Aka - Blood of the Ninja (there are no Ninjas in this film)
Jimmy Wang-yu is the White Dragon. A man of few words but who wields a long
spear. And dresses all in white. Spotless. Except for the blood. This is basic
Wang-yu wuxia material which means there are going to be a lot of dead people
littering the ground by the end of the film. Wang-yu had recently left the
Shaw Brothers but this has all the trademarks of his films with them. Very
few facial expressions but a lot of killing. He even brings as the female
co-star Lisa Chiao Chiao with him. She had just left the Shaws as well. Not
a favorite of mine among the Shaw actresses but I think a good luck charm
for Wang-yu as she had co-starred with him in The Trail of the Broken Blade,
The One-Armed Swordsman, The Assassin and The Return of the One-Armed Swordsman.
Directing is a veteran Shaw actor - a woman - Kao Pao-shu - a real rarity
back then (and now). She directed some eleven films but only one for Shaw
- Lily Ho in Lady with a Sword right before this one. She does a good job
here though much of the enjoyment of the film has to be given to choreographer
Chang Yi-kuai. Not that it is particularly inventive but there sure is a
lot of it.
Rebels against the Mongols who rule China. The rebels send the leader of
the rebellion a list of their names - definitely a no-no in the world of espionage.
The list falls into the hands of a very annoying child who sadly makes it
through the entire film without being killed. He is told to deliver it to
the young Prince at the palace. Ok. But a couple of the Emperor's men take
it away from him. Wang-yu who just happens to be sitting up in a tree sees
this take place and gets the list back. He decides to take the boy with him
to deliver it but as soon as he enters the Prince tries to kill him because
years earlier Wang-yu had defeated his father and his Magic Sword. And then
laughed at him. A very long laugh. Defeat you can take but not a laugh.
They have a big fight in which the Prince (Yang Yang) uses a sneaky weapon
to stab Wang-yu in the back. Later Wang-yu realizes the Prince is the head
of the rebellion and still wants to get the list to him. But to heal up he
goes to the local teahouse being run by Chiao Chiao. And the Emperor's men
come for him and the list. Why he just doesn't burn it is a mystery to me.
A few small skirmishes occur. The Prince realizing his error joins the White
Dragon. Surrounding the inn are more men than were at the Battle of the Bulge.
The White Dragon and the Prince know they have to kill them all. Including
the Red Wolf (Yi Yuan) who has more tricky weapons up his sleeve than a card
shark. It is pure Wang-yu and as often as I have seen similar scenes it was
still great as his long spear literally twirls dead people above him or throws
them on the roof of the inn with it. One time the Prince kicks a guy and he
ends up at the top of a tree. Yup. That sort of film.
