Rent Furious Swords and Fantastic Warriors: Heroic Cinema of Chang Cheh (1975)
3.3 of 5 from 45 ratings
16h 53min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Distinguished by his penchant for bloodshed and a thematic concentration on the bonds of brotherhood and masculine sacrifice, Chang Cheh is one of the most prolific and accomplished directors ever to emerge from the Hong Kong film industry. Often hailed as the Godfather of Hong Kong cinema, he enjoyed a career spanning six decades and worked in a multitude of genres, from Chinese opera to kung fu films via wuxia pian, historical epics and tales of the supernatural. Presented here are ten films that reveal the range and versatility of Chang's career as a filmmaker. Traditional wuxia pian is represented by 'King Eagle (1971 - aka Ying wang) ', 'Trail of the Broken Blade (1967 - aka Duan chang jian) ' and 'Wandering Swordsman (1970 - aka You xia er)'; choreographed by Lau Kar-leung, 'Men from the Monastery (1974 - aka Shao Lin zi di)' and 'Shaolin Martial Arts (1974 - aka Hong quan yu yong chun)' are both drawn from Chang's Shaolin cycle, included here alongside 'New Shaolin Boxers (1976 - aka Cai li fa xiao zi)'; 'Iron Bodyguard (1973 - aka Da dao Wang Wu)', released at the dawn of the kung fu era, is representative of changing trends in Hong Kong cinema; and some of Chang's more esoteric work is represented by the opera film 'The Fantastic Magic Baby (1975 - aka Hong hai er)' and the supernatural fantasy 'The Weird Man (1983 - aka Shen tong shu yu xiao ba wang)'. Also included is the anthology film 'Trilogy of Swordsmanship (1972 - aka Qun ying hui)', to which Chang contributed a segment alongside his contemporaries Yueh Feng and Cheng Kang. All produced during Chang Cheh's tenure at Shaw Brothers, these ten films are a testament to the director's distinct aesthetic style and his recurring thematic preoccupations. - Actors:
- Kuan Tai Chen, Sheng Fu, Kuan-Chun Chi, Bao-Hsing Ho, Ti-ko Chen, Chi-Hung Chang, Shih-Ou Chang, Kent Cheng, Chok Chow Cheung, Chuen Chiang, Tao Chiang, Tien-Chu Chin, Yao Ko Chu, Chun Chin, Chun Fai Lau, Feng Erh, Yi Feng, Ha Huang, Hark-On Fung, Han Ling
- Directors:
- Cheh Chang, Wu Ma, Hsueh-Li Pao, Kang Cheng, Feng Yueh
- Producers:
- Hsing-Fan Lin, Run Run Shaw, Runme Shaw
- Writers:
- Cheh Chang, Kuang Ni, Kang Cheng, Pao Hu, Nai'an Shi, Wen Yi, Feng Yueh
- Aka:
- King Eagle / Trail of the Broken Blade / Wandering Swordsman / Men from the Monastery / Shaolin Martial Arts / New Shaolin Boxers / Iron Bodyguard / The Fantastic Magic Baby / The Weird Man
- Genres:
- Action & Adventure, Classics, Drama, Music & Musicals, Romance, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 22/09/2025
- Run Time:
- 1013 minutes
- Languages:
- Chinese, Mandarin
- Subtitles:
- English
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Various
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- New audio commentaries on 'Men from the Monastery', 'The Trail of the Broken Blade' and 'The Weird Man' by film critic David West
- New audio commentaries on 'King Eagle', 'The Wandering Swordsman', 'Trilogy of Swordsmanship' and 'The Fantastic Magic Baby' by action cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema
- New audio commentaries on 'Shaolin Martial Arts', 'Iron Bodyguard' and 'New Shaolin Boxers' by East Asian film expert Frank Djeng (NY Asian Film Festival) and martial artist and filmmaker Michael Worth
- New audio commentary on 'The Fantastic Magic Baby' by Frank Djeng
- New interview with Hong Kong cinema scholar Wayne Wong on the life and work of Chang Cheh
- New video essay by Jonathan Clements (author of A Brief History of China) on Iron Bodyguard
- New video essay by Jonathan Clements on Chang Cheh's Shaolin films
- Disc 1:
- Disc 2:
- Disc 3:
- Disc 4:
- Disc 5:
