Genre: Drama

Overall this is an interesting, thoughtful collection of stories that shows promise. Yet it is once again a film whose historical significance leaves more of an impression than the material therein.

Chor Yuen is once again painstaking in his vision of the visual ambience of the martial world, while he also gets fine performances out of his cast.

‘The Shadow Boxer’ is a fairly standard affair as offered by the Shaw Brother’s studio and is unable to elevate itself to compete with the likes of the classic ‘Boxer from Shantung’ and the exceptional ‘The Water Margin’.

While it fails to ignite the screen, ‘The Shadow Whip’ does offer some moments of interest – especially during its opening twenty minute period.

Wong sets the screen alight with a stunning array of kicking that nearly steal the entire film. For this reason – and the assurance that this is a good film – ‘The Shaolin Plot’ is solid entertainment.

‘The Show Must Go On’ is still packed with bone-dry humour juxtaposed with moments of gripping tension, a feat that should not be underestimated.

Although nobody could say ‘The Silent War’ has a vice-like grip on the viewer, it features a few moments of genuine excitement and gathers quite a momentum by the final third.

Kwan’s performance is a reminder that he will always be the epitome of the senior Wong Fei Hung and ‘The Skyhawk’ is a superior example of his talents.

After being subjected to western productions where kids are annoyingly precocious and completely uninteresting, ‘The Story Of Xiaoyan’ reminds us that there are valid stories about youth to tell.

During a period where comedy punctuated every kung-fu flick of the time, director Patrick Tam creates a very sombre martial arts drama and never allows the tension to drop.

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’.

It’s a languid, leisurely swordplay film that advances at a glacial pace and is defiant in doing so. Yet that is, along with the crisp cinematography, its greatest strength.