Espadas a través del tiempo

Opera School colleagues Yuen Biao and Yuen Wah face off in this action/drama film, (oh, and Maggie Cheung tags along for good measure). This film has seems to have slipped off the radar somewhat, but if you manage to see it, you'll find it has some very powerful moments.

The scope of the film is huge. We start off in Imperial China (the Ming Dynasty), where we are introduced to the characters of Fong Sau-Ching (Biao), and Fung San (Wah) - perfect symbols of good and evil respectively. As in real life, the two are 'brothers', in that they have trained and lived together as Royal Guards. However, Fung has become corrupted, and is a known rapist and murderer. Fong must capture him within twenty days, or face execution himself.

Did I mention that they travel into the future Hong Kong, the year 1989? Well they do via a Buddhist Wheel - a kind of primitive Delorian (but built sturdier).

This film is by no means perfect, but it's main draw-cards are the exquisitely choreographed (though all too rare) action sequences, and the overall excellent production values. The performances vary somewhat, (Yuen Wah is maybe a little too comical in his delivery), but the film is ripe with powerful scenes and a surprising amount of subtext, if you're willing to look for it.

The most interesting contrast the film makes is between the past and the (then) present. We find that honour, loyalty, and friendship mean totally different things in the modern age, and Biao's character has the most difficulty adjusting to his surroundings. Wah's character however (rapist, thief, murderer) adjust very quickly, and has even managed to adopt the most cutting-edge in fashion. The subtle distinctions drawn between Hong Kong and the Mainland are also of interest - though how relevant they are today I cannot say.

Clarence Fok has undertaken a very ambitious task here - a film that deals with so much (in my mind) cannot succeed in every area. However, it does succeed in the most important areas for me, and I can only recommend at least one viewing. It does, however, seem to improve with multiple viewings. The rich visuals and and action sequences alone make this a stand-out from it's era.

I'm not really sure why Yuen Biao never had the same popularity as Jackie or Sammo, after films like 'Project A' and 'Wheels on Meals', one would think that Yuen would become just as big of a name as those other two. I did watch 'Righting Wrongs' not too long ago and sadly it wasn't a memorable film, but probably most because of the direction and also that they had taken out most of the comedy from that film. This film however is like the good old Hong Kong action comedy you're used with from Jackie and it shows both Yuen's comedic skills as well as his amazing martial art.

The story is a crazy mix between Highlander, Demoliton Man and Terminator with two men from a different time ending up in present time, one good and one really bad. We get to see some silly, cute scenes with Yuen's character trying to accept and learn the customs of today's society and also a bit of romantic comedy with Maggie Cheung, done like they only do it in Hong Kong, mostly portraying the woman as a liar, a cheater or someone with a bad personality and only becomes good when she got to prove her love for her hero. It's a dated view on women, but you just have to accept the film for what it is - I don't think many people would watch this film for the romantic parts.

What everyone should watch this film for, is the great action between Yuen and Wah Yuen (the landlord from Kung Fu Hustle) playing the baddest of the bad, a rapist and a murderer, brutally murdering the people he rape by breaking their arms and legs, it a bit too much sometimes, but also the bigger reasons why Yuen is in such a hurry to stop him.

I was very entertained by the film and even chuckled a couple of times through the film. I can only hope it will get a proper release on bluray someday so it gain some more popularity to show off what Yuen Biao did when he wasn't doing films with Jackie and Sammo. I would warmly recommend this film.

Most fans of martial arts films can never understand why Yuen Biao somehow never made the big time like Jackie Chan or Jet Li. He came from the same background had a boyish charisma and charm shown to great effect in this film. His athletic abilities are legendary and the fights here show he had real martial arts abilities. This film has genuine comic moments and to my mind Maggie Cheung gives one of her best ever performances as the hooker /model with a heart of gold. Wah Yuen is a great evil brother and the final fight is surely one of the best recorded. OK the effects are fairly poor even for 1989 but the stunts are terrific. My Hong Kong Legends has good interviews with Yuen (where he shows the snow burns he got making this film) and Wah and a very clear print. An underrated film from an underrated artist.

During the eighties, Hong Kong cinema had some of the most enjoyable action films on the planet, and this was one of them.

Basically the plot revolves around two soldiers, one good and one bad, fighting to the death and being frozen in ancient china. They are then thawed out in the eighties, forced to battle once again but now with greater powers.

Although a great deal of the film is based on how the two soldiers react to there new surroundings, with some interesting results, the film is more about the action sequences, which are all pretty impressive. It has to be said that the final sword battle between the two foes is one of my favourite sequences in history, even though it is clearly a rip off of highlander. Of course, like many Hong Kong flicks, it is done 10 times better then the American version. This is a pretty good way to introduce yourself to Hong Kong cinema.

This is a cheesy but enjoyable film about two warriors who live in the Ming Dynasty and quite simply - one is good, the other a womanising rapist. They get transported into modern day Hong Kong where the main character ends up meeting a prositute (Maggie Cheung) who hires him as her servant to do some chores around the house as well as being her bodyguard.

This is a film not to be taken seriously and you'll enjoy it the more if you don't. It is a no brainer action comedy flick that has a silly plot that works well in this type of genre. Maggie Cheung is terrific as the self centred prostitute who just doesn't really konw what to do with her life and Biao Yuen as Ching (the protagonist) is pretty good in his role and both of the leads work well together The action scenes are the sort you sort of expect in the Hong Kong action film and they remain believable if slightly outrageous. Essentially what makes the story work is its humour and I wasn't expecting this to be a comedy at all - in fact I think I must have not read the blurb at the back of the DVD cover properly as I didn't realise Ching was going to be transported to another era - and it surprised me the more when I watched it.

Check it out - it's a good film. Sure it's not a masterpiece nor will it be helmed as one of the greatest movies of our time but for what it is worth - it is worth the watch.