The Story of Wong Fei-hung, Pt.1 (aka Wong Fei-hung’s Whip that Smacks the Candle)
1949 / B&W / Cantonese / 72min
Dir: Wu Pang
Cast: Kwan Tak-hing, Tso Tat-wah
Pro Co: Yongyao
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| The Story of Wong Fei-hung is the first installment in what was to become a long-running series featuring Wong Fei-hung, a martial arts instructor in Guangdong at the turn of the 20th century. The movie introduces Master Wong as an upright man of the martial arts and a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine. A short demonstration of southern martial arts, such as the ‘Double Shapes of Tiger and Crane’ and ‘Fifth Son’s Eight Trigrams Rod’ techniques, by martial arts consultants adds archival value to this early action movie. |
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The Six Fingered Lord of the Lute, Pt.1
1965 / B&W / Cantonese / 94min
Dir: Chan Lit-bun
Cast: Connie Chan Po-chu, Shek Kin
Pro Co: Hong Kong Film
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| Based on a popular novel, The Six Fingered Lord of the Lute is an action-packed martial arts fantasy, featuring special effects created by painting on the negatives. The melodramatic plot is complemented by some of the best action choreography before HK cinema took off on its martial arts renaissance in the late 1960s. The film holds such a special place in the canon of martial arts cinema that Stephen Chow pays special tribute to it in his recent blockbuster Kung Fu Hustle. |
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The Valiant Ones
1975 / Colour / Mandarin / Chi & Eng Subtitle / 107min
Dir: King Hu
Cast: Hsu Feng, Pai Ying
Pro Co: King Hu
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| A pioneer work in Kung Fu comedy. The Valiant Ones assumes true magnificence with the passing of King Hu, the master of martial arts cinema. The great action scenes underscore the heroic nature of the piece and of Hu’s filmmaking, bolstered by great ensemble acting and memorable action choreography. |
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Legend of the Mountain
1979 / Colour / Mandarin / Chi & Eng Subtitle / 120min
Dir: King Hu
Cast: Shi Jun, Hsu Feng
Pro Co: Prosperity, First Distributors
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| Legend of the Mountain is shot back-to-back with Raining in the Mountain in South Korea by King Hu, the master-action director. It has the same feel of dislocation, with its characters gallivanting through unfathomable space. Like other King Hu films, this picture is meticulous, inventive and beautifully photographed. It retains interest for its references to A Touch of Zen, another Hu masterpiece, and its textual links with the ghost story genre in Chinese literature and cinema. |
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Final Victory
1987 / Colour / Cantonese / 108min
Dir: Patrick Tam
Cast: Eric Tsang, Loletta Lee
Pro Co: D & B
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| Final Victory is a unique entry in the gangster genre. With a script by Wong Kar-wai that does to Mongkok what Chungking Express did to Tsim Sha Tsui, the film features two of HK’s hottest directors, Tsui Hark and Eric Tsang, of all people, in character roles. This is one of the great quirky movies of the 1980s yet also a touching romance. |
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