Last Hurrah for Chivalry
Manadrin title: Hao Xia (Chivarlous Knight)
Golden Harvest, 1978, 108 min.
Director: John Woo
Stars: Wei Pai, Liv Sung Ren, Lee Hoi San
Screenplay: John Woo
Producer: Raymond Chow
Cinematographer: ?
Editor: ?
Available on video (widescreen/subtitled or dubbed) from Tai Seng
"An Eastern Western."
A vicious gang kills a rich man. His son Kao (Lee) goes out for revenge, enlisting the aid of a trusty swordsman (Liv). After the swordsman fails to complete his task, a wandering warrior named Green Sleeves, who has a passion for wine and killing (Wei) decides to help out. Even after the task is completed, things are not what they seem to be as the allies begin to turn against each other and loyalities are tested.
Last Hurrah for Chivalry, while operating under a standard kung fu revenge plot, is a good movie that foreshadows some of Woo's later work, most notably A Better Tomorrow (see Woo's quote below). While some critics (such as Thomas Weisser in his book Asian Cult Cinema) have called Last Hurrah "below par,"
RATING: 6.75
Note: John Woo says this about the film: "Most people didn't like Last Hurrah for Chivalry. In the film, I combined the theatricality of period drama with modern dialogue to write about friendship and chivalry. Historical figures like Jing Ke [who attempted to assassinate the Qing emperor] were my heroes, because they were willing to die for their beliefs. When you see A Better Tomorrow, Chow Yun-Fat's character is the same as the wnadering knight in the film, the one who likes to drink. It's the same character." [from the Hard-Boiled DVD]