Tag Archives: wuxia

Demon of the Lute (1983)

February 8, 2025 Ken Miller Leave a comment

Starring Chin Siu-Ho, Kara Wai, Philip Kwok, Kei Kong-Hung, Jason Pai Piao, Yuen Tak and Lung Tien-Hsiang.
Written and directed by Lung I-Sheng.
Produced by Mona Fong for Shaw Brothers.

Feng Ling (Wai) is sent by her master to locate the special fiery bow and arrows that are the only treasures that can stop a mystery villain from using the lethal Six-Stringed Demonic Lute to wreak havoc everywhere. Along the way she teams-up with her brother Old Naughty (Tak), a likeable thief (Kwok) and his son, a good guy called Yuan Fei (Siu-Ho) and a powerful martial artist known as the Woodcutter (Tien-Hsiang).

This dude's got a huge chopper! — This dude’s got a huge chopper!

DEMON OF THE LUTE’s director, Lung I-Sheng (aka Tang Tak-Cheung), was primarily an actor in the Hong Kong film industry. He was also a martial arts director on many films, and he was the action designer on the very wild BUDDHA’S PALM (1982). This fantasy wuxia, you’ll be pleased to know, is equally over the top! It really is lots of fun, crammed with loads and loads of exotic characters! Let’s look at just some of them: there’s Red Haired Evil, who rides a small chariot drawn by german shepherd dogs and hurls his Thunder Flying Wheel weapon like a frisbee, Eagle Man, who can flap his costume’s wings to fly like a bird, Long Limb Evil, who can super-extend his arm, and Fatty Elf, who can entangle folks in his lengthy beard.

Red Haired Evil, riding his chariot pulled by dogs!

Watch out for Fatty Elf's super-long beard! — Watch out for Fatty Elf’s super-long beard!

One of my favourite fantastical characters in this outlandish fight flick is Skinny Elf, who has a misshapen forehead – he likes to sit on the hero’s shoulders and can’t be shaken off!

Utter strangeness abounds throughout this production, with warriors erupting from a giant silver ball, Feng Ling using her rainbow sword like a guided missile, a horseless wagon whizzing around with the deadly lute inside, some trees momentarily becoming monsters, Old Naughty riding his horse backwards, and a kitschy killer lute that glows with LED strip lights when it’s played.

The lethal magic lute's strings are made from dinosaur ligaments! — The lethal magic lute’s strings are made from dinosaur ligaments!

Though some of the music and on-screen antics become rather too childish (this film dedicates itself to children in the opening credits), DEMON OF THE LUTE has much to offer, including Kei Kong-Hung, who is surprisingly good as the thief’s plucky young son Xiao Ding Dong.

Let’s end this review with another look at Skinny Elf…

The Butterfly Murders (1979)

March 18, 2023 Ken Miller 1 Comment

Starring Lau Siu-Ming, Wong Shu-Tong, Michelle Yim, Chan Chi Chi and Eddy Ko, directed by Tsui Hark for Seasonal Film Corporation.

Tien Fung, leader of the Ten Flags clan, investigates the mystery of killer butterfly attacks in the deserted Shum Castle, accompanied by some of his troops and lone woman warrior Green Shadow. Entering the catacombs beneath the castle, they encounter esteemed scholar Fong (Siu-Ming), Master Shum, his wife and a mute maid named Chee. The butterflies continue to kill, hidden rooms are discovered and renowned fighters known as the Thunders enter the story.

Tien Fung and Green Shadow inspect a dragon carving in Shum Castle

Butterflies munch on a victim's hand — Butterflies munch on a victim’s hand

Tsui Hark’s first film is an assured, thoroughly engrossing Hong Kong new wave wuxia murder mystery with creature feature elements. The empty Shum Castle itself, often shown from the outside, looming above the long grasses, adds immeasurably to the atmosphere of the film, as does the effective use of Jerry Goldsmith’s PLANET OF THE APES score. Wong Shu-Tong is steely, stoic and thoughtful as Tien Fung and Michelle Yim is playful and acrobatic as Green Shadow.

Wong Shu-Tong is a cool dude in this movie

The film offers a realistic reason for characters being able to fly about, by showing them using various line-firing gizmos, but there are still fantastical components to the story, like a fire crow bird that explodes on contact with people and the notion that butterflies can actually kill a person, though these lethal Lepidoptera assaults are actually explained away as being the result of the use of ‘butterfly-controlling medicine’.

Master Shum is assaulted by a swarm of butterflies

Be careful... this bird can blow up! — Be careful… this bird can blow up!

The introduction of a helmeted armoured man becomes the focus of the latter stages of the movie, with the killer butterflies taking a back seat, as fights involving dart-ejecting weapons and explosive projectiles ultimately lead to a nihilistic finale.

The secret plans and rivalries eventually revealed to be the reasons behind the events may fail to be particularly compelling, but THE BUTTERFLY MURDERS remains a very moody, intriguing, enjoyable viewing experience.

Silver Hermit From Shaolin Temple (1980)

January 13, 2023 Ken Miller Leave a comment

A monster hand reaches up to grab a buddhist monk... — A monster hand reaches up to grab a buddhist monk…

Directed by Roc Tien, starring Roc Tien (who also wrote the script), Meng Fei, Chun Sing and Tien Ho.

Also known as THE SILVER SPEAR, this Taiwanese wuxia production begins like a murder mystery, with several warriors dying of poisoning in a mountain valley. The hero, Silver Hermit, is accused of the killings and becomes embroiled in a story that encompasses concealed identities, buddhist monks, hidden allegiances, secret siblings, the search for a tunnel to the much-desired Green Jade Villa, the destruction of an entire town, and the return of a vampiric villain called Immortal…

This movie, from IFD Films & Arts LTD, starts really well, with a nicely-paced first act located in misty, snowy valley sets that mix together artificiality and atmospherics effectively. However, after the villain Silver Spear reveals that he poisoned the victims as part of his plan to ensure he inherits Green Jade Villa, the movie becomes more and more confusing, thanks to choppy editing, many over-dark sequences and the introduction of a multitude of characters, many of whom are concealing their real identities.

SILVER HERMIT FROM SHAOLIN TEMPLE is based on a novel by Gu Long, so perhaps the filmmakers tried to cram too much of the book’s plot into the movie. Whatever the reason is for the semi-incoherence, by the time the blood-sucking bad guy Immortal is introduced into the tale you do begin to wonder whether the story is actually being made up as it goes along. On the plus side, the involvement of this villain, who sports a wild, Albert Einstein-esque haircut (and is referred to as ‘a beast from Persia’), does mean you get the opportunity to enjoy watching a tall, clawed, pale-faced, fang-mouthed monster-man rampage about the place during the hectic finale!

Monster Zone

Tag Archives: wuxia

Demon of the Lute (1983)

The Butterfly Murders (1979)

Silver Hermit From Shaolin Temple (1980)

Devoted to every kind of movie and TV monster, from King Kong to Godzilla, from the Blob to Alien. Plus monsters from other media too, including books and comics.