The Deadly Breaking Sword (1979), starring Ti Lung, Fu Sheng, Shih Szu, Michael Chan Wai Man, Ku Feng and Lily Li Li Li. Directed by Sun Chung.

(All images courtesy Celestial Pictures, unless noted otherwise.)

BACK when The Deadly Breaking Sword was released on 4/12/79, the second movie by director Sun Chung to co-star Fu Sheng and Ti Lung had to contend (primarily) with the kung fu comedies then trending at the HK box office. As a result, the Shaw Brothers production simply (according to writer Mark Pollard) "appeared at the wrong time", and it wasn't long before it was gone, replaced by other Shaw pictures of varying quality. Today, the film lingers in the shadow cast by its predecessor, the cult classic The Avenging Eagle (1978), rescued from obscurity as much by Fu Sheng's untimely death in 1983 as it is by recent critical reassessments of Chung that rank him as one of Shaw's better directors.

left to right: Fu Sheng and Ti Lung

Somewhere in the martial arts world, there are two heroes. The experienced one is Tuan Changqing (Ti Lung), who is called "The Deadly Breaking Sword" because his dead adversaries wind up with a piece of his sword punctured in their chests. He's arrogant about his proficiency with a sword; in fact, he's a bit of an eccentric about it, which is reflected in his pre-fight customs of arriving early, wearing a new change of clothes and providing coffins to those he slays. Then, there's Xiao Dao (Fu Sheng). He's "The Little Dagger" because his weapon of choice is a knife. Though he's a scoundrel, barely getting by on his wits and kung fu prowess, he's anything but evil.

left to right: Ti Lung and Michael Chan Wai Man

Changqing's latest battle is with Lian Shan, "The Throat Piercing Halbred" (Michael Chan Wai Man). Where he has taken out only bad guys, Shan's own high body count has partly come through indiscriminate killing, so Changqing knows he must be done away with. Unfortunately, it ends as a draw with both wounded, though Shan escapes with a bit of broken sword embedded in him.

In a town not far from Changqing's location, Dao finds himself temporarily working as a security guard at a gambling house, owned by Luo Jinhua (Lily Li Li Li), in order to pay off his gambling debt. If that wasn't bad enough, Jinhua's smitten with him, and she's determined to keep him there permanently. As soon as Dao earns any taels of silver, she tricks him out of his money.

Shih Szu

Changqing and Dao eventually cross paths due to their mutual interest in Lin Linxyu (Shih Szu), a high class prostitute who's recently set up shop at the local brothel. In secret, she's looking for Guo Tiansheng, who she knows by the nickname "The Killer Doctor" (Ku Feng). She wants him dead for double-crossing her thief of a brother, Chen Yinggang (Ngaai Fei), collecting the reward for his capture and leaving him to rot in prison. Initially, she tricks Changqing to see her and proposes to pay him to slay Tiansheng. As a hero, Changqing won't take money and isn't sure Tiansheng (a doctor with good standing in the community) is "TKD", but, liking Linxyu, he goes to see him and determine if he's "TKD". He's not convinced.

left to right: Lily Li Li Li and Fu Sheng

Undeterred by this setback, Linxyu hires the desperate-for-money Dao to kill Tiansheng, but Changqing, who has grown to respect him after their many hot-headed encounters, persuades him not to follow through, paying off Dao with a money order double the amount Linxyu offered him. Ecstatic, he returns to the gambling house and shows Jinhua the money order, bragging he now can pay off the debt and be free of her. As he boasts about this victory, she quietly sets the piece of paper on fire. Finally deducing she's responsible for hindering his exit, Dao grabs her and carries her to a nearby well. He holds the screaming lady by the ankles over the top, optioning whether to drown her or not....

left to right: Michael Chan Wai Man and Ku Feng

All the while, the wounded Shan has been recovering at Tiansheng's residence after the doctor removed the sword fragment from his chest. Discovering Shan is a rare survivor of a battle with the great Changqing, Tiansheng realizes he has at hand a fighter superior to all his hired goons combined. Through the wonders of acupuncture, he nurses Shan back to health, making him stronger than he ever was, and after his confrontation with Changqing (who threw wine on the old man), Tiansheng's resolved to use Shan to kill the hero as revenge.

left to right: Ngaai Fai and Ti Lung

Meanwhile, Changqing tells Linxyu he stopped Dao from killing Tiansheng, still believing he's not "TKD". She begs him to hear Yinggang's side of the story at the prison. Listening to her brother, he finds out she was right after all and frees him. With help from Yinggang and Linxyu, he plots to lure Tiansheng to the brothel and kill him. When Tiansheng shows up, he brings with him the new and improved Shan, and the guy's got a score to settle with Changqing....

Unlike Chung's previous two wuxias (The Proud Youth and TAE, both '78), Ni Kuang's script for TDBS is not an adaptation from a work of popular Chinese literature, which is a big plus. Minus the hang ups of a complicated scenario with too many characters to keep track of, the story (save for a few hiccups) flows nicely with no trace of padding. Along with a balance of the usual action and suspense is a marked streak of satire that pokes fun at the kind of movies that were Kuang's bread and butter, as evidenced by the narcissistic, quirky Changqing and the "loose cannon", comedy relief Dao. (Some consider Dao to be a Jackie Chan-type of clown, but I think Kuang could've been inspired by Sammo Hung as well.)

The cinematography by Cho On Sun and Lam Nai Choi is rich and atmospheric, notable for some flourishes with the Steadicam and the occasional use of a freeze frame for punctuating some of Dao's antics. The editing by Chiang Hsing Lung and Yu Siu Fung keeps pace with the varying tempos of the film with assurance, particularly giving a spark to Tong Gaai and Wong Pau Gei's fine action choreography, which keeps mostly to the ground except for rare wirework.

Another picture of Shih Szu, just for the heck of it.

With the cast, we have the novelty of some of the lead (and supporting) actors from TAE also appearing here. As Changqing, Ti Lung brilliantly plays it straight, subtly letting the viewer know he's enjoying his role of a pompous swordsman. Though some are turned off by his clowning, I think Fu Sheng gives likability to his grating interpretation of Dao, making him the perfect foil to Changqing. (Like on TAE, Sheng and Lung work well with each other.) Michael Chan Wai Man and Ku Feng are in familiar territory as Shan and Tiansheng, respectively, but they perform their parts well. While Shih Szu doesn't get to kick ass here, she demonstrates her acting range capably (in addition to looking lovely) as Linxyu. Compared to Szu, Lily Li Li Li gets a more involving (albeit limited) role as Jinhua, continually thwarting Dao's attempts to escape her until she goes too far. Among the supporting players, look for Chan Shen, Lam Fai Wong, Shum Lo, Wong Ching Ho and Kara Hui Ying Hung.

(Image Entertainment)

Two versions of TDBS are currently available. The IVL DVD has a good picture, but (like some other IVL reissues of Chung's films) newer music and foley are needlessly tacked on; while this import has no English dub, you do have the option of listening to the feature in Mandarin or Cantonese. The Image DVD is much better, having the original Mandarin and English soundtracks; the picture isn't quite as good as the IVL's, but it's not awful, either. Interestingly enough, after comparing the English subs on both discs, I notice there's a slight difference between parts of the translations, but they're not major ones. "Extras" on these discs are limited, ranging from photo galleries to trailers from Celestial Pictures.

I should say I have a slight bias toward TDBS, having seen it before TAE, and after watching both several times, I still get a kick out of TDBS, while conceding TAE is the stronger picture. With Kuang's original story, Chung doesn't have the (presumed) burden filming an adaptation can have, so he directs with a relish that carries over to the cast and crew. There's a near-perfect balance of light and dark that helps sell the heroes and the leading ladies; if the mood were all somber, it would be hard to find affinity with four people who aren't exactly amiable. Overall, TDBS is another enjoyable film with the winning combination of Chung, Lung and Sheng, and it's lamentable the fates conspired in such a way there wouldn't be any more.

Brother Fang Cuts to the chase: "A subversive send up of 'Old School' wuxia movies that doesn't lack for drama or thrills. An essential addition to your Shaw Brothers collection if you love Sun Chung, Ti Lung and Fu Sheng. Three and a half stars (out of four)."

Keeping it trivial....

Fang Shih-yu, Shaolin Temple.

P.S.-- Buy The Deadly Breaking Sword here.

The Thunderbolt Fist (1972), starring Shih Szu, Chuan Yuan and Nan Kung-hsun. Directed by Chang Yi-hu.

(All images courtesy Celestial Pictures.)

OFFBEAT casting, a plot with a measure of actual details and one of the more unusual endings found in any martial arts movie lifts The Thunderbolt Fist a notch above the "usual" Shaw Brothers product. Make no mistake, this is as derivative as these flicks can get, but most of the good films in any given genre are not innovators. (This picture owes its existence mainly to earlier Shaws like One-Armed Swordsman, The Chinese Boxer and King Boxer.)

Considering the initial reason I got this DVD was only because one of the background players was Fu Sheng (briefly visible in two scenes), I give credit to the star turn of Shih Szu for making me come back for repeated visits. Though her part is in a supporting capacity, she has top billing; it's her picture to steal, and she does it well.

Brother Fang reminds you Shih Szu is HOT!

A sizeable band of Japanese ronin invade a town in northeastern China, terrorizing the citizens into submission and siezing control over the local ginseng trade; people can sell it only to the Japanese. When a group of farmers led by Gin Chi (Gam Kei Chu) resist this, they rough it up with some of the ronin, killing one. With the elders of the town (including the mayor) afraid to take any action against the Japanese, Gin and his friends make their escape to the mountains, vowing to take care of the ronin themselves after a period of extensive training.

The ronin are so itching to show their superiority to the Chinese, they've even built a fighting ring in the town upon which they intend to make spectacles of the "sick men of Asia". Before leaving, Gin Chi suggests if Ping Bai (Feng Mien) of the Jinxian School of martial arts defeats the ronin leader, Gu Lan (Chan Feng Chen), in the ring, they may get rid of the Japanese for good. Gu himself delivers this challenge to Ping, and they eventually have at it; despite some injury to himself, Ping defeats Gu, killing him.

Chan Feng Chen and Feng Mien.

The ronin go after Ping, killing him in retalation; Ping's friend, Old Wang (Wong Ching Ho), flees with Ping's son, Tie Wa, to the mountains where Gin Chi is hiding out. In their haste, they leave behind Ping's manual on the "Thunderbolt Fist" technique in the care of Tie's childhood sweetheart, Feng Niou.

Shih Szu and Chuan Yuan.

Ten years later, the kung fu of the older Tie Wa (Chuan Yuan) is pretty good, thanks to his being trained by Gin and his daughter, Die Er (Shih Szu), but it's now time for Tie to retrieve the manual, the book that holds the key to getting the ronin out of their lives. He departs for town to find Feng Niou (Wong Chin Feng) and guage how tough the ronin forces are.

Wong Chin Feng and Chuan Yuan.

Tie finds out Feng has married his old friend Da Xiong (Tung Lin), who rescued her from the clutches of Gu Gang (Nan Kung-hsun), the son of Gu Lan who now leads the ronin. (By catching a glimpse of him in action, Tie knows Gu's martial arts skills are even better than that of his father's.) Gu Gang, having dealt with Tie and Da when they were all younger, knows these two working together will bring him unwanted hassles; he has innuendo spread around town that Tie has been fooling around with Feng. Soon enough, Da tries to mix it up with Tie over the misunderstanding, but Feng intervenes, telling them it's a ploy by the Japanese to turn them against each other. A battered Tie wisely retreats, taking the manual with him.

Having barely started to learn the Thunderbolt Fist, Tie impulsively sets off to town again to deal with Gu, staying under wraps at the closed-up Jinxian school. Against Tie's wishes, Die Er sneaks off after him, arriving to see firsthand how the townspeople are getting shaken down by the ronin, including having to pay protection money. Figuring out where Gu resides, she sneaks in at night, steals a large quantity of currency from his vault, and redistributes it to the people who need it more.

Upon discovery of the theft, the ronin think Tie is the one responsible for it, and Gu sends off a challenge to Tie to meet him at the ring for a duel. Da Xioung intercepts the note, and having realized his misjudgement in accusing Tie of adultery, goes to fight Gu in his place in hopes of making up for his mistake. Gu fatally wounds Da, and he's left to slowly die.

Wong Chin Feng and Nan Kung-hsun.


Once Gu discovers where Tie's been hiding in town, he goes off with some men after him. Tie has yet to be a match for Gu, and he gets captured, as is Feng not long after her husband passes on. Tie is tortured by the ronin, the worst of it being a disabling of his right arm while a horrified Feng watches on. Only her agreement to submit herself to Gu's sexual appetite saves Tie from death, and he gets released. After Tie is gone into the night, Feng commits suicide before Gu can lay a hand on her.

As Tie recovers back at the mountain hideaway, he hears of Feng's ultimate sacrifice, reinforcing his determination to resume learning from the manual, despite his recent handicap. With one good arm and two legs, it's not long before he masters the technique, and he and all the other Chinese patriots finally ride into town, ready to take on the Japanese. Many ronin get slaughtered in a long, bloody struggle, and Tie manages well against Gu, much to Gu's amazement. He brings the battle to an abrupt stop, saying he and Tie should finish the fight the next day in the fighting ring; Tie agrees.

Gu uses one last dirty ploy to better his odds; he has a man try to slash one of Tie's legs hours before the bout. Even that's not enough to deter Tie, and come the morning, he goes to face off with Gu, hoping to bring an end to the ronin's hold over the town by bringing down their leader in the same ring where his father stopped Gu's father years ago....

After that...NO "SPOILERS"!

A cut scene from The Thunderbolt Fist.
(Nan King-hsun and Gan Kei Chu.)

As the story goes, scriptwriter Li Cho Chien throws in some specifics not always found in "revenge" pictures. Tie Wa, Feng Niou, Da Xiong and Gu Gang knew each other in childhood, as illustrated by the opening scenes and a flashback; their interactions with each other have a payoff (most of them not nice), which helps us to empathize with the good guys. (This extends to Tie Wa's initial training with Die Er, though the fact the girl playing a younger version of Shih Szu doesn't have the closest resemblance to her is a slight fault.) The rest of the "Chinese versus Japanese" storyline goes into Fist of Fury territory, but along with an air of Chinese patriotism, the final confrontation with the ronin is more believable as the hopes of all the Chinese doesn't rest on one person's shoulders.

This was South Korean director Chang Yi-hu's first film for Shaw; circumstantial evidence suggests he may have had some sort of assistance from Jeong Chang Hwa, director of King Boxer. Yi-hu could've been facing a language barrier (surrounded by people who spoke only Mandarin) during the making of TTF, so a fellow South Korean (who dealt with same when he started at Shaw) was brought in to help out! This could explain why more than a few personnel from both sides of the camera in KB are also found in TTF. Compare the credits to both movies at Hong Kong Cinemagic, then watch them both back to back (look at KB first), and you may see what Brother Fang does.

Chuan Yuan, best known for his role as the main heavy in the Chang Cheh movie The Duel, is effectively cast against type as Tie Wa. Some think he looks a lot older than Shih Szu; his facial hair and some of the lighting seems to emphasize this, but the chemistry he and Shih Szu have between one another more than compensates for any inconsistency. He does well in fighting, using two arms or one; he even gets a few unexpected, funny moments in a action scene (in fact, the light tone pops up in other fights) I never anticipated. He's an underrated actor who should've done more movies.

Nan Kung-hsun (who lost his eyeballs in KB) simply oozes nastiness as Gu Gang; he's as ruthless in his fighting as he is in under-handed tactics! As playing it in a one-dimensional sense goes, he's so deserving of having any of his blood spilt!

I do not exaggerate when I say Shih Szu enhances every moment she's on the screen. (No bias here, really; it's the first action role of hers I saw which sold me on this talented woman.) Her part is more lighter in nature than her turn in The Young Avenger, and she handles the martial arts (choreographed by Leung Siu Chung) with the same ease she brings to using swords. By comparison, she's no Angela Mao, but her performance is cute, dramatic and energetic when it needs to be. This is a necessary purchase for all Shih Szu fans, no arguments about it!

The remainder of the cast is just as good, with Fang Mien, Tung Lin and Gan Kei Chu (with a silly wig that makes him look like Rob Reiner as Mike Stivic, the "Meathead") notable standouts. In addition to Fu Sheng, look for cameos by Sammo Hung, Ricky Hui and Bruce Lee's pal Unicorn Chan.

This movie is available on DVD in two versions. The IVL disc is notable for having only the original Mandarin soundtrack as an audio option, plus within the stills gallery is a photo (see above) of a sequence left out of the final edit. (It must take place prior to the last meeting of Tie Wa and Gu Gang, based on what Nan Kung-hsun is wearing.) The anamorphic picture on the Image disc is not as sharp as it is on the IVL, but the US release does have the English dub, which is delirious fun. Whatever version you prefer to get, you will be entertained!

Nothing overly deep here, just pure, non-PC fun.

And that ENDING!

Recommended by Brother Fang!

Keeping it trivial....

Fang Shih-yu, Shaolin Temple.

P.S. - Purchase it from Play-Asia by clicking on here.