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Starring
:
Cheng
Pei Pei
Chang
Yi
Lo
Lieh
Tien
Fong
Ku
Feng
Wu
Ma
Shu
Pei Pei
Director
:
Hsu
Cheng-Hung
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THE
THUNDERING SWORD (1967)
Reviewed
by Andrew Saroch
Taken
from the same source material as the enjoyably bizarre 'Web
Of Death', 'The Thundering Sword' is a late-60s execution
that uses most of the same plot twists and turns. However,
instead of the excellent Ching Li in the lead role, Cheng Pei
Pei - perhaps the quintessential Shaw Brothers' swordswoman -
takes centre stage. Surprisingly, her love interest is none
other than Chang Yi, an actor whose name is commonly
associated with villainous roles in 'The Victim'. 'Challenge
Of Death' and scores of other kung-fu classics. The resulting
blend is a dramatic, yet mostly watchable swordplay flick.
News
breaks out in the martial world of an invincible sword that
can cut through anything and has no equal in China. Naturally
such a weapon is highly prized by China's various clans; the
righteous schools are keen to find it to stop it getting into
the wrong hands while the ruthless clans are bent on total
domination. Heroic swordsman Yu, along with his good friend
(Lo Lieh) and an adoring classmate, is sent to track down the
sword and bring it back to his wisened master. While
travelling alone, Yu meets a beautiful swordswoman who
over-eagerly kills a band of robbers trying to ambush her.
Though this woman, Jiao, has a ruthless side, she also has a
tender heart and falls in love with honourable Yu.
Unfortunately, Jiao accidentally injures her lover's loyal
friend in her own quest for the 'thundering sword' and is
desperate to compensate for this horrific blunder. Jiao
therefore disguises herself as Yu and pays the noted Yue
Security Agency to transport the injured man across China so
that he can be cured. However, when the escorts are ambushed
and the mission is thwarted, Jiao takes out her frustration on
the surviving members of the Yue firm, though her lover Yu is
blamed for the subsequent melee. The various clans gather to
hunt down Yu for his 'crimes', while the sword falls into the
wrong hands and the two lovers agree to marry. All three of
these diverse incidents leads to the ultimately tragic
conclusion.
As
'The Thundering Sword' seems to allude to the same inspiration, the
comparisons to 'Web Of Death' are obvious: both films centre
on the search for an unbeatable weapon; both have a 'Romeo and
Juliet' style romance at their core; both have the same
misunderstandings and both share most of the same characters;
both star Lo Lieh (though in very different roles). However,
the way the two directors tackle the subject is very
different. In 'Web Of Death', Chu Yuan concentrated more on
the action-based aspects of the narrative, the clan intrigues
and the duplicitous characters. Meanwhile, Hsu Cheng-Hung's
'The Thundering Sword' - shot a decade earlier - takes
away much of the tensions and focuses primarily on the tragic
love of the two lead characters. Which of the two is more
successful is probably dependent on familiarity with the
source (of which I claim ignorance) and whether the potential
viewer craves action or drama. Of their kind, both attempts
achieve most of their respective goals.
While
'Web Of Death' undoubtedly suffered from the ending scenes of
the 'fearsome' spider running amok, 'The Thundering Sword'
takes the safe route with a weapon that is both probable and
believable. Nevertheless, it is a film that often belies its
operatic roots with heavy scenes of melodrama and theatrical
acting. Though it takes a more realistic approach to its
storyline, it is harmed by these moments of histrionics and
grand gestures. Among the fresh-faced supporting players,
there are faces like Ku Feng and Tien Fong who also get sucked
into the heavy-handed scenes of sacrifice and tragedy, adding
to the feeling that this is a production that shows its age.
There are scenes that succeed in conveying a real intensity
and power that breathe life into the storyline, but there are
a few too many moments that go some way over-the-top,
especially towards the end.
'The
Thundering Sword' is archaic and does struggle to overcome its
deficiencies, but it is given a significant boost by its two
lead stars. In one of his few roles as the hero, Chang Yi is a
sympathetic lead who mixes the persona of invincible swordsman
and vulnerable lover with conviction. Though he doesn't quite
achieve the gusto of Yueh Hua's performance in 'Web Of Death',
it is still nice to see him in a different light. While Yi is
good, this is of course Cheng Pei Pei's film and she carries
most of it with aplomb. Even in the more awkward moments of
operatic drama, she lights up the screen with her wide range
of emotions and expressions. It's testament to her that the
audience forgets just how ruthless Jiao initially is and that
her thoughtless actions are a mere cry for love. Cheng is
convincing when she is the expert swordswoman and the
dewy-eyed love interest - a quality that few actresses outside
of Asia ever come near to replicating.
Cheng
Pei Pei's excellent performance and the moments of genuine
emotion manage to excuse some of the film's less enjoyable
sequences. While it hasn't aged well in comparison to 'Come
Drink With Me' and even some of Chang Cheh's early work, it
still proves to be a mildly diverting Shaw Brothers' swordplay
film.
Rating:
  
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