254 SB DRAMA : ‘ The Kiss Of Death ‘

‘ The Kiss Of Death ‘

Cast : Lo Lieh , Chen Ping
Director : Ho Meng-hua

Synopsis

A tragic tale of a raped victim!

Five hooligans brutally raped a factory worker while she was on her way home one night. The victim discovered that she had contracted a lethal sexually transmitted disease and determined to fight back when she spotted one of the attackers in a nightclub …

Rating : 3 ½ stars of 5

253 SB SWORDSPLAY '70s : ‘ The Protectors ‘

‘ The Protectors ‘

Cast : Lo Lieh, Chang Pei-shang, Yang Ai-hua
Director : Wu Ma

Synopsis

When a security escort discovered his beloved girl fell in love with his fellow colleague, he schemed to set him up by collaborating with a gang of bandits to rob a shipment of silver and made him a scapegoat of the robbery. Then it was up to the righteous knight to protect these silver and single-handedly challenge the treacherous villains …

A classic in terms of the hack-em and slash-em fighting choreography. However, the finale battle seems to end too abruptly and Lo Lieh could be seen using body doubles in a few scenes. The major flaw with this movie is it has only 62 minutes of running time, a very short movie !

Rating : 3 ½ stars of 5

252 MUSIC BOX : ' 何日君再来 '

Back in the memory lane ...


... My eyes glisten with tears whenever I hear these songs , for my mum used to sing these very often...



... ' 何日君再来 ' ( fei yu-qing )






--- ' 天上人间 ' ( fei yu-qing )

251 SB SWORDSPLAY '70s : ‘ Heroes Of Sung ’

‘ Heroes Of Sung ’

Cast : Shih Sze, Lo Lieh, Chen Chun
Director : Shen Chiang

Synopsis

When a Sung Dynasty prince was taken captive and guarded by the Chin invaders, he secretly passed his royal seals to two loyal generals, hoping that they could bring the seals to his younger brother to rule the country on his behalf. However, while fighting their way out, the two generals were severely wounded and thus, charged their three disciples with the task to deliver the seals. Then it was up to the three patriots to fight overwhelming odds …

Rating : 3 stars of 5

250 SB KUNG FU : ‘ The Bloody Escape ‘

‘ The Bloody Escape ‘

Cast : Chen Kuan-tai, Shih Sze, Frankie Wei
Director : Sun Chung

Synopsis

A tale about a bandit who rescued a young hostage from the hands of his villainous gang and was later tracked down by them ....

A simple plot with mediocre fighting choreography! . Chen Kuan-tai exudes his charisma again as a bandit with conscience. Shih Sze is refreshing as a damsel-in-distress but not as good as in her Chu Yuan’s movie ‘ The Villains ‘ .

Rating: 2 1/2 stars of 5

249 SB SWORDSPLAY '70s : ‘ The Young Avenger ‘

‘ The Young Avenger ‘

Cast : Shih Sze , Yue Hua
Director : Yueh Feng

Synopsis

While on the way back to her village, an accomplished swordswoman killed several armed villains and got her nickname as ‘ Little Poisonous Dragon ‘. She was back to avenge for her father’s death after his refusal to pass on his famed ‘ Poisonous Dragon Sword ‘ manual to an evil hunchbacked villain…

An intriguing introduction with Shih Sze’s fighting several villains, but the film starts to drag when the evil hunchbacked villain approaches Shih Sze's father for the swordplay manual till young Shih Sze and Yueh Hua seek martial arts training...

Rating : 2 stars of 5

248 HK MOVIE '80s : ‘ Hard Boiled ‘

‘ Hard Boiled ‘

Type :
Action

One-word description :
Action-thrills

Stars :
Chow Yun-fat , Tony Leung

Director :
John Woo

About :
While tracking down a triad , an police inspector challenged a conflicted undercover cop. However, the two collaborated to fight a fast and furious battle against their foes…

Main reason to see this movie :
John Woo’s hyper-stylized heroic bloodshed and the two international superstars Chow Yun-fat and Tony Leung dashing performances.

Rating :
4 ½ stars of 5

247 SB SWORDSPLAY '60s : ’ Temple Of The Red Lotus ‘

’ Temple Of The Red Lotus ‘

Cast : Jimmy Wang Yu, Chin Ping, Lo Lieh, Ling Po
Director : Hsu Cheng-hung

Synopsis

Part I of the 'Red Lotus Temple' Trilogy !

While on the way to his future in-laws’ house, a noble knight witnessed some bandits attacking guards escorting a shipment of gold. He was later wounded by a dart but in the nick of time, a mysterious swordswoman ‘ Scarlet Maid ‘ came to his rescue….

Rating : 3 ½ stars of 5

246 SB SWORDSPLAY '60s : ’ The Twin Swords ‘

’ The Twin Swords ‘

Cast: Jimmy Wang Yu, Chin Ping, Lo Lieh, Ling Po
Director : Hsu Cheng-hung

Synopsis

Part II of ‘ Red Lotus Temple ‘ Trilogy !

In an attempt to rescue some innocents , the sword mates were trapped at the Red Lotus Temple. As they were outnumbered, the husband decided to flee to his in-laws’ family for reinforcements while his wife stayed to battle. Then the mysterious Scarlet Maid re-emerged to aid the heroes ...

Rating : 3 ½ stars of 5

245 SB SWORDSPLAY '60s : ’ The Sword And The Lute ‘

’ The Sword And The Lute ‘

Cast: Jimmy Wang Yu, Chin Ping, Lo Lieh, Ling Po, Yue Hua, Lily Ho, Margaret Hsing Hui
Director : Hsu Cheng-hung

Synopsis

Finale Of 'Red Lotus Temple' Trilogy !

The swords mates were assigned by Scarlet Maid to destroy a deadly lute. However the weapon could only be destroyed by means of his in-laws’ legendary sword, thus they had to return home to accomplish the task. On their way , the weapon was stolen by some villains …

Rating : 3 ½ stars of 5

244 STAR : ' Chang Yi '

(42) ' Chang Yi '

Chang Yi may look gentle and refined in ' The Silent Swordsman ' , but at times he could be aggressive and ferocious as in ' The Crimson Charm '.

With his melancholic look , he played an avenger-in-distress in 'Bells Of Death' ; with his charismatic charm , he played a righteous knight in ' King Cat ' .

Chang Yi , an actor with the 'x-factor' to charm every movie goer in the '60s.

243 SB SWORDSPLAY '60s : ‘ King Cat ‘

‘ King Cat ‘

Cast : Pat Ting Hung, Chiao Chuang, Chang Yi, Lo Lieh, Ching Li
Director : Hsu Cheng-hung

Synopsis

After saving the princess, hero Zhan Zhao was crowned ‘ King Cat ‘ by the emperor. However, his new title had offended the infamous ‘ Five Mice ‘ of the martial world and they were out to mock him by stealing a royal treasure from the palace …

Intriguing plot and great cast with ‘60s swordplay actions !

Rating : 3 1/2 stars of 5

242 SB SWORDSPLAY '60s : ‘ The Thundering Sword ‘

‘ The Thundering Sword ‘

Cast : Cheng Pei-pei , Chang Yi , Lo Lieh , Shu Pei-pei
Director : Hsu Cheng-hung

Synopsis

In their quest for a powerful sword, two brothers from a righteous clan met an impulsive swordswoman. The elder brother fell in love with her but the younger brother was wounded by her. In her attempt to make amends, the swordswoman complicated the matters and thus led to a massacre in the marital world ...

Although it is always a delight to see Cheng Pei-pei and Chang Yi in actions, but the weepy romantic finale is a disappointment!

Rating : 3 stars of 5

241 SB SWORDSPLAY '60s : ‘ The Silent Swordsman ‘

‘ The Silent Swordsman ‘

Cast : Chang Yi, Shu Pei-pei, Jeanette Yu Hui, Chiao Chiao
Director : Kao Li

Synopsis

A young swordsman was tasked to lead a patriotic secret society to fight a traitorous general who had conspired with the enemy to invade their country. In due course, he met two pretty sisters from a rural tribe and was caught between the affections of both sisters …

A modified version of Jin Yong’s novel ‘Book and Sword’ ! Owing to the poor direction, this solid plot had turned to become a dialogue-more and action-less swordplay saga. The only compliment is the refreshing cast …

Rating : 2 1/2 stars of 5

240 CREATION : ' Fu Sheng Special '

Another favourite creation ...

' Fu Sheng Special '

239 SB SWORDSPLAY '70s : ‘ The Avenging Eagle ‘

‘ The Avenging Eagle ‘

Cast : Ti Lung , Fu Sheng , Ku Feng , Shih Sze , Jenny Tseng
Director : Sun Chung

Synopsis

A clan master had adopted thirteen kids and trained them since childhood to be ruthless killers. When one of them decided to break with the gang, the angry master henceforth sent his other killers to rid him. With the help of a mysterious wanderer whom he met during his perilous journey, he eventually defeated his challengers but was shocked to know the wanderer’s true identity…

A typical revenge plot! The ever charismatic and majestic Ti Lung won a ‘ Most Outstanding Actor ‘ award in the Asian Film Fest with his role in this film .

Rating : 4 stars of 5

238 SB DRAMA : ‘ Friends ‘

‘ Friends ‘

Cast : David Chiang , Fu Sheng , Lily Li
Director : Chang Cheh

Synopsis

A unhappy son of a billionaire met a poor but sensitive artist by chance. He found his happiness he had always craved when he was with the artist and his gang of youthful friends. None of them knew his true identity until a rival gang kidnapped him for ransom …

A simple plot about friendship , betrayal and kidnap ! Adorable and charming Fu Sheng won himself a ‘Best Young Newcomer’ award in the Asian Film Fest with his role in this film.

Rating : 3 stars of 5

237 SB FANTASY : ‘ Na Cha The Great ‘

‘ Na Cha The Great ‘

Cast : Fu Sheng
Director : Chang Cheh

Synopsis

The mischievous Na Cha sneaked out of his house one day to see the world. What he saw were citizens being oppressed by corrupt officials and evil gods. Out of impulsiveness he killed one of the evil gods who was the third prince of the undersea. The outrageous king of the undersea henceforth threatened to cause deadly flood to the town …

Not a great fantasy film but nice to see the charismatic Fu Sheng as the legendary Chinese god Na Cha.

Rating : 3 stars of 5