Love abounds in Shaw Brothers movies. Below are a few favorites featuring sword-crossed fighters, and modern-day innocents who may or may not find their heart's desire. Have Sword Will Travel (1969) by Chang Cheh. Yun Pao Pao’s (Li Ching) devotion to fiancé Siang (Ti Lung) only...
Two Champions of Shaolin Starring Lu Feng, Lo Meng, Chiang Sheng, Candy Wen Hsueh Erh, Yueng Jing Jing, Sun Chien, Chin Siu Ho, Wang Li, Yu Tai Ping Directed by Chang Cheh “You’re the Shaolin Hercules Tung Chin Chin, I’ve heard of you, you’re famous.”- Li De Dong Two...
There are plenty of Shaw Brothers films that are based on famous texts, legends, and historical moments from Chinese history and often they are interpreted into an entertaining and cinematic manner for the sake of the silver screen. In the early 70s, iconic director Chang...
Even by 1969, Chang Cheh has established himself as the cornerstone of creative foundations for the Shaw Brothers. He had delivered a handful of dynamic and effective films like The Assassin or Golden Swallow and he was responsible for the next level box office boom...
My last article for this site was dedicated to Executioners from Shaolin, so I felt it was fitting that I follow it up with a brief look and discussion about the themes of Chang Cheh’s 1976 overlooked classic, Shaolin Temple. While the former film looked...
“One person getting fame over thousands of dead bodies. For this vain title, how many lives have been sacrificed?” There is an ultimate question the plagues the film industry. How do you make a sequel to a film that breaks barriers, connects with its audience, and...
Chang Cheh's Golden Swallow is a sequel to King Hu's Come Drink With Me, but it is most certainly not more of the same. It is a film defined by Chang's artistic drive more than anything else. In Chang's memoir he called the The One-Armed...
This year marks the 50th anniversary of The One-Armed Swordsman, so it's a great time to re-examine Chang Cheh's early masterpiece. The film's legacy has never been in question; it was the first Hong Kong film to gross over HK$1 million, and it launched the career of the...
Whether it was under the title The Water Margin, Seven Blows of the Dragon, or Outlaws of the Marsh this film has certainly generated a strong reputation as one of the most ambitious pieces of cinema in the Shaw Brothers catalog. The response to the...
There are a couple moments in Sword Stained with Royal Blood where it’s hard to accept where the film is going, including most of the first act. However, in the case of a film like this, there are three things to remember before one starts...