Dao (film)
Encyclopedia
The Blade is a 1995
Hong Kong
martial arts film
directed by Tsui Hark
. The Hong Kong
film is notable for its unusual style which includes dramatic close-ups, employment of color gels, frenetic camera use during the fight sequences and overall dark tone.
The Blade is a loose remake of Chang Cheh's
1967 film The One-Armed Swordsman.
) is an orphaned worker at a blade factory called "Sharp Foundry", working alongside many others, including Iron Head (Moses Chan
). An old master, On's dead father's friend, runs the factory while his daughter, Ling, who narrates the film, is romantically interested in both On and Iron Head.
One day when out delivering the swords On and Iron Head witness a monk fending off a bunch of thugs, who later ambush and kill the monk in retaliation. Iron Head, furious, yells out the name of the factory, swearing revenge and taunting the thugs.
Later that day, On discovers that his father died while saving his master from Fei Lung (Xiong Xinxin), an infamous tattooed assassin who is rumored to be able to fly. Intent on seeking revenge, On takes his father's broken sword (the titular Dao) and goes off.
Ling goes after him, but gets assaulted by a local gang of bandits. On manages to save her, but loses his right arm in the process and ends up falling off a cliff.
He is later found and nursed back to health by a poor hermit-farmer girl he calls Blackie. Thinking himself now useless, he abandons his hopes for revenge, buries his father's sword and tries to live a normal life. Meanwhile, Ling and Iron Head set out to find On, with Ling all the while narrating her disillusionment with people and her ideals, becoming especially poignant after Iron Head "saves" a prostitute who he later takes advantage of.
Meanwhile, On endures ridicule for being a "cripple" while working in a diner, building up his frustration. He also spots the heavily tattooed man who he recognises as his father's assassin, but is unable to take action and is further frustrated. To add to his trouble, the house he lives in is assaulted by thugs who torch it and beat On mercilessly. Afterward, while searching for food within the wreckage, Blackie finds a singed Kung Fu manual hidden there by her parents. On, excited, tries to learn the techniques described in it, but is unable to obtain a good sword and digs up his father's broken sword instead. Due to his injury and the book's incompleteness his efforts are futile at first, but when driven to rage by his frustration On suddenly makes a breakthrough, developing a devastating spinning technique allowing him to compensate for lack of an arm and his broken weapon.
Hong Kong films of 1995
A list of films produced in Hong Kong in 1995:.-1995:-External links:* * Hong Kong films of 1995 at...
Hong Kong
Cinema of Hong Kong
The cinema of Hong Kong is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China, and the cinema of Taiwan...
martial arts film
Martial arts film
Martial arts film is a film genre. A sub-genre of the action film, martial arts films contain numerous fights between characters, usually as the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often as a method of storytelling and character expression and development. Martial arts are frequently...
directed by Tsui Hark
Tsui Hark
Tsui Hark , born Tsui Man-kong, is a Hong Kong New Wave film director and producer. He is viewed as a major figure in the Golden Age of Hong Kong cinema .-Early life:...
. The Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
film is notable for its unusual style which includes dramatic close-ups, employment of color gels, frenetic camera use during the fight sequences and overall dark tone.
The Blade is a loose remake of Chang Cheh's
Chang Cheh
Chang Cheh was Shaw Brothers Studio's best known and most prolific film director, with such films as the Five Venoms, the Brave Archer , the The One-Armed Swordsman, and other classics of wuxia and kung fu film.-Career:Referred to as "The Godfather of Hong Kong cinema", Chang Cheh directed over 100...
1967 film The One-Armed Swordsman.
Plot
Ding On (Vincent ZhaoVincent Zhao
Vincent Zhao Wenzhuo , sometimes credited as Chiu Man-cheuk, is a Chinese actor and martial artist. Zhao is best known playing the role of Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung in the Once Upon a Time in China film and television series.-Early life:Zhao was born in Harbin, Heilongjiang, China, as the...
) is an orphaned worker at a blade factory called "Sharp Foundry", working alongside many others, including Iron Head (Moses Chan
Moses Chan
Moses Chan Ho is an award-winning actor from Hong Kong. Having started his career working mostly on films, Chan has gained remarkable success in recent years while concentrating on his TV acting career with Television Broadcasts Limited...
). An old master, On's dead father's friend, runs the factory while his daughter, Ling, who narrates the film, is romantically interested in both On and Iron Head.
One day when out delivering the swords On and Iron Head witness a monk fending off a bunch of thugs, who later ambush and kill the monk in retaliation. Iron Head, furious, yells out the name of the factory, swearing revenge and taunting the thugs.
Later that day, On discovers that his father died while saving his master from Fei Lung (Xiong Xinxin), an infamous tattooed assassin who is rumored to be able to fly. Intent on seeking revenge, On takes his father's broken sword (the titular Dao) and goes off.
Ling goes after him, but gets assaulted by a local gang of bandits. On manages to save her, but loses his right arm in the process and ends up falling off a cliff.
He is later found and nursed back to health by a poor hermit-farmer girl he calls Blackie. Thinking himself now useless, he abandons his hopes for revenge, buries his father's sword and tries to live a normal life. Meanwhile, Ling and Iron Head set out to find On, with Ling all the while narrating her disillusionment with people and her ideals, becoming especially poignant after Iron Head "saves" a prostitute who he later takes advantage of.
Meanwhile, On endures ridicule for being a "cripple" while working in a diner, building up his frustration. He also spots the heavily tattooed man who he recognises as his father's assassin, but is unable to take action and is further frustrated. To add to his trouble, the house he lives in is assaulted by thugs who torch it and beat On mercilessly. Afterward, while searching for food within the wreckage, Blackie finds a singed Kung Fu manual hidden there by her parents. On, excited, tries to learn the techniques described in it, but is unable to obtain a good sword and digs up his father's broken sword instead. Due to his injury and the book's incompleteness his efforts are futile at first, but when driven to rage by his frustration On suddenly makes a breakthrough, developing a devastating spinning technique allowing him to compensate for lack of an arm and his broken weapon.