| Golden Swallow | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Chang Cheh |
| Written by |
|
| Produced by | Run-me Shaw [1] |
| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Pao Hsueh-li [1] |
| Edited by | Chiang Hsing-loong [1] |
| Music by | Wang Foo-ling [1] |
Production company | Shaw Brothers [1] |
Release date |
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| Country | Hong Kong [1] |
| Language | Mandarin [1] |
Golden Swallow is a 1968 Hong Kong film directed by Chang Cheh. [1] The film is a sequel to Come Drink With Me . [2]
Golden Swallow is forced into violence when a figure from her mysterious past goes on a killing rampage while leaving evidence that holds her responsible. Golden Swallow gets involved with a love triangle involving a mad, but righteous, swordsman named Silver Roc and a gentle warrior named Golden Whip. The three team up to conquer the evil forces of the martial world, but their joint venture only lasts so long, due to the two men's egos. Ultimately, a duel to the death is planned between them, leaving Golden Swallow caught between two men, both of whom she admires.
Director Chang Cheh stated that for Golden Swallow he disregarded a historical backdrop for the film to give the story more creative freedom. [1] Chang Cheh was his first time partnering with Ni Kuang to write the script. [1] Cheh said that Ni "quickly picked up the techniques of scriptwriting—The Invincible Fist (1969) was simply a masterstroke by a gifted writer! The ensemble of characters was each vividly portrayed and the script depicted the four seasons with a sensibility rarely found in Chinese films. I also heightened the romantic sub-plot of 'The Golden Swallow' which centres on the triangular love relationship between Jimmy Wang Yu, Lo Lieh and Cheng Pei-pei". [1] The Shaw Brothers intended to base the script on the character of Golden Swallow character in King Hu's Come Drink with Me . After several script re-writes, the characters bear little to no resemblance to the original characters from Come Drink With Me. [1] Chang also stated he took influence from Japanese cinema at the period, and chose to shoot the film entirely in Japan. [1]
Golden Swallow was distributed in Hong Kong on April 4, 1968. [1] The film was among the ten top-grossing Mandarin films of 1968. [1] It was the third-highest grossing film in Hong Kong for the year behind You Only Live Twice and Dragon Inn . [3]
From contemporary reviews, "Harr." of Variety stated the film was in competition with Italian Western as "one of the bloodiest films ever released" and that "the nauseating degree of violence and bloodshed in this film recommends it only for sadistic, exploitation situations". [4]
From a retrospective review, Donald Guarisco of AllMovie wrote that the film was "full of outrageous bloodletting, over-the-top melodrama and plenty of machismo" and depending on the viewers tolerance of these elements, the film "offers plenty of rewards for those who can appreciate action filmmaking at its most extreme". Guarisco found that "the plotting doesn't always make sense and Cheng Pei-Pei [...] is unfortunately sidelined by the film's male-centric story line. That said, Hsia Yu-Yen delivers all the thrills a kung-fu film should offer and is well worth the time for genre enthusiasts thanks to its historic importance as an early Chang Cheh classic". [5]
Shaw Brothers (HK) Limited was the largest film production company in Hong Kong, operating from 1925 to 2011.
King Hu Jinquan was a Chinese filmmaker and actor, based in Hong Kong and Taiwan. He is known for directing various wuxia films in the 1960s and 1970s, which brought Hong Kong and Taiwanese cinema to new technical and artistic heights. His films Come Drink with Me (1966), Dragon Inn (1967), and A Touch of Zen (1970–1971) inaugurated a new generation of wuxia films in the late 1960s.
Come Drink with Me is a 1966 Hong Kong wuxia film produced by Shaw Brothers Studio and directed by King Hu. Set during the Ming Dynasty, it stars Cheng Pei-pei, Yueh Hua and Chan Hung-lit in the leading roles, and features action choreography by Han Ying-chieh.
Chang Cheh was a Chinese filmmaker, screenwriter, lyricist and producer active in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Chang Cheh directed more than 90 films in Greater China, the majority of them with the Shaw Brothers Studio in Hong Kong. Most of his films are action films, especially wuxia and kung fu films filled with violence.
The One-Armed Swordsman is a 1967 Hong Kong wuxia film produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio. Directed by Chang Cheh, it was the first of the new style of wuxia films emphasizing male anti-heroes, violent swordplay and heavy bloodletting. It was the first Hong Kong film to make HK$1 million at the local box office, propelling its star Jimmy Wang to super stardom.
Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. Action films from Hong Kong have roots in Chinese and Hong Kong cultures including Chinese opera, storytelling and aesthetic traditions, which Hong Kong filmmakers combined with elements from Hollywood and Japanese cinema along with new action choreography and filmmaking techniques, to create a culturally distinctive form that went on to have wide transcultural appeal. In turn, Hollywood action films have been heavily influenced by Hong Kong genre conventions, from the 1970s onwards.
James Wang Yu was a Hong Kong-Taiwanese martial artist, actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. Initially a contract player for Shaw Brothers, he rose to fame for his starring role in The One-Armed Swordsman (1967) and its sequels, and was one of the first major stars of martial arts and wuxia cinema. At the height of his fame in the 1970s, he was the highest-paid martial arts actor in the world. According to The New York Times, Wang was "the biggest star of Asian martial arts cinema until the emergence of Bruce Lee."
Cheng Pei-pei was a Hong Kong-American actress who started her career in 1963 and was considered cinema's first female action hero. She is known for films Come Drink with Me (1966), Flirting Scholar (1993),Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), TV series Young Justice Bao (2000),Chinese Paladin (2004) and reality show Divas Hit the Road (2014).
King Boxer, also known as Five Fingers of Death, is a 1972 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Chung Chang-Wha and starring Lo Lieh. It was produced by Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd., the largest Hong Kong movie production studio at the time. The script was written by Chiang Yang (江陽). Made in Hong Kong, it is one of many kung fu movies with Indonesian-born actor Lo Lieh (羅烈) in the lead. He appeared in many similar martial arts film efforts from the 1960s, pre-dating the more internationally successful Bruce Lee.
The Venom Mob is a colloquial title given to a group of actors from the Shaw Brothers Studio who attained international prominence for their lead roles in the 1978 film Five Deadly Venoms. Its members consisted of Lu Feng, Chiang Sheng, Philip Kwok, Sun Chien, Lo Mang, and Wai Pak. Although the main cast have never referred to themselves as the Venom Mob, they have continued to be referred to as such in English-speaking media while English DVD versions of their films often introduced them collectively as The Venoms.
Shaolin Temple, a.k.a. Death Chamber, is a Shaw Brothers film directed by Chang Cheh. It is one of the Shaolin Temple themed martial arts films and concerns their rebellion against the Qings, with an all-star cast featuring the second and third generations of Chang Cheh's stable of actors including David Chiang, Ti Lung, Alexander Fu Sheng and Chi Kuan Chun, as well as cameo appearances by several of the actors that would later become collectively known as the Venoms mob. The film serves as a pseudo-prequel to Five Shaolin Masters.
The New One-Armed Swordsman is a 1971 Hong Kong wuxia film directed by Chang Cheh and produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio, starring David Chiang. Chiang replaced Jimmy Wang, the star of the two preceding films in the series, The One-Armed Swordsman and Return of the One-Armed Swordsman.
Brothers Five is a 1970 Hong Kong wuxia film directed by Lo Wei and produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio.
Filmography for the Indo-Chinese Hong Kong film actor and martial artist Lo Lieh:
Exit the Dragon, Enter the Tiger, also released as Bruce Lee: The Star of Stars, is a 1976 Bruceploitation film starring Bruce Li. The title is a play on the Bruce Lee film Enter the Dragon and is one of the most well-known films in the Bruceploitation genre.
Roy Chiao Hung was a Hong Kong actor. Nicknamed "the Lion of Cinema" for his athletic physical stature and powerful screen presence, he was a popular leading man throughout the 1950s and '60s, and continued his acting career well into the 1990s. He was an early star of wuxia films associated with the Hong Kong New Wave, thanks to his roles in A Touch of Zen (1971) and The Fate of Lee Khan (1973), both directed by King Hu.
Little Dragon Maiden, also known as The Brave Archer 5, is a 1983 Hong Kong film adapted from Louis Cha's novel The Return of the Condor Heroes. Little Dragon Maiden is seen as an unofficial sequel to The Brave Archer, The Brave Archer 2, The Brave Archer 3, and The Brave Archer and His Mate.
The Duel, also known as Duel of the Iron Fist, is a 1971 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Chang Cheh and starring Ti Lung, Wang Ping, Yue Wai and David Chiang.
Iron Bodyguard (大刀王五) is a 1973 Mandarin-language Hong Kong historical martial arts film directed by Chang Cheh and Pao Hsueh-li. The main character, Chinese hero Wang Wu, has been the subject of multiple films and television series.
The Young Dragons is a 1974 Mandarin-language Hong Kong action film directed by John Woo. It is John Woo's feature-length directorial debut and his second collaboration with Jackie Chan, who acted as martial arts choreographer.