One-Armed Swordsman

Dir: Chang Cheh

1967

****

1967’s One-Armed Swordsman is the big wuxia film produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio that is considered the one that popularized the genre. It is, arguably, Hong Kong's first real martial arts film and the first of a new style of wuxia films emphasizing male anti-heroes, violent swordplay and heavy bloodletting. It’s funny, while the western world is still struggling to make films that feature a more diverse cross-section of society, martial arts films were featuring disabled heroes decades ago. Directed by Chang Cheh, it was the first Hong Kong film to make HK$1 million at the local box office, propelling its star Jimmy Wang to super stardom. This film became the first in the One-Armed Swordsman trilogy. A sequel was released in 1969 called Return of the One-Armed Swordsman, followed by The New One-Armed Swordsman in 1971, all directed by Cheh. The One-Armed Swordsman also met the legendary Zatoichi in 1971 in Kimiyoshi Yasuda’s Zatoichi and the One-Armed Swordsman, starring the great Shintaro Katsu. The film begins as the Golden Sword school is attacked by bandits. The servant Fang Cheng sacrifices his life to protect his master Qi Ru Feng. In gratitude, Qi accepts the dying Fang Cheng's son, Fang Kang, as his student. Years later, Fang Kang is scorned by his snobbish fellow students because of his poor background. Deciding that he will only cause trouble for his master Fang Kang leaves the school only to run into his classmates and his master's spoiled daughter, Pei Er. In the ensuing fight Fang's right arm is cut off by Pei Er, who is angry at his indifference towards her. Stumbling away, Fang falls off a bridge into the passing boat of a peasant girl Xiao Man. Xiao Man nurses him back to health and the two fall in love. Fang Kang is nevertheless depressed as he is unable to practice his swordsmanship. Reluctantly, Xiao Man gives him a half-burnt kung-fu manual which she had inherited from her now dead parents. With its help, Fang Kang is able to master a new one-armed style of swordplay, making him stronger than before. Meanwhile, master Qi Ru Feng is preparing for his 55th birthday and has invited all of his students to the celebration to choose a successor from among them so that he can retire from the martial arts world. However, his old enemies the Long-armed Devil and the Smiling Tiger Cheng are taking the opportunity to destroy Qi Ru Feng. Using a specially designed "sword-lock", they ambush and kill Qi's students travelling to the celebration. Fang Kang inadvertently learns of the plot and, breaking his promise to Xiao Man not to involve himself in the martial arts world, rushes to save his master. He is delayed en route by the Long Armed Devil's accomplices and when he arrives the Long Armed Devil has already killed most of the students and wounded Qi Ru Feng. In a vicious battle, Fang Kang manages to kill the Long Armed Devil, but chooses to return to Xiao Man and become a farmer, instead of taking his master's place at the school. There is much to appreciate about Chang Cheh classic picture. For starters, I loved how the film removed all traces of humour, concentrating only on serious drama. Far too many of the Shaw Brothers films are, in my opinion, ruined by feeble attempts at comedy. I also liked the character development and the way our anti-hero goes about his unintentional revenge. For sure he kills a lot of people but his real revenge does not involve death. For instance, he actually saves Pei Er’s life out of respect for her father, his greatest revenge on her is to admit his indifference towards her. Other bandits who continuously bully him regarding his disability are also not attacked and killed, instead, our One-Armed Swordsman defends himself, cutting off their hands and making them just as disabled as he is, giving them the chance to better themselves as he did. The only frustrating element of the film is the supporting fighters. The students, we are told, have been learning their martial arts since early childhood. They learn what to anticipate and how to react accordingly. So when the Long-armed Devil and the Smiling Tiger Cheng turn up with their new weapon, you would think they’d quickly learn how it worked and how dangerous it was, especially after witnessing around thirty or so people (their brothers and loved ones) being killed by it. Of all the good things I learned from the film, the one negative was that most martial artists are impulsive and stupid – two things I always thought martial artist were very much not. Still, the film is intense and picturesque. Hugely influential, the One-Armed Swordsman is rightly regarded as one of the best and most important marital art film ever made.