Iron Swallow (1980)

Several aging men who covered up a crime ten years prior become the target of a mysterious woman bent on revenge. Two young men related to the culprits, but previously unaware of their crimes must choose sides.

When it comes to great kung fu movies, there is usually just one of two demands; give us incredibly good screen fighting or incredibly exploitive excess. But few would list a good story as important. No one seems to have told the makers of Iron Swallow which opts to deliver on quality kung fu and a compelling narrative. It doesn’t always work, but the combination ultimately proves to be a success in producing characters with real motivations and a tense finale.

The title suggests a knockoff of Chang Cheh’s wuxia blood-soaker Golden Swallow (1968) starring Cheng Pei-pei and Jimmy Wang Yu. It does share a couple of similarities, but this is not wuxia pien. Chia Ling is a capable successor to Pei-pei and her character uses a similar dart as a calling card. Everything else is different. The film appears to be a standard kung fu actioner at first, but moments of unusually artful direction, character-driven plot, and a story turn it into a gradually unraveling crime drama rather than just another ninety minutes of mindless action.

Revenge is once again the driving force behind the plot, but it’s presented with a tad more complexity than usual. A cold-hearted woman named Tin Yen (Chia Ling) begins attacking several aged and defenseless men. With knife in hand she mercilessly blinds one, slices off the ears of another, and does worse to a third. It’s revealed that these three aided kung fu instructor Hsiao Tien (Yee Yuen) in covering up his rape of a woman and murder of her husband ten years prior. As Tin and a mysterious ally close in, Hsiao hires a professional killer to dispense with his wounded friends and deal with Miss Yen. Stuck in the middle is Hsiao’s son Tu Lung (Don Wong Tao) and his student Ko Fang (Ting Wa-chung), who have been kept in the dark about the crime until now. Their friendship is put to the ultimate test when Ko Fang discovers that it was his real parents who suffered at the hands of Hsiao while Tu Lung struggles to remain loyal to his father. A final and tragic confrontation with Tin Yen and Ko Fang against Tu Lung and his father takes place in a secluded forest.

This film contains several great moments, but it should be made clear that Iron Swallow suffers from many of the same problems that similar independent features do. Production values are low, voice acting on the dubbed version is hokey, and when the action stops and people start talking it becomes difficult to maintain interest. That may be enough to turn away casual viewers, but a little patience rewards with several excellent duels in the second half and a satisfying payoff in the end.

The choreography is old school all the way with only a touch of superhuman leaping here or there. There is a lot of acrobatic flipping and all of the deadly moves employ the use of knives. Action director Wong Wing-sang doubles as Yee Yuen’s memorable lead henchman with a shaved forehead. He has a stupendous fight with Chia Ling and Ting Wa-chung midway through. As usual, Chia is on fire and delivers the film’s best kung fu performance with great kicking and complex sparring, topped off with her piercing gaze and solid acting. She plays an unflinching killer to perfection and this makes the film’s title all the more appropriate. Don Wong Tao is the film’s second biggest star who has a smaller role, but gets several opportunities to show off a few good moves. Less impressive is Ting Wa-chung who has the critical role of a disenchanted kung fu student who turns on his master, but doesn’t do much with it. Yee Yuen as the lead villain is more complex and treacherous then your average baddie, preferring to act friendly while directing others to do his dirty work.

Iron Swallow has a few large gaps with little action apart from Chia or Wong maiming or killing non-combatants, but the film makes up for it in the afore-mentioned emphasis on story and on some nice directorial touches. Early on there are some great slow-mo scenes with Chia graphically making her initial attacks. These are reminscent of Chang Cheh’s stylized slow-mo scenes in films like Vengeance! and Have Sword, Will Travel. An unfortunate difference is the poor choice of accompanying orchestral music which is generic and too cheerful for the scene. It’s easy to see how these scenes could have had twice the impact with some eerie organ or synth music. The camera work is often a cut above the standard with great perspective and tilted shots. The editing is also more deliberate than usual. A perfect example is near the end as Chia attempts to dissuade Wong from fighting right before the final battle. The scene is repeatedly juxtaposed by Don Wong Tao and Yee Yuen relentlessly cutting a path through the forest to meet with their foes.

This film is a real gem with Chia Ling, one of the genre’s best female screen fighters in top form. Iron Swallow has a little bit of everything, except romance. There’s even a wee bit of humor. In the English version there’s a line where an older gentleman literally tells his nagging wife to put a sock in it. But for the most part, the film plays it raw with bloody violence, a hard-boiled story, and a grim ending sure to satisfy.