The Sword Identity (2011)
"Wo kou de zong ji" (original title)

During the Ming Dynasty one man will request a competition when his weapon is rejected. After a series of fights he is determined to prove his sword is invincible.

Director:

Haofeng Xu

Writer:

Haofeng Xu (book)

Stars:

Cheng-Hui Yu, Yang Song, Yuanyuan Zhao

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Cheng-Hui Yu	...	Master Qiu Dongyue (as Yu Chenghui)
Yang Song	...	General Qi's Last Body Guard
Yuanyuan Zhao	...	Madam Qiu / Gai E
Ma Jun	...	Master Qie
Xu Fujing	...	Sai Lan
Ma Ke	...	Gan Gang
Zhexin Liu	...	General Liu Kai
Yao Weiping	...	Qi's Deputy Commander
Ou Keqin	...	Master Cai
Li Guisheng	...	Master Wang
Bing Bo	...	Master Lu
Miva Mulati	...	Bohemian Girl 1
Xiaolenayi Aini	...	Bohemian Girl 2
Hasiyan Yeerken	...	Bohemian Girl 3
Chen Jianxing	...	Gai E's Father

Storyline

Once upon a time in the Southern Chinese city of Guancheng, there lived four families, each of them faithful keepers of martial arts. Anyone who wanted to establish a new sect, or a new form of kung fu, had to fight his way through the family's gates. But when Liang Henlu requests a competition, he is rejected and driven out of town, his strange new weapon mistaken for a Japanese sword and therefore forbidden by purist Chinese masters as a foreign fighting device. Liang is taken for a Japanese pirate and forced to hide in a boat filled with gypsy dancers. After a series of fights prove Liang's sword invincible, the Guancheng masters start to question their assumptions regarding the weapon's origins. They finally recognize that it is none other than the famous sword called 'Made in China' (modeled on a Japanese weapon), which the celebrated General Qi used in his glorious defeat of the Japanese invasion.

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Taglines:

A sword that was meant to be abandoned. A warrior that seeks to honor its legacy.

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Genres:

Action

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for martial arts violence

Details

Country:

China

Language:

Mandarin English

Release Date:

17 August 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Sword Identity

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

User Reviews

A lone swordsman tries to found a martial arts school in a town that is not prepared for change.

This movie was not a martial arts epic, although the plot did revolve around the foundation of a new sword fighting school. Do not watch this movie for the action.

It was an unexpectedly absurd comic film which felt more like a stage play than a screenplay. The fight scenes, such as they were, seemed more like awkward, choreographed dances, including people jumping and gasping in unison in the background.

That said, I found it very enjoyable, once I got over the ridiculousness of it. The characters were likable and their motivations made sense within the film's twisted logic.

The directing choices were interesting, with the backgrounds being both stark and beautiful at the same time. Many of the scenes occurred at night, further focusing the viewers attention on the characters rather than the visuals.

At no point was this movie laugh out loud funny, but the director committed to the absurdity of it enough to hold my interest. I would recommend it so long as you don't enter into watching it with skewed expectations.