Du bei dao wang (1969)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Cheh Chang

Writer:

Cheh Chang (writer)

Release Date:

28 February 1969 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Action | Adventure

Plot Keywords:

Ambush | Supremacy | Black Widow | Filial Love | Chivalry

Cast

Yu Wang	...	Fang Gang
Chiao Chiao	...	Hsiao Man
Essie Lin Chia	...	'Thousand Fingers' Hua Niang
Feng Tien	...	'Unknown Nemesis' Ling Hsu
Lei Cheng	...	Lu Tung
Feng Ku	...	'Titan King' Chiao Feng
Ma Wu	...	'White Knight' Kuan Hsien
Chia Tang	...	'Wheelmaster' Sung Wen
Chia-Liang Liu	...	'Ape Arms' Yuan Chen
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Sing Chen	...	Shan Hsiung
Ming Chiu	...	Lei Ming
Hua Chung	...	Lu Ta (as Lei Pin)
Yeh Fang	...	'Black Knight' Kuan Huang
Yu Fang	...	Ting Sheng
Tan Fan
Pin Ho	...	Lu Lung
Tung Hu
Wei Lieh Lan
Hao Li	...	Hsu Lung
Chia Yung Liu	...	'Hades Buddha' Shih Hu
Kang Liu	...	Yen Yun
Cliff Lok	...	Mu Ching (as Chin Tung)
Tien Hsi Tang	...	Master slain by Ling Hsu
Li Tung	...	'Poison Dragon' Tuan Shi (as Kang Hua)
Ching Ho Wang	...	Taichi clan Chief Mu
Kuang Yu Wang	...	Lu Chun
Cheung-Yan Yuen	...	'Whirling Dervish' Teng Fei
Lung Yu	...	Mu Chun

Also Known As:

Duk bei do wong (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
King of One Armed Swordsmen (Hong Kong: Mandarin title) (literal title)
Return of the One Armed Swordsman (International: English title)

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Company:

Shaw Brothers

Movie Connections:

Follows Dubei dao (1967)

One of Wang Yu's finest hours

Having never seen the sequel to The One-Armed Swordsman (1968), I was in for quite a shock. To put it simply, this is one of the best kung fu follow-ups I have ever seen. Knowing that the one-armed character is by this time firmly established (and a box office success), director Chang Cheh opts for full-blown action this time around. It is basically The Road Warrior (1981) to the first film's Mad Max (1979), pumping up the action quotient ten fold and rarely slowing down from beginning to end.

Sword fights come at you every five minutes or so, resulting in some amazingly bloody action. I had no idea that any kung fu film from the 60s was so bloody. This effect is remarkably enhanced by the use of palm squibs to send bloody flying and the heroes all white outfits. Another exciting aspect of the film (which would later become a Wang Yu staple) is the use of unorthodox weapons by the heavies. With eight super villains there is a lot of room for some creativity and Cheh and co. don't fail. My personal favorite is the sinister female demon that pulls any numbers of knives from under her flowing robe.

But it is not to say that the film abandons the dramatic aspects of the story. Cheh spends a decent amount of time focusing on Fang Gang's reflection of his violent ways, both past and present. Fang essentially wants to be left alone with his wife but, to employ an overused quote, every time he thinks he is out, they pull him back in. He is a complex character and it is good to his emotional complications played out on screen, especially after the final battle during a celebration. The relationship between Fang and his wife is also highlighted, with both Wang Yu and Chiao Chiao performing well.