An old master just finishes forging a sword and his evil student appears. The student cripples the master and takes the sword. The master warns that dark sword will be defeated by golden sword. (That condition makes me ask why the old master made the dark sword in the first place?) Yi Yuan plays the evil student and if you guessed he next starts a killing spree your name must be Captain Obvious.
The female lead is Chang Ching-Ching. She rides in on a horse and then is attacked by a gang in the trees. She initially fights empty handed versus a sword. She then turns a rope trap against her attackers. The result was a fine opening fight. Though this movie is named after a sword there is a good mix of fighting beyond just swords.
The clan meets to decide a course of action. Cut to a tavern and the villain kills a man and woman then delivers their bodies to the clan. Revenge is the only option.
The drama then runs heavy with infighting among the clan, death of a clan member, and more. The action also continues with frequent short fights.
This movie had an international release as I find titles in Italian and German. My copy is a computer MP4 file and I have no memory how I acquired it. It is widescreen and I found English subtitles online. The dialog is dubbed in German.
This movie would only interest a fan of martial arts movies of the golden age from 1967 to 1984. Actually that would be a hard core fan like me who has already watched hundreds of these movies. I have good news for that fan. I recommend this movie and rate it above average. (I rounded up my 6.5 to 7.0 to improve the overall number.) It is on my list to watch again in years to come.
