Hong Kong in the 1970s was ruled by kung fu. At the forefront of the kung fu movement was the legendary Shaw Brothers studio. There was no shortage of films, as the studio churned them out, all with similar looks, made with a similar cast of characters, but all achieving a good level of quality.
Over the years many of these films have taken on classic status in their native land, as well as with martial arts aficionados around the world, thus making names like Lau Kar Leung, Chang Cheh, King Hu, Gordon Liu, Wei Pai, and Ti Lung household names — at least, household names among those with the love.
The Magic Blade is a 1976 outing directed by Yuen Chor (brother of the more famous Yuen Woo-Ping, who has worked on films such as The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), a director who is well respected, yet not nearly as well known as many of the others (I admit to not being aware of him prior to seeing this film). Is it a good movie? Yes and no. It is definitely memorable for its oddness.
At its heart, The Magic Blade is a Clint "Man with No Name" Eastwood-styled film about a noble hero on a quest to keep the land safe from evil. Of course, it is a quest that is not without its dangers; there are plenty of twists along the way to keep you guessing, not the least of which is the plot itself.
As the movie opens, a brash young swordsman, Yen Nan-fei (Lo Lieh), arrives at an inn in the dark of night. With his arrival a celebration begins; however, it is cut short with the arrival of a man in the shadows, a man with a grudge against Yen. The shadowy figure is revealed to be Fu Hung-hsieh (Ti Lung). The two men begin to duel, but before they can finish they are interrupted by Wood Evil and Earth Evil. The oddly named assassins emerge from a tree stump and beneath the dirt, respectively. At this point, I began scratching my head.
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