Flying Fork Master Wang. Wang Hsieh as Wang Liao Er. Ku Feng as Lord Wan Bo Fu. James Tien as Master Ding Zhi Shan. Lee Ka-Ting as Master Yau. 

HONORABLE MENTION: Luk Chuen and Someno Yukio do stunt / extra work

FIGHT TIME: BROTHERS FIVE (1970) was action directed by Hsu Erh Niu and Chu Yuan Lung (Sammo Hung). I counted twelve (12), that's right twelve fight scenes which is the most fights scenes in any movie I have counted yet so far. The work is absolutely one of high quality with the under cranking expertly done except in some of the exchanges in the finale fight scenes. Nothing new but still exciting none the less.

HONORABLE MENTION: Kao Yuen's (he played third brother, Security Chief Gao Yong) solo fight scene against the guards outside of Flying Dragon Villa was superb and worth watching multiple times!

BROTHERS FIVE (1970) has a veteran director, two of the most skillful script writers in the industry and one of the two action directors on the project will go on to become arguably one of the best action directors from Hong Kong. The actors of BROTHERS FIVE (1970) are some of the best Shaw Brothers has to offer. And BROTHERS FIVE (1970) is a good movie, in fact it is a very good movie. BUT, but... It just seems to me to be a little off Shaw Brothers' usual overall high quality and I need to be honest about it. So what's wrong? Well, it just seems to me that the movie belongs more to the Shaw Brothers of the sixties than the Shaw Brothers of the seventies. Bottom line though, it is still worth watching and I can recommend it for casual viewers of wuxia movies but for collectors --not so much. See you next time!

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NEXT UP: THE GOLDEN KNIGHT (1970)

LADY OF STEEL (1970)

LADY OF STEEL (1970)

LADY OF STEEL (1970) is a straight wuxia revenge tale released February 27th that uses the Southern Song Dynasty as its backdrop. It was produced by Runme Shaw, directed by Ho Meng-Hua with the script by Liang Jen and action direction by Leung Siu-Chung. Let's get busy!

Security Chief Fang Ning and assistant Chiu Hung are escorting one million taels of silver for refugees along the yellow river, when they stop to rest at an inn off the main road. The inn turns out to be owned by former security chief Han Shi Xiong and his assistant Wei Tong Ming, but Han Shi Xiong uses it to rob and murder escorts that know of the old route that is rarely used. Unfortunately, Chief Fang Ning has also brought along his wife and child and, in this slaughter of everyone, only his child, a daughter named Fang Ying Qi, escapes with her life. 

Priest Xuan Zhen found Fang Ying Qi just as she escaped, raised her and taught her kung fu for the past twenty years. Priest Xuan Zhen taught her it was Han Shi Xiong who was responsible for killing her family and although she is ready to take revenge, the Jin invasion of north China and the restoration of the Song Dynasty should be a priority for the heroes of the Jiang Hu and she must wait. Priest Xuan Zhen gives Fang Ying Qi a letter of recommendation to bring to Lord Xia Zi Long, the chief of the Flying Dragon Clan whose fortress is in the Da Kun Moutains, so she may join the effort to fight the foreign invaders.

Fang Ying Qi stops at an Inn along the way to Flying Dragon Fortress that, as fate would have it, is a way station for her life long enemies. She also meets the leader of the Beggar Clan: Chin Shang-Yi. Blades flash and tempers fly as the two masters of martial arts go at it. The rest, is well worth watching for yourself! 

CAST REPORT

the good: Cheng Pei-Pei as Fang Ying Qi. Yueh Hua as Qin Shang Yi. Ku Wen-Chung as Priest Xuan Zhen. Fang Mian as Lord Xia Zi Long.

the bad: Huang Chung-Hsin as Han Shi Xiong. Lee Wan-Chung as Wei Tong Ming. Lee Pang-Fei as Wu Chang Sheng.

HONORABLE MENTION: Yuen Lo (Jacky Chan), Meng Yun Man and Han Guo Cai all do stunt / extra work early in their career in this movie.  

FIGHT TIME: LADY OF STEEL (1970) is a straight forward revenge tale albeit well written with action choreographed by Leung Siu-Chung. I counted eight (8) fight scenes that were clean with easy to follow, realistic techniques. At a little over 80 minutes there is no room for boredom, nothing new here -- no doubt, but no boredom at all.

LADY OF STEEL (1970) while offering nothing new is still a solid outing by Cheng Pei-Pei and Yueh Hua who have previously worked together in the 1960's on some of Shaw Brothers great wuxia movies. I am recommending this movie for casual viewers for the entertainment value and for collectors for the appearances of future stars early in their careers. See you next time!

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: BROTHERS FIVE (1970)