The Legend of the Swordsman (1991)
Review by Doc Ezra
Film:
DVD:

Directed by Ching Siu Tung
Martial Arts Direction by Ching Siu Tung
Starring Jet Li, Brigitte Lin, Michelle Li, Rosamund Kwan, Fannie Yuen, Waise Lee, and Candice Yu

Rating: R

Anamorphic: Yes

My advice: Wuxia fans should own it. All others rent.

Ling Wei and some of his brothers in the Sun Moon Sect are traveling to a mountain retreat in order to abandon their lives of violence and become contemplative monks. Alas, before they reach the mountains, they discover that the other members of their order are engaged in a violent struggle with the Highlander clan. Their revered master Wu has been captured by Master Asia and his Highlanders, and it falls to a band of wannabe pacifists to take up their arms again and attempt a rescue.

Legend of the Swordsman is a fine example of the wuxia genre, mixing swordplay, kung fu, and high-flying wire stunts to recreate the tale of a legendary Chinese hero. And, as with so many other tales of legendary Chinese heroes, Jet Li gets the nod to play the lead. He’s made a career out of bringing a whole host of folk tales and legends to the big screen, and he’s at his finest when in these roles. While this film doesn’t quite measure up to his Once Upon a Time in China role, it remains a solid addition to the genre.

The action, which should be the first criteria by which quality is judged in this genre, is excellent here. Li’s martial arts talents are so well known as to make their mention unnecessary. Fight choreography is slick and inventive, providing lots of excellent sequences and keeping a nice balance between hand-to-hand work and swordplay. The acrobatics and other stuntwork are likewise phenomenal and exciting to watch.

For a Hong Kong action flick, the production values are higher than normal, and as with many films in the genre, the costuming and sets are frequently lavish. Performances are good, though any unfamiliar with the conventions of such films will likely find them a touch over the top. But the fact that the film runs the gamut from comedy to tragedy means that all the lead actors find themselves having to jump through a wide array of emotional hoops over the course of the picture.

The DVD treatment is minimalist in the extreme, providing nothing but the feature itself. To its credit, the transfer and dub are well done, and the picture has very little of the popping and crackling so common to imported Asian cinema. It would be nice if someone would actually start taking the genre seriously enough to provide some bonus material with some of the movies, but to date, nobody has really invested the time and money--which is a shame, given that there is a large cult audience for these movies eager to shell out the green to make it worth someone’s while.

Fans of Jet Li or of the genre will want to add this one to the collection for completeness’ sake, though there are admittedly more sterling examples. It’s a solid entry to the field, even without extras to tempt you. Action fans should at least rent it, and give wuxia a try if they haven’t already.