Adapted from Kao Yang’s historical novel Martyrs of the Yang Family and set around the mid 11th century, Cheng Kang’s The 14 Amazons tells how the Yang family’s female members, led by the matriarch She, uphold their loyalty to the Song Dynasty in the same way as the male members of the family by fighting against the Western Xia invaders. Although the film’s war and fighting scenes are dominant, Cheng Kang makes good use of ambience and rhythm of the shots to enhance the film’s dramatic tension. Examples are found in various sequences, such as the arrival of the news about the male member Yang Zongbao’s death at a family birthday party, Mu Guiying’s (wife of one of She’s grandsons) loyalty-filial piety dilemma, and She’s declaration of her patriotism against the cowardly prime-minister’s advice at Zongbao’s funeral. The 14 Amazons is undoubtedly the most satisfactory work directed by Cheng during his “Shaw Brothers” period. He won the best director award at the 11th Golden Horse Awards for this film.
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