I recently reviewed the one solo Shaw Brothers effort by Taiwanese director Lee Tso-Nam, but a year earlier the man who would go on to be a major filmmaker in independent martial arts cinema co-directed this atmospheric swordplay effort. While it never quite clicks in the way that might be hoped, this proves to be a lesser-known Shaw Brothers film worth tracking down.
A former maid to the palace who escaped entombment with her employers is discovered by various clans seeking the Eternal Night-Shining Pearl, a priceless treasure. Alongside the pearl are numerous other treasures that were buried forty years before, and though the maid has forgotten their location, the revelation of her identity stirs considerable interest. Among the parties who are interested are a sanguine swordsman, a team of female fighters, and a gang of bandits who think nothing of betraying one another to get to the booty.
Clocking in at a barely feature-length 77 minutes, ‘Imperial Tomb Raiders’ takes a while to hit its stride, but soon forms into a tidy little feature. It may have very familiar intrigue and double-crosses – par for the course for many genre flicks – but it fills the cast with interesting characters and punchy dynamics between them. The second half, where the narrative becomes siege-based, is excellent and creates genuine tension. Kudos as well to the misty mountain setting, which gives the proceedings a look that differs from many of its contemporaries.
Ironically, despite the slow start, one of the unusual aspects of the film is just how wildly paced it all is, something that slips into the way it’s shot. I’m not sure if the joint directors were on double espressos during the shoot, but the editing is certainly, shall we say, intense. Some shots last seconds, while the use of power zooms would make Chang Cheh look like Andrei Tarkovsky. It takes a little bit of getting used to, that’s for sure, but eventually settles down as if it were the style of one of the directors and the other then took over. Whatever the behind-the-scenes story, ‘Imperial Tomb Raiders’ is very enjoyable.
