Suk saan: San suk saan gim hap

"Zu Warriors" certainly pushed wuxia to its limits; it has such a relentless air of enthusiasm, especially given its limited budget, that its incredibly easy to dismiss any faults it does have just because of its overwhelmingly extravagant nature. Its glorious, vivid production design and intentionally camp attitude makes it very difficult not to be totally drawn into its colourful images while completely forgetting the film has a plot.

Tsui Hark has included just about everything in this one. The special effects may not be up to much but that is a sideline; the wonderful swordplay starts almost immediately and the films rarely lets up as it jumps from one operatic martial art display to another, helped by an impeccable cast featuring iconic stars such as Sammo Hung and Brigitte Lin.

Unfortuantly it still took some work before films of this sort were appreciated in the west. Despite the efforts of John Carpenter, it still took over a decade and Crouching Tiger to truly bring this wonderful form of entertainment to the masses. There's only so much praise you can give a film before saying it has to be seen to be appreciated fully. This is certainly a landmark in wuxia and an essential showpiece of Hong Kong action at its finest. (A testament to this is the fact the DVD has a Bey Logan commentary.)

I've got to say, this movie delivered exactly what I thought it would when I bought it. And I bought it simply on the strength of the box and how it said something really good about Tsui Hark. Ever since I have unfailingly watched any Tsui Hark movie that has come across my path. I love this movie. It's goofy in the extreme and at many points simply doesn't make sense. Maybe it's because I've been brainwashed by too many episodes of Mystery Science Theater 3000, but I love cheesy movies. The fight scenes are excellent, the scenery is superb and the story is spellbinding, (there I think I've but exhausted my list of critic cliché adjectives). It's especially good to watch if you're an enhancement smoker.

This is a visual masterpiece that outdoes the special effects of later movies with sheer artistry, because it is a magical piece.

It is a larger than life movie about a fight against evil. It begins with a "scout" giving two leaders a report. They each give him conflicting orders, and then ask which he'll obey. He says "Both", so they both call him insubordinate and condemn him to die.

He finds himself on the run. This sets the pace for the film, which is nonstop action and breathtaking visuals. It helps that the visuals are perfectly placed, and logical in their Magic.

The scout finds comrades, at first another warrior from an opposing side, and then later some monks who work in a very magical world.

The film manages to be the best of all worlds. In spite of the magic, the comedy of human errors is always there. The characters fly in the air, fight demons, and do outrageous acrobatics, yet bump their noses, can't swim, and get smacked by pretty girls. They engage in battle, but play dead at the first opportunity, only to find dozens of others also playing dead.

It is one of the funniest films of all time, and also one of the most passionate.

This is how to make a masterpiece.

Because this movie was made in the 1980s, I did not expect the special FX to be the equivalent of anything made in the states, or even up to the level of The Stormriders. However, I found this film a lot more enjoyable than the latter. This film is almost a non-stop ride full of swordfights, optical FX battles, flying people, and it still leaves room for some interesting themes also.

The plot deals with a soldier being disillusioned by the endless civil wars that have been fought. He goes to a mountain where he joins a swordsman, a monk and his apprentice, Sammo Hung, and some lovely ladies in a quest to defeat the Blood Demon, a being of pure evil. On the way, the soldier (Yuen Biao) and the monk's apprentice (Mang Hoi) must find some swords to use in the battle.

The action is nearly non-stop. It first starts out with some basic swordplay. Once Yuen reaches the mountain, than everything shifts into overdrive. Optical FX fly across the screen at dizzying speeds. Humans and demons fly across the screen at dizzying speeds. People get frozen alive. Women fly around with swirling cloth in their wake. Men fly around chained to boulders. Eyebrows are used to contain evil. All I can say is...wow. Only Ching Siu Tung could come up w/ some as imaginative as this.

As I mentioned earlier, there are some interesting themes involved. Tsui Hark seemed to make a statement against world leaders who start senseless wars and kill innocent people. Also, he talks about how battles become futile when people won't set aside their differences for a common cause. If we want to save the world or even ourselves, we all have to work together.

Of interesting note is the International dubbed version. That version makes the film into a dream sequence and turns the war parable into a love story spanning many generations. A lot of scenes are cut and shortened, giving the Zu mountain segment a very rushed feel. Overall, the subtitled version is a lot more preferable.

If you are a fan of Hong Kong action films and you haven't seen this i would suggest you track a copy down right now.

As an opening paragraph it sums up the importance of this landmark title. Conceived by its' makers as a production to rival Western films for technical (behind the camera) as well as beating them technically in front as well.

Although it fails to rival the level of sophistication with its' effects (due to bane of all Hong Kong films, its' limited budget)to match those of Hollywood films of its' time is irrelevant, it looks and feels so Far Eastern as well as using cutting edge (for 1982)it is simply unique.

The story is set in mythical times in China, where constant wars threaten to consume everyone, soldier or otherwise. One such soldier (ably played by Yuen Biao) manages to alienate himself from his commanders and ends up getting lost in the mystical region of Zu, fabled for its' magic mountain.

He becomes embroiled in a quest to find a pair of magical swords to kill a blood demon which threatens the whole of humanity. The blood demon draws its' power from pain and suffering and there is enough in the world to allow it to destroy all mankind.

The film contains so much energy, unparallelled visual flair and a cast which has the skill and experience to make it all work. The directors' vision and imagination are easy to see and appreciate, if you take the time to look. It is too easy to watch the action and miss the subtleties. It is a film which is difficult to describe, but unforgettable once watched.