Fei dao you jian fei dao

Some good performers and creative fight scenes are the bright spots in RETURN OF THE DEADLY BLADE (1981), a murkily plotted and sloppily edited tale of two fighters seeking out the mysterious wheelchair-bound kung fu master, Master Li, for answers to questions about their identity. The two are on the same quest but they don't appear to be taking the same route and their paths keep crossing at odd times. The climactic reunion, in the mystical Lunar World with a character called the Moon Goddess presiding, is particularly confusing.

The imaginative fight scenes were directed by Ching Siu-Tung (DUEL TO THE DEATH, SWORDSMAN II, CHINESE GHOST STORY) and feature lots of wire work and special effects. David Chiang turns in one of his better late kung fu performances (ten years after his stardom peaked at Shaw Bros.), while the real surprise here is the great Yasuaki Kurata (SHAOLIN CHALLENGES NINJA), who often played grim-faced Japanese antagonists, but is allowed to let loose here as the charming, womanizing rogue, Lonely Winner, who fights one group of opponents in a public bath (a cave spring) with nothing but towels! Sharon Yeung Pan Pan has a good part as a fighting femme pursuing Yasuaki for conflicting reasons. Also on hand is the always dependable Norman Chu as Master Li. Lo Lieh appears briefly, while Hwang Jang Lee appears even more briefly.

The print of this film in distribution in the U.S. is 83 minutes and seems to be missing some bits. The editing seems awfully choppy at times and the ending is quite abrupt.

RETURN OF THE DEADLY BLADE is a film that looks and feels like a Shaw Brothers movie even though it isn't. It has superior production values to and a more complex plot than a number of the cheaper kung fu tales made around this era, and to hit the similarities home, it features a number of Shaw Brothers alumni in various roles.

Although the slight sloppiness of the fight scenes and staging means that this isn't quite up there on the same level as a Shaw film, it's still a lot of fun. The protagonist is none other than stock bad guy Yasuaki Kurata, here playing a sympathetic hero by the name of Lonely Winner! Kurata has always been an under-appreciated talent in eastern cinema for me so it's nice to see him hogging the limelight for once.

The story has fantastic elements and is a little like those old 'wandering swordsman' type films. However, there is an overarching plot of sorts, which is the hunt for a wheelchair-bound martial arts expert in order to answer questions of identity. Inevitably the elaborate fight scenes take over the plotting, but they're quite well handled here and feature bit parts for players like Lo Lieh and Hwang Jang Lee. David Chiang, meanwhile, has a large supporting role and his character plays a big part in the proceedings; he's always a welcome presence. And Sharon Yeung Pan Pan adds some glamour to the already colourful proceedings.