World premiere of a stunning BRAND NEW 35mm print of director Chang Cheh’s martial arts classic! No other print of this film is known to exist! This breakneck-paced Shaw Brothers production and the second in the One-Armed Swordsman trilogy (or quartet if you count the Japanese co-production Zatoichi Meets the One-Armed Swordsman) is one of the must-see Hong Kong martial arts films of the 1960s. Director Chang Cheh was among the pantheon masters of both the wuxia (Chinese swordplay) and kung fu genres, turning out such gems as Golden Swallow, Five Deadly Venoms, The Kid with the Golden Arm and even co-directing (uncredited) Hammer’s Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires. Martial arts legend Jimmy Wang Yu – who also portrayed the One-Armed Boxer in a series of films – returns as the handicapped hero, Fang Kang, living now as a peaceful country farmer with his wife. He steadfastly resists when challenged by bandits led by the Eight Demon Swordsmen to a contest of skill of all swordsmen in the area. When much bloodshed results and villagers are kidnapped for ransom, Fang realizes he has no choice but to help rescue the innocent. All bets are off! Not to be missed, especially on the big screen.
“Director Chang Cheh let his imagination run wild…it’s gleefully over the top!…Such varied weaponry and extravagant use of wires was groundbreaking back in 1969, but even today the film is a source of inspiration for filmmakers. In one sequence Fang disables a group of villains with the branch off a nearby tree. Ang Lee and Yuen Woo-ping must’ve been paying attention because they copied this in Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.” – Matt Shingleton, The Digital Fix/Film
