Director: Hsu Tseng-Hung

A few moments of Wang Yu madness creep into the film to enliven things, but this is mostly a hard slog to get through.

At the end of the day, ‘Temple Of The Red Lotus’ works as more of a historical artefact than a genuinely exciting swordplay feature.

If you enjoyed the previous two films or perhaps have an affinity for the more old fashioned Shaw Brothers movies, then you’ll no doubt find something to appreciate in ‘The Sword And The Lute’.

While it hasn’t aged well in comparison to ‘Come Drink With Me’ and even some of Chang Cheh’s early work, it still proves to be a mildly diverting Shaw Brothers’ swordplay film.

‘The Twin Swords’ isn’t the type of Shaw Brothers production that will appeal to everyone, mainly due to its fairly dated style that lacks the superior fight choreography.

Perhaps the greatest flaw found within this well-made, yet uninspiring swordplay film is its reliance on theatrical melodrama rather than tension or real emotion.