Member ShaOW!linDude Posted September 4, 2011 Member Share Posted September 4, 2011 Found this on Twitch today. This looks to be a little more old school and more to my liking. No evidence of wire-work........yet. http://twitchfilm.com/news/2011/09/three-clips-from-xu-haofengs-the-sword-identity.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator One Armed Boxer Posted September 5, 2011 Moderator Share Posted September 5, 2011 Damn...this new Hong Kong Cinema forum is pesky, I just read the same article on Twitch and went to post about it in the Modern Martial Arts forum, but suddenly remembered I better check here first just in case...and sure enough you've beat me to it! No evidence of wire-work........yet. No evidence of any action either! I agree with one of the comments that someone has made on the Twitch article, this almost looks like a post-war Japanese movie in it's style and feel....not a bad thing at all, and it certainly looks a lot more interesting than the recent 'The Grandmasters' trailer which was released, written by the director of this movie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member ShaOW!linDude Posted September 5, 2011 Author Member Share Posted September 5, 2011 It does have kind of a post-war Japanese feel to it. And there's not a lot of action revealed in those 3 clips but I think the 1st one hints of a good build up to some. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member OpiumKungFuCracker Posted September 5, 2011 Member Share Posted September 5, 2011 Wire- work is cool if it's done in a sci-fi action style of the 'Matrix.' If it's a modern day Martial Arts movie then it kind of bothers me if wire-work is done... What's even more bothersome than wire work action is freaking CGI, I FUCKING HATE CGI in action movies.... I'd rather babysit Justin Bieber then to sit through some bullshit CGI sh!t fest, it's the worst!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member OpiumKungFuCracker Posted September 5, 2011 Member Share Posted September 5, 2011 Ok I take that back, I really don't mind anything now.. As long as the story is good/pacing and well choreographed action scenes then go CGI all the way... I can't be that Jaded guy anymore.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member daisho2004 Posted September 5, 2011 Member Share Posted September 5, 2011 Yeah this is a movie I'll be looking forward to seeing! But I think this is a Korean made movie and its in the wrong section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DiP Posted September 5, 2011 Member Share Posted September 5, 2011 First clip echoes The Lost Bladesman somewhat but looks more similar to Japanese samurai flicks. The movie is Chinese-produced. The dialogue is spoken in Mandarin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member daisho2004 Posted September 6, 2011 Member Share Posted September 6, 2011 Its looked like a Korean film based on the Costumes of the period setting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator One Armed Boxer Posted September 6, 2011 Moderator Share Posted September 6, 2011 Official trailer is out - 7BOXvMcHLFY Its looked like a Korean film based on the Costumes of the period setting. Definitely nothing Korean about this movie, it's directed by the writer of Wong Kar Wai's long awaited 'The Grandmasters', Xu Haofeng, is Mandarin language spoken by Chinese actors, and as the newly released plot synopsis reveals, is set in China - Once upon a time in the Southern Chinese city of Guancheng, there lived four families, each of them faithful keepers of martial arts. Anyone who wanted to establish a new school, or a new form of kung fu, had to fight his way through the family's gates. Two swordsmen enter the city to request a competition and start their own school, their strange new weapons are mistaken for Japanese swords and therefore forbidden by purist Chinese masters as a foreign fighting device. They are accused of being Japanese pirates by the masters of the martial arts schools. Facing arrest, the swordsmen must prove the value of swordsmanship by defeating the masters and a living legend who has returned from exile in the mountains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator One Armed Boxer Posted September 11, 2011 Moderator Share Posted September 11, 2011 The guys over at Twitch have posted a very encouraging review of this movie - http://twitchfilm.com/reviews/2011/09/tiff-2011-the-sword-identity-review.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member BaronK Posted September 13, 2011 Member Share Posted September 13, 2011 Looks like another heavy handed mainland film. Somber, bleak looking, sad, but a film, not a martial picture or flick. Don't look for Legend Of A Fox or anything here. Its story and character and not action or choreography. Looks good visually and feels japanese in style. That was mentioned in the review. Action looks 70s japanese sword style as well as interpretive rather that peking opera choreography style. Can't say I have any interest in it but nothing these days has anything for me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWeVE7iytl8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qil36xpsKE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Sheng Posted November 11, 2011 Member Share Posted November 11, 2011 Saw this the other day at the HK & Asian Film Festival and it’s the sort of film that’s probably best classified as a meticulously composed Jiang Hu stageplay. Artfully shot in what looks like an old, unrestored water town and using a variety of interesting camera angles to good effect, the whole movie comes across as quite theatrical and stagy. Lots of demonstrational sword moves, Chanbara-like freeze-falls, stony faces, long, suspenseful silences, terse, poetically charged revelations that slowly sketch out the background story, y’all get my drift. Midway through things gets a tad too grotesque and farcical and you’re almost thinking that this is going to be a deconstruction or a travesty of the wuxia genre. Director Xu Haofeng, himself a novelist, MA practitioner and film crit according to the festival catalogue (he wrote the script for Wong Kar Wei’s eternally-in-progress-work THE GRANDMASTERS) basically tells the age-old tale of a cocky young swordslinger, his unmatchable sword and that one deadly, lightning-fast move that can take out any opponent (meaning the fight action you do see sometimes only lasts milli-seconds. There were some quite spectacular knock-outs where I wished they had a slo-mo repeat button installed on the armrests of the comfy leather seats of the IFC mall theatre in Central!). Song Yang gives a remarkable debut performance as the stoic and mysterious young swordsman / challenger who’s mistakenly taken for a Japanese pirate and white-bearded Sifu Yue Sing-Wai (he was in the original SHAOLIN TEMPLE and in LKL’s SHAOLIN MARTIAL ARTS) simply owned this flick, performing his incredibly fluent sword moves like he was… well, on a theatre stage. There’s no wirework, no (overtly visible) CGI, no gore. An austere, highly aestheticised, artistically satisfying but emotionally sometimes strangely uninvolving reading of wuxia conventions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member David Rees Posted July 2, 2012 Member Share Posted July 2, 2012 Having seen a trailer for this film some time ago i really wanted to see it, but it seems to have vanished from view. Does anybody know of a dvd release of this or any other way to see it. Here is a review from Twitch. http://twitchfilm.com/reviews/2011/09/tiff-2011-the-sword-identity-review.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jinha Posted July 2, 2012 Member Share Posted July 2, 2012 Lionsgate is releasing a dvd of it in August The Sword Identity dvd preorder at amazon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Sheng Posted July 2, 2012 Member Share Posted July 2, 2012 Not sure if this was ever blessed with an "official" release in HK, think its been mainly restricted to festival showings. Saw it at last year's HK and Asian film Festival where the response was somewhat luke-warm... http://www.kungfucinema.com/forums/showthread.php?p=178761 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member luckystars Posted November 11, 2012 Member Share Posted November 11, 2012 I would love to see this film. It's a shame theres no English friendly Blu-ray out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted November 12, 2012 Administrator Share Posted November 12, 2012 Saw this the other day at the HK & Asian Film Festival and it’s the sort of film that’s probably best classified as a meticulously composed Jiang Hu stageplay. Artfully shot in what looks like an old, unrestored water town and using a variety of interesting camera angles to good effect, the whole movie comes across as quite theatrical and stagy. Lots of demonstrational sword moves, Chanbara-like freeze-falls, stony faces, long, suspenseful silences, terse, poetically charged revelations that slowly sketch out the background story, y’all get my drift. Midway through things gets a tad too grotesque and farcical and you’re almost thinking that this is going to be a deconstruction or a travesty of the wuxia genre. Director Xu Haofeng, himself a novelist, MA practitioner and film crit according to the festival catalogue (he wrote the script for Wong Kar Wei’s eternally-in-progress-work THE GRANDMASTERS) basically tells the age-old tale of a cocky young swordslinger, his unmatchable sword and that one deadly, lightning-fast move that can take out any opponent (meaning the fight action you do see sometimes only lasts milli-seconds. There were some quite spectacular knock-outs where I wished they had a slo-mo repeat button installed on the armrests of the comfy leather seats of the IFC mall theatre in Central!). Song Yang gives a remarkable debut performance as the stoic and mysterious young swordsman / challenger who’s mistakenly taken for a Japanese pirate and white-bearded Sifu Yue Sing-Wai (he was in the original SHAOLIN TEMPLE and in LKL’s SHAOLIN MARTIAL ARTS) simply owned this flick, performing his incredibly fluent sword moves like he was… well, on a theatre stage. There’s no wirework, no (overtly visible) CGI, no gore. An austere, highly aestheticised, artistically satisfying but emotionally sometimes strangely uninvolving reading of wuxia conventions. Wow Sheng, you nailed it. You really put this film into descriptive words perfectly. It's a strange one. Though I loved watching Sifu Yue Sing-Wai, I kept thinking that the really deep, true meaning of certain things was going to eventually be revealed, but then... nothing. Don't get me wrong- there are some wonderful themes and revelations/observations within the story. But it felt like the film was a big, grand sweeping gesture to... not a whole lot. Much ado about nothing... I was left feeling a bit empty afterwards, despite the fact that it seemed at the start to be something that would be profoundly filling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Sheng Posted November 13, 2012 Member Share Posted November 13, 2012 Just had my DVD ordered on Chinese Amazon, Bob. Meaning there are elements here that I feel worthy of studying longer (and in slo-mo), so therefore I decided I should own this film despite my reservations... As I tried to explain, esthetically this is an accomplished film. Now, I love sword posing almost as much as sword fighting. You get my drift when you think of the picture perfect swordsman postures in Patrick Tam’s THE SWORD, in Ching Siu Tung’s DUEL TO THE DEATH, in Joseph Kuo’s SWORDSMAN OF ALL SWORDSMEN or in a slew of Chor Yuan wuxia readings. Those sequences alone can give me chills, honestly. And at least in this respect I didn’t feel shortchanged by SWORD IDENTITY. But then, after the pose there’s the lightning-fast strike, the fall and... finito! Still, the austerity at display is not without merits, but the execution is so mercilessly meticulous and over-stylised that emotional involvement with the plot or the characters is difficult to develop. BTW, I’m as much in awe of Yue Sing Wai as you are. The man is the epitome of charisma and I honestly don’t think that his swordskills have ever been matched by any other screenfighter, active, retired or dead! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted November 14, 2012 Administrator Share Posted November 14, 2012 Just had my DVD ordered on Chinese Amazon, Bob. Meaning there are elements here that I feel worthy of studying longer (and in slo-mo), so therefore I decided I should own this film despite my reservations... I get it. As I tried to explain, esthetically this is an accomplished film. Now, I love sword posing almost as much as sword fighting. You get my drift when you think of the picture perfect swordsman postures in Patrick Tam’s THE SWORD, in Ching Siu Tung’s DUEL TO THE DEATH, in Joseph Kuo’s SWORDSMAN OF ALL SWORDSMEN or in a slew of Chor Yuan wuxia readings. Those sequences alone can give me chills, honestly. And at least in this respect I didn’t feel shortchanged by SWORD IDENTITY. But then, after the pose there’s the lightning-fast strike, the fall and... finito! Still, the austerity at display is not without merits, but the execution is so mercilessly meticulous and over-stylised that emotional involvement with the plot or the characters is difficult to develop. Yeah, I'm feeling that too. But it was nearly all foreplay, then out the door without even a kiss goodnight. One of my forum friends (who shall go unnamed- YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE! ) PM'ed me, busting my balls about what I wrote here. Basically he said "What's with all your poetic crying? If there's great action, who cares about the deeper stuff?". The thing is, if the filmmaker is going to take a high falutin' stance on the subject, which is the case with THE SWORD IDENTITY, then he'd better deliver the goods in a very deep way. If I'm watching a basher I don't expect anything but bashing. But if it's a basher where no one gets hit... then we've got a problem. Know what I mean? BTW, I’m as much in awe of Yue Sing Wai as you are. The man is the epitome of charisma and I honestly don’t think that his swordskills have ever been matched by any other screenfighter, active, retired or dead! I think that when he goes up against Jet Li and Yu Hai's mantis fists at the climax of MARTIAL ARTS OF SHAOLIN (1986), it's one of the coolest end fights ever! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member phoenix_darshan Posted January 6, 2013 Member Share Posted January 6, 2013 I second SHENG's review a 100%, I didnt mind the arty-farty-ness of it, but was left empty after the movie, seeing its great potential and its many shortcomings. When I do not identify with any of the characters apart form the wheel-barrow resting master, that is usually a bad sign for the grippiness of the movie. Aesthetically and cinematically this is eye orgasm but the plot really did not live up to my explanation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Travis Posted January 6, 2013 Member Share Posted January 6, 2013 Here is a funny video from the movie I came across on youtube. It is funnier if you understand Filipino though. CxL8dQMUG8I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator thekfc Posted January 13, 2013 Moderator Share Posted January 13, 2013 Here is a funny video from the movie I came across on youtube. It is funnier if you understand Filipino though. CxL8dQMUG8I BOOM!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member reason108 Posted March 31, 2017 Member Share Posted March 31, 2017 I have not been a fan of recent HK cinema and feel that it fails to live up to past glories. After being convinced by Judge Archer that I was getting a fresher take on things, I finally got around to renting The Sword Identity. This is a solid effort for the first time director, Xu Haofeng. Yeah, it got a little bogged down in the middle but it was worth it. Though, it would have been better to get some Lau Kar-leung extended fights, at least what there is, is set in reality. I really am tired of seeing people flying through the air. The stand-out in the film is certainly Yu Cheng-hui. Loved his part as the tired old master. Too bad that he passed away in 2015. The movie really reminds me of a King Hu-esqe directed film but with better fight scenes. Really looking forward to The Final Master. My only disappointment is that Lionsgate are the ones releasing this. So, there were no extras on the disc other than trailers. Perhaps there was no making-of or behind-the-scenes but I would have liked to see at least behind-the-scenes on the fight choreography. And, it sucks that this is not available on blu-ray at the present time. I think this movie deserves a bigger audience and hopefully people will discover it. I will add this to my short list of modern films that I care to watch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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