Well GO USA
Release Date: Jan 9, 2024
Hidden in some secret valley are untold riches, and for The Flying Swordsman (雪山飞狐之塞北宝藏 / The Hidden Fox) to find it, he will have to defeat other treasure seekers for it! They’re all after this pirate’s bounty, as I like to call it, but for Hu Yidao (Ben Ngai-Cheung Ng) who is the sacred guardian of an iron box that contains the key to finding this place, he won’t give up those secrets easily!
Emperor Tian Guinong (Gang Wang) wants it and even tries to trick this master into giving it up. However, the people he sends die, and time passes where its legend only grows. This setup is rather mighty, because without a knowledge of this history, this film feels like every other wuxia style motion picture I’ve seen. What’s different about this work is a storytelling technique rarely used. Lots of flashbacks reveal what was, as Tao Baisui (Ray Lui) embarks on the same quest. As for what’s presented, it’s a very stylish martial arts film where the heroes and villains are very much involved in a game of hunting each other down!
There are eight bad guys Tao will have to face as he comes closer to locating the treasure. As he navigates deeper into the Feihu Mountains, he’ll have to figure out who The Hidden Fox—the reincarnation of Hu—is. Fortunately for him, this individual is only protecting the box; unfortunately for others, they’re just going to run into “The Flying Swordsman,” hence this film’s title.
Ultimately, this movie plays out like a video game on steroids. The lavish imagery and mountainous setting makes for some great cinematic moments by today’s generation of consoles, and I’m reminded of the classic PS2 game Bushido Blade. Each of these skilled warriors is exceptional with their fighting prowess and with a unique weapon. There’s Guiyu (Huawei Zhao) with his choice of massive swords, Qingwen (Yusi Chen) has a chain whip, Zhou Yunyang (Yi Yang) is a sharpshooter, Butler Sai (Zichong Zhao) a bow and arrow, and I won’t spoil the rest. There’s also Zheng Sanniang (Zihan Chen) and Yinji (Jia Fu) to round out the list. What’s played out nearly hits the same level of dedication Quentin Tarantino put in Kill Bill, and in some ways,
Although I did not read the novel to which this film is based on, I’ll have to seek the publication out. The 1959 wuxia story Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain by Jin Yong has a kindle edition (Amazon link) for those wanting to read the original tale.
Also, I must interject by saying I’m amused that this release follows the release of Eye for an Eye: The Blind Swordsman (movie review link). As far as I can tell, these works are not related. In China, this motion picture was released over the Summer, and it’s now Winter in North America, which feels much more appropriate given the setting where this story is set in.
The movie may well escape many wuxia fans’ notice, and while it could do with a shorter run-time, what’s presented is still classic action at its finest. The only thing unusual about this release is that for the home video product, there’s only the DVD (with no bonus material) whilst on Well GO USA’s Hi-Yah network, it’s been reported by others that it can be viewed in 1080p.
3½ Stars out of 5
The Flying Swordsman Movie Trailer
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