Welcome to Wuxia Winter! Lately there’s been quite a few classic wuxia films from Hong Kong arriving on Blu-ray so it’s an appropriate time to enjoy the genre that favored swords over fists. Wuxia was what started Hong Kong films getting attention in America with the arrival of Come Drink With Me in 1966. Audiences thrilled to the magical movies of sword fights that defied gravity as the fighters flew through the air at each other. However the genre lost heat when martial arts films took off in the international market around 1972. This was helped by the millions of students that attended martial arts schools around the world. They wanted to be the next Bruce Lee and wanted to learn the forbidden moves at a double feature matinee. There were very few sword fighting schools so the studios focused on Shaolin heroes. After a lapse, Golden Harvest revived the Wuxia genre with The Sword in 1980. Director Patrick Tam brought back sword fighting, bold female characters and moments of flight. The Sword proved to be a hit with audiences who missed all the clanging from the theater speakers.
The Qiwu Sword is found by Fa Chin-shu (Fist of Fury‘s Tien Fang) and taken to a master blacksmith. He’s warned that the sword is not a good thing to have around since it was forged with hatred and not loving care. It appears to be deadly and cursed. Chin-shu retires from being a swordsman and gives the Qiwu blade to a pal. Lee Mak-yin (Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain‘s Adam Cheng) is an up-and-coming swordsman who wants to get Chin-Su to come out of retirement so they can have a battle. He wants to prove his talent against the best there ever was. On his journey, the meets the feisty Fa Ying-chi (Chui Kit) who is being pursued. She might know how to reach Chin-Su. At a hotel, Mak-yin runs into an old girlfriend Yin Siu-yu (JoJo Chan) who has been forced into a marriage. Her husband Lin Wan (Bastard Swordsman‘s Norman Chui) isn’t happy at these two bumping into each other. He sends his goons to snuff out any embers of romance. Later, Mak-yin gets his hands on the legendary Qiwu sword. He feels the power in the steel, but is oblivious to the bad juju inside the metal. Is Mak-yin going to be able to talk Chin-Su into facing off with blades? Will the sword allow itself to be used in a friendly fight?
The Sword really gets into what makes Wuxia films exciting to watch. The action flies all over the screen. The duel between Mak-yin and Chin-Su has them jumping over each other to deliver slashes. There’s a fantastic action scene involving a bamboo tower that eventually catches fire. The finale of the film has Mak-yin and Lin Wan tears apart everything as they take to the air like superheroes. The action is super-fast as they slice into each other. Patrick Tam does get it bloody on the screen. We see a guy take a blade to the dome. I also appreciate Joseph Koo’s score that uses both traditional instruments with synthesizer touches. It really gives a sense that this is a new approach. The Sword is a great return to the Wuxia genre with all the elements that made it so vital to viewers. The metal swords sparking will keep you warm this Wuxia Winter.
The Video is 2.35:1 anamorphic. The 2K restoration brings out the colors as the fighters leap around striking each other. The Audio is LPCM 2.0 Mono in the original Cantonese, the Mandarin dub and the original English dub. All three are cleaned up so you can hear the slightest clang of swords. The movie is subtitled in English.
Audio Commentary by Frank Djeng is filled with great details about the film, cast and crew. We get the context of how it was the film came out in Hong Kong.
Audio Commentary by Mike Leeder and Arne Venema has them get into the obsessions that run through the characters in the film. They talk about how this was the time when Hong Kong cinema was changing from martial arts to modern gun movies.
Forging Ahead (17:58) has Wayne Wong talk about the wuxia cinema history in Hong Kong. He gives a biography of Patrick Tam. The Sword was his first feature film after his time in television production. His relationship with Wong Kar-wai is part of the talk. He directed a film Wong Kar-wai wrote and later edited Wong Kar-wai’s early films.
Andrew Heskins Interview (13:11) gets into Patrick Tam and the new wave of film directors that had gone to film school instead of working directly for a studio. Their work for TV stations also lets them get experience before they shoot feature films. Tam did this. He directed Nomad, My Heart Is That Eternal Rose and After This Our Exile and also works on other filmmakers’ movies as an editor. He sees The Sword as a reset of the Wuxia genre to bring back stronger female characters.
Original Theatrical Trailer (3:23) points out that it took 2 years to make the sword at the center of The Sword.
Illustrated Booklet has an essay by Leung Wing-Fat about the film
Eureka! Entertainment presents The Sword: Limited Edition. Directed by Patrick Tam. Screenplay by Lau Shing-hon, Clifford Choi, Wong Ying, Patrick Tam, Lo Chi-keung and Lau Tin-chi. Starring Adam Cheng, Norman Chu, JoJo Chan, Tien Feng, Bonnie Ngai, Eddy Ko and Lee Hoi-sang. Running Time: 89 minutes. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: November 26, 2024.
