The One-Armed Swordsman
by Chang Cheh
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DVD details
Actor: Huang Chung Shun, Jimmy Wang Yu, Pin Yin TzeDirector: Chang Cheh
Brand: WELLSPRING/GENIUS
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: Chinese (Original Language); English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 117 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-06-19
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Dragon Dynasty
DVD Reviews of The One-Armed Swordsman
DVD Review: Jimmy Wang Yu and Chang Cheh in top form!
Summary: 5 Stars
What a film! The One-Armed Swordsman is the story of a humble student who in a terrible "accident" loses his right arm and is then forced to make tough decissions on where his life will go from there. Jimmy Wang Yu is fantastic as our lead and uses incredibly great facial expressions and body language to support the emotional beats thrown his way(best performance of his career in fact). The direction by the legendary Chang Cheh is some of his best as well with quite a few of the most beautifully shot scenes I've ever scene in the genre. The incredible thing about that is the film is almost exclusively shot on sets which when teamed with Chehs direction gives the entire film almost a surreal fairy tale quality. Now the effects are a little dodgy at times but when taking into consideration that this was released in 1967 it is easily forgivable (and makes them actually pretty good overall). The choreography and fights also aren't much to get overly excited about but that's never really been Wang Yus strongest trait anyways (that's why fighting with one-arm works well to help discuise his already shaky skills)... this one puts great acting, story, and themes at the forefront making it a classic movie for all viewers rather than just a must-see for genre fans alone. Much like Dragon Dynasty's other Shaw Bros. release "King Boxer," the movie is truly a early work of art filled with so many influential elements (it helped create the entire one-armed martial arts sub-genre) that you watch it in awe whether it's your first or tenth time seeing it. DVD Review: INCREDIBLE SWORD FIGHTING FILM !!
Summary: 5 Stars
The Weinstein Company has to be commended for finally releasing "The One-Armed Swordsman" completely restored on DVD. The video and audio restoration that went into this release is truly amazing. This 1967 Martial Arts Classic is presented in it's 2.35:1 Widescreen format and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions. This is without a doubt the best version of "The One-Armed Swordsman" I've ever seen. The video transfer is just spectacular and the colors are sharp and vibrant. The sound is clean and crisp albeit in mono. The sound options include original Mandarin or English dubbed version and choice of Subtitles.
The special features I found most interesting were the Interview with Jimmy Wang Yu and the Stills Gallery and Trailer Gallery. Sadly the commentary of Quentin Tarantino listed on the rear cover under the special features section of the DVD is missing.
Martial Arts fans will be amazed by the incredible quality of this release and the non-stop blood filled action. The One-Armed Swordsman is filled with magnificent swordplay, incredible Kung Fu and it's a definite must see for any fan of the Kung Fu genre. Outstanding Martial Arts Movie, Highly Recommend !!
DVD Bonus Features:
* Feature commentary by film scholars David Chute and Andy Klein
* Interview with Star Jimmy Wang Yu
* Interview with film scholars David Chute and Andy Klein
* The Master: Chang Cheh
* Stills gallery
* Trailer gallery
* Commentator biographies
DVD Review: 5 stars for movie, 3 stars for release
Summary: 3 Stars
OK if you have never seen this movie and are interested in classic kung-fu movies, by all means get this release, the quality is great. My complaint is that the Weinstein company lied about the special features. I already owned a great region 3 copy of this film, and was surprised to see that the new American release had commentary by Quentin Tarantino, which is stated on the package. I know that he is a big Shaw bros fan and was interested in hearing his insight on the film. I could care less about the film scholars opinions as they don't really state anything a fan wouldn't already know. Well the DVD does NOT have commentary by him, and my purchase was completely pointless. This review is to mainly to warn others out-there like myself who are huge fans that might also be considering purchasing this version for that reason. DVD Review: A pioneering swordplay classic starring Jimmy Wang Yu
Summary: 4 Stars
Jimmy Wang Yu starred in many Shaw Bros. swordplay films in the 1960s, but it was THE ONE-ARMED SWORDSMAN (1967), directed by the prolific Chang Cheh, that put him on the map as the leading action star of Hong Kong cinema at the time and shifted the direction of HK sword films to a harder-edged, bloodier style with a greater emphasis on martial arts. It was the first film of its type to stress the training aspect of swordplay and gives the hero a half-burned manual which teaches him left-hand sword techniques after his right arm had been chopped off in a jealous pique by his master's beautiful but impetuous daughter. Having gone into hiding with a loyal farm girl (whose father had been a swordsman and was the original owner of the manual), Wang Yu goes back into action, after the requisite training period, to aid his former master when his school comes under attack from evil swordsmen led by Long-Armed Devil and Smiling Face. The villains have a lethal device on their swords which locks on to the sword of their opponent and enables them to deliver the killing blow with a dagger held in their right hands as they fight. Only Wang Yu's broken sword (left to him by his dead father, who was killed when he was a boy) can counteract the effects of the sword-lock.
Wang Yu had the proper dark and brooding quality for such a role and he is well served by the violent, bleak tone of the film. He returned to the role in one official sequel, the nonstop slaughterfest, THE RETURN OF THE ONE-ARMED SWORDSMAN (1968), and later went to a rival studio to star in ONE-ARMED BOXER (1971). Shaw Bros. countered with THE NEW ONE-ARMED SWORDSMAN (1971), starring David Chiang in the title role, which had less intensity and more spectacle.
DVD Review: one armed swordsman
Summary: 5 Stars
It's a greatest film for martial arts fan. And first film of cripple but brave and skilled. This film is remaked 90's of which title is "Blade" but there's no tension and no comparison between good and evil. the continuation film "Return of one armed swordsman" is more skilled and cruel. But I can't seek it. I hope that I'll join it someday through Amazon.
Description of The One-Armed Swordsman
(Action/Comedy) A young woman marries a dying senior member of a martial arts family in order to protect her family's fortunes, leading to a duel with a greedy relative."You made me a cripple, so I'll make you a cripple, too," sneers charismatic swordplay superstar Wang Yu, clutching his severed member, in this 1967 classic of manly suffering and bloodshed. Because of its implacable-revenge motif, and its extended training sequences, this is sometimes cited as the first true martial arts movie--a transitional film between the old-school swordplay and the contemporary kung fu genres. Whatever you call it, it is easily one of the most influential Asian action movies ever made. A master of long-sword fighting techniques, Wang loses an arm in the early innings. (It is hacked off by the woman he loves.) In order to exact payback, he has to master the unfamiliar short-sword style, using the stump of his symbolically shattered blade. Meanwhile, enemies of the long-sword school have invented a sneaky "sword-clamp" device and deploy it against the good guys. Issues of fighting style and discipline are central; one technique trumps another, and the hero triumphs because, driven by rage, he practices more obsessively than his foes. This is a lean, effective piece of genre craftsmanship from the great director Chang Cheh, finally available in the U.S. in a letterboxed version that gives his shapely widescreen compositions a fair shake. --David Chute
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