Master Swordsman [TV] (2003)

The first half of a 40-episode TV series from Singapore is condensed into a 3-hour wuxia film about swordsman detective Lu Xiaofeng (Jimmy Lin) and his friends who investigate a plot to steal hidden treasure of the Jin Peng kingdom.

Tai Seng continues their custom repackaging of Asian martial arts TV series for Western audiences with the release of Master Swordsman, an elaborate wuxia mystery based on a Gu Long novel previously made into two older series, as well as the feature film The Duel (2000). It’s an ambitious effort for a TV series originally released in 2001 that brings together big-name talent in front of and behind the camera with cinematic direction, elaborate choreography, and impressive set design. Kung fu movie legend David Chiang even has a sword duel. Sadly, a lot of uninteresting dialogue is interspersed with a scattered jumble of heavily-edited swordplay while Tai Seng’s condensed version makes a royal mess of an already complicated story.

You really can’t blame Tai seng for failing in the hopeless task of squeezing 20 hours of soap opera swordplay into three, but they should have considered another option. They botched Donnie Yen’s Fist of Fury (their first attempt), but managed better with it’s prequel Sworn Revenge and Donnie’s previous series, The Kung Fu Master. But these two were relatively simple kung fu sagas, whereas Master Swordsman is based on a beloved and complex wuxia novel from Gu Long. Anyone who has seen a Chor Yuen-directed wuxia film like The Web of Death knows that means convoluted plots of intrigue, esoteric martial arts, and a lot of colorful characters.

Master Swordsman is bewildering to begin with and never recovers, although some semblance of a plot can be discerned. What matters is that a swordsman and talented sleuth named Lu Xiaofeng (Jimmy Lin) begin investigating a plot to steal a royal treasure after the king of the Jin Peng kingdom dies. A map leading to its whereabouts ends up in the hands of his loyal aid Yin Zhengdao (David Chiang). The dead king’s other aid desires the treasure for himself and Lu soon finds himself caught up his elaborate scheme to get the gold by manipulating court officials and masked assassins. That’s simply the framework for the story which is filled out with a dizzying array of characters, both good, bad or somewhere in between such as Lu’s friend, Ximen Chuixue (Christopher Lee), a brooding sword god who successfully bests one duel after another until he’s nearly undone by love.

For certain the series is undone by the severe cropping of the episodes. Since hours of footage is omitted, supporting characters awkwardly show up out of nowhere or disappear with no explanation while events never seen are referred to and supposedly important objects shown have little relevance. This is essentially a soap opera with action, so drama, relationships and character development is vital, but is ruined here. The dialogue scenes that do appear have little meaning and are hard to follow. What’s almost comical is how repetitious elements within the series that would normally go virtually unnoticed spread out through 20 episodes become stacked within mere minutes apart of each other. One example is the constant killing of just about every lackey in the series.

The plentiful action scenes fare no better. The directors, who include Black Mask helmer Daniel Lee, do bring a cinematic style to the series’ martial arts scenes. They are full of inventive camera work, wirework, and fancy posing from mostly non-martial arts actors. But the scenes amount to little more than a ridiculous series of blisteringly-fast snapshots showing sword tips, limbs, or randomly inserted imagery that is impossible to follow or enjoy. This is definitely Lee’s handiwork and is comparable to the sloppy work he offered in Star Runner (2003). This post-New Wave excrement is served up with shameless handfuls of Japanese Chambara references like blood geysers, limb cleaving, and skewered swordsmen hitting the dirt in a delayed and synchronized show while the main fighter stands motionless in an exaggerated pose for what seems like an eternity. The Japanese connection is pretty strong all around in this series with Chinese “ninjas” and shurikens turning up all over the place, while even the Ming-era costumes and sets bear a certain resemblance to Japanese styles (something also pointed out with historical context by Tai Seng’s Frank Djeng in a commentary on the film.)

Looking at the cast, David Chiang is by far the most exciting member for old school buffs. He gets in on the action, but only appears for the first hour. The best action lead role goes to Christopher Lee, a popular actor from Singapore who plays the moody Ximen Chuixue (the last name being properly pronounced just like a certain male discharge). No one needs to be a good martial artist in a classic wuxia tale, but they should be able to sell themselves with presence and body language. Lee succeeds very well. In contrast, Taiwanese pop star Jimmy Lin with his little fake mustache is a joke as a heroic sword master. He does try to fill the role, but his boyish looks and persona can’t be masked in a role meant for an older individual. He also performs the theme song for the series. Stunt actor and choreographer Xiong Xin-xin has a small role as a backstabbing assassin. The rest of the cast who hail from all parts of Asia including China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan features a few recognizable faces like Max Mok (The Assassin) and Kenneth Tsang (Die Another Day), along with a number of attractive leading ladies.

Kudos to Tai Seng for bothering to even attempt to subtitle and release martial arts TV series from Asia, which are otherwise only available for home viewers on VCD with no English subtitles. But as is, Master Swordsman wasn’t worth the effort. Daniel Lee’s awful direction shreds potentially good action scenes while Tan Seng’s heavy trimming turns the series into a confusing highlight reel. It doesn’t help that the original series is marketed to audiences presumably already well-versed in Gu Long’s popular stories. Without the ability to connect to the characters or follow the story, the end product is just tedious. Only hardcore wuxia enthusiasts need apply.