Furious Swords and Fantastic Warriors

If you got 1000 min+ spare to indulge in the heroic martial arts cinema of prolific Chinese filmmaker Chang Cheh, then this epic box set is for you! The ten films (on 5 Blu-ray discs) offer an interesting variety of styles including plenty of action (naturally), drama, the occasional humour, fantasy and even Peking opera!

Unfortunately, there is simply not enough space available here to dissect every single film and discuss it in detail. Instead, we will focus on the highlights and on those films which will provide the readers with an idea of how different and unique each of the ten movies is.

On Disc 1 we have MEN FROM THE MONASTERY (1974) and SHAOLIN MARTIAL ARTS (1974 ). The first one tells the story, set during the tail end of the Ming Dynasty, of three martial arts experts who fight against Manchu invaders, though their stories are told individually. The latter is more straightforward in terms of plot, focusing on various students who learn different martial arts techniques from their masters. The students’ goal? to compete against the best fighters in the land! Plenty of fist fighting here and relentlessly so. The two films are drawn from Chang’s ‘Shaolin cycle’.

Disc 2 kicks off with KING EAGLE (1971), and here we have a bit of romance thrown into the blend. When the headmaster of the Tong clan is bumped off, the search is on for his replacement. But there’s a rat amongst them and things become even more complicated when our title hero, who gets drawn into the action purely by coincidence, happens to fall for a female clan chief. IRON BODYGUARD (1973) a politician named Tzu Tung and a legendary swordsman named Wang Wu join forces as they are on a special mission. The mission? To bring an end to imperialism in China but the pair soon find themselves not only in the thick of some serious action but danger lurks from all sides.

Disc 3 presents two films which are firmly rooted in the realm of fantasy. First up is THE FANTASTIC MAGIC BABY (1975), which has to be seen to be believed! It’s actually split in two halves, with the first (longer) half telling the mythological story about the Monkey King and the Goddess of Mercy’s efforts to defeat the ‘Red Boy’ child god and we have characters (the Japanese 1978 series ‘Monkey’ must have been inspired by this) which make for fantastic (and fantastical) entertainment. The tale is based on the selected chapters of the classical 16th century novel ‘Journey to the West’ and is told using singing, ballet-like dancing and sorts of trickery while the second (shorter) half presents an actual Peking opera. This really is utterly astonishing and unique! WEIRD MAN (1983) is another supernatural extravaganza, focusing on a beheaded (!) Taoist priest who returns from the dead to seek revenge on the corrupt warlord and his equally corrupt court. In the process, the resurrected priest has to take on sorcerers and mere mortals. It’s all pretty weird alright, and terrific fun!

On Disc 4 we have THE TRAIL OF THE BROKEN BLADE (1967), in which accomplished swordsman and nobleman Li Yueh is forced to change his identity after he assassinated a corrupt (aren’t they always?) government official. Certain that his new identity as a stable-hand will keep him out of trouble, trouble instead finds him… in the shape of gallant bounty hunter Fang Chun-chao who, how bad can it get, is hired by Yueh’s sweetheart to find him. Cue for a love triangle but not as you know it. It’s tissues at the ready! THE WANDERING SWORDSMAN (1970) is a Robin Hood-style tale in which swordsman Yu Hsieh comes to the aid of a convoy attacked by robbers. In turn, he pilfers the robbers and distributes their booty among the poor. Suffice to say, the robbers won’t put up with such audacity.

Disc 5 has the very interesting anthology film TRILOGY OF SWORDMANSHIP (1972) and as the title suggests, is divided into three different stories. Here we get the whole range of human emotions, from lighthearted comedy to drama and heartbreak. In ‘The Iron Bow’ we encounter Master Shi, the irritating son of a government official who is adamant to marry the pretty daughter of a widowed woman who runs a tea house. But the daughter, Ying Ying, isn’t in the slightest bit interested in marrying Shi and together with her feisty mother and her little brother they teach Shi and his cronies a lesson they won’t forget in a hurry. And then a real ‘Prince Charming’ comes along. It’s a very feminist tale and a rather amusing one at that. ‘The Tigress’ and ‘White Water Strand’ stand at the other end of the spectrum. It’s all high drama and intrigue and love, but no happy end. Finally, THE NEW SHAOLIN BOXERS (1976) begins with a detailed introduction about the various Shaolin boxing techniques before the actual movie starts. In the centre of the action is Zhong, a brash and cocky carriage driver whose penchant for helping others soon lands him into mighty trouble, in particular with Feng, the no-good (and up to no good) leader of a local gang of thugs. There’s a moral of the story scenario here as well, namely that one’s willingness to help others doesn’t always pay off…

All in all, these are ten cracking tales and as usual with Eureka, this is a Limited Edition affair (2,000 copies only) and is presented in a slipcase and a collector’s booklet. Additional bonus material such as a video essay and a look at the life and work of Chang Cheh are included as well, as are various audio options.