The Imperial Swordsman is a 1972 wuxia film produced by Shaw Brothers, starring several lower-tier, mostly B-list members of the Shaw crew, including Shu Pei-pei (the discount Cheng Pei-Pei, because the other more well-known Pei-pei is busy filming The Lady Hermit), Chuan Yuan (in a leading role after playing third fiddle in the previous year's Duel of the Ironfist) and Yue Wai (who only made a dozen movies during her time with Shaw Brothers).
A traitor in the Ming Palace had defected to support the incoming Mongol invaders, taking with him legions and legions of defectors. Now dominating a fort located on top of a cliff, the traitor - and his massive army of bandits and cutthroats - must be stopped. The Ming court responds by sending out their best warriors, the Shi sisters Shi Xue-Lan and Shi Xue-Mei, to organize a covert crew of warriors to infiltrate the fort. Along the way, the sisters attempts to recruit a local drunk and vagabond, Yin Shu-Tang of the beggar clan, who was once a hero and capable warrior, to join their battle for a noble cause.
And that's about it. One (of 83!!!) of many films churned out by Shaw Brothers in 1972, The Imperial Swordsman is among their lower-grade efforts, with a script slapped together in weeks, featuring a bunch of the studios' lesser-known stars. But despite limitations, the movie is all sorts of entertaining, with an intensely long final battle lasting for maybe twenty minutes. Barely 90 minutes in length with a plot as thin as fine silk, and cramming action in probably every corner of it's runtime, it's everything a wuxia fan craving for action could ask for.
The Imperial Swordsman contain examples of:
- Action Girl: The sisters Shi Xue-Lan and Shi Xue-Mei, who can take on loads and loads of enemies without a sweat. Especially the former.
- Arrows on Fire: A flaming arrow shot into the sky from the parapets of the Mongol fort by Yin Shu-Tang is a signal for the gathered La Résistance nearby who opposes the Mongols that the coast is clear and they may launch their attack.
- Badass Bookworm: Minister Fu Bing-Zhong, the main villain and Imperial traitor who defected to the invading Mongols, appears to be a simple magistrate and a non-combatant, but as Yin Shu-Tang and the Shi sisters confronts him in his quarters, Minister Fu grabs his sword, and surprisingly puts up one hell of a fight, giving the three heroes a difficult time.
- Badass Crew: The four Imperial Warriors easily defeats entire armies of bandits and enemy mercenaries with ease.
- Badass in Distress: Yin Shu-Tang gets captured by the Mongols and held in their cliffside fortress partway through the film, and the Shi sisters have to figure a way to bail him out before they can continue their mission.
- Bald of Evil: All four of the Mongol Giant Mook Praetorian Guard warriors are bald, and the most dangerous among the mooks.
- Big Badass Battle Sequence: In the finale, the La Résistance - white-clad martial artists on the same side as the heroes - swarms through the secret entrance of the Mongol fort to back up the heroes, resulting in a massive battle sequence that takes up nearly the entirety of the third act, between loads and loads of extras everywhere in the fort.
- Blood-Splattered Warrior: On Yin Shu-Tang and the Shi sisters during the final battle, after they've slain dozens and dozens of Mongol mooks. Each. It's less noticeable on the sisters however, given their preference of red clothing in all their scenes.
- Carry a Big Stick: Zhi-yu, one challengers trying to confront the heroes, uses a mace with an iron ball on it's tip in an attempt to fight Yin Shu-Tang. He ends up having his weapon knocked out of his hands and quickly defeated. The Mongol Giant Mook fighters use similar (but larger) maces as well.
- Cave Behind the Falls: Part of the bandits' hideout is located behind a (relatively small) waterfall.
- Climbing Climax: The Shi sisters need to climb up a cliff via rope when attempting to infiltrate the Mongol fortress.
- Cutlass Between the Teeth: Shi Xue-Lan bit her sword between her teeth in the final battle while giving Yin Shu-Tang a boost into the air to perform an executing move.
- David vs. Goliath: Invoked when the heroes takes on the hulking Mongolian giant brutes. It helps that formidable as they are, the brutes are Dumb Muscle at worst.
- Destination Defenestration: The tavern battle scene sees Yin Shu-Tang decking several mooks out of the tavern's windows. Said tavern is located facing a cliff, by the way.
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Shi Xue-Mei doesn't survive the final battle, having been mortally injured, dying in Yin Shu-Tang's arms in her final scene.
- The Dividual: The Shi sisters are always together.
- Eye Scream: The last of the Mongol Giant Mook personal guards get his eyes slashed out by Shi Xue-Lan in the final battle, AFTER getting stabbed in the back. But as a testament to the brute's sheer strength, somehow that isn't enough to take him down.
- Fur and Loathing: The higher-ranked Mongol mooks, such as the Giant Mook squadron, are all clad in heavy furs.
- Giant Mook: The Mongol personal guards are a cadre of hulking, muscular, bald-headed thugs dressed in furs and uses massive hammers as weapons. They give the heroes a much harder time in the final battle compared to common mooks, being Made of Iron and can take insane amounts of punishment.
- High-Pressure Blood: All over the place.
- Paper Master: Minister Fu can throw pages from books at his foes, which can slice through wood. Even the heroes are surprised at how dangerous the seemingly-harmless minister is.
- Red Is Heroic: The two Shi sisters are dressed in red in all their scenes.
- Redshirt Army: Or white shirt army... the La Résistance defenders, on the same side as the Imperial crew, are all dressed in white, complete with white headbands. It helps the heroes (and the audience) tell them apart when battling hordes of Mongol mooks and bandits in the final battle sequence.
- Throwing Your Sword Always Works: During the inn ambush, an assassin disguised as a waiter tries attacking Yin Shu-Tang with darts from a distance. Yin however beats him by throwing a sword through his guts.
- Tightrope Walking: After the battle on the cliffside tavern, the Imperial heroes have to escape enemy reinforcements by travessing a chasm, which they achieved by throwing a rope, latching it to a tree on the other side, and then walking across. It's easy for the Shi sisters given how nimble they are.
- Master Swordsman: All four of the Imperial sword-fighters easily qualifies.
- Never Trust a Title: The title might mislead audience into thinking that the film solely focuses on one character. In truth, the Imperial investigation crew consists of four members, all who receive equal amounts of screentime and development throughout the film.
- Rasputinian Death:
- The last Giant Mook, who gets stabbed, slashed, have his eyes cut out, and somehow continues relentlessly trying to attack Shi Xue-Lan. She finally took him down by impaling him on a spike.
- Minister Fu Bing-Zhong, the main villain, dies from getting stabbed multiple times by Yin Shu-Tang, Shi Xue-Lan and Shi Xue-Mei, and somehow still remain standing until Yin delivers a Coup de Grâce in the form of a downward stab delivered from at least fifteen meters above.
- Sword Cane: In the final battle, Yin switches his staff for a more practical sword sheathed in a cane instead.
- Sword Fight: All over the place.
- Wire Fu: Yeah, it's that kind of movie.
- Wuxia
- You Are Already Dead: Yin Shu-Tang's battle against half a dozen black-clad Elite Mooks have him suddenly drawing his sword, making a bunch of flashy moves as his opponents charges forward, and all the moooks suddenly stop moving and remain standing. Yin sheathes his weapon, walks away and ten seconds later, every mook drop their weapons and collapses, dead.
