THE SHADOW WHIP is another Shaw Brothers vehicle for Cheng Pei-Pei, the studio's most famous female fighter and classic swordswoman actress of COME DRINK WITH ME and many others. This somewhat unfamiliar outing is one of the actress's lesser works, although it's not without interest for fans of the veteran studio. The story is a little more mystery focused rather than offering all-out action, bringing it in line with the works of Chor Yuen who would later dominate the studio in the late 1970s. The actual director is Lo Wei, well known in the west for his direction of many early Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan films, and he does a pretty good job here. As with nearly all Shaw films, THE SHADOW WHIP is a very visual experience that offers fantastic scenery and sets throughout. I did like the change of setting to a snowbound location which gives it a fine and distinctive look.
There isn't a great deal of story here and that which does exist is very obvious; you'll be able to guess the ending a mile off. Still, there's plenty of action, as is usual for the genre, and some good actors playing central parts. Pei-Pei cuts a swathe through the bad guys while Ku Feng and Tien Feng add dignified support. Sammo is listed as an extra but I didn't spot him, although Lo Wei himself does appear in a cameo. Yueh Hua gets a lot of screen time playing his usual supporting stand alone fighter with mystery motives. THE SHADOW WHIP is a little inept in places, with clear joins in some of the background sky and quite laughable wire work that randomly jolts the characters up into the air rather than making them look like they're really defying gravity, but Shaw fans will enjoy it regardless.
There isn't a great deal of story here and that which does exist is very obvious; you'll be able to guess the ending a mile off. Still, there's plenty of action, as is usual for the genre, and some good actors playing central parts. Pei-Pei cuts a swathe through the bad guys while Ku Feng and Tien Feng add dignified support. Sammo is listed as an extra but I didn't spot him, although Lo Wei himself does appear in a cameo. Yueh Hua gets a lot of screen time playing his usual supporting stand alone fighter with mystery motives. THE SHADOW WHIP is a little inept in places, with clear joins in some of the background sky and quite laughable wire work that randomly jolts the characters up into the air rather than making them look like they're really defying gravity, but Shaw fans will enjoy it regardless.