Another tale from famed Chinese wuxia novelist Gu Long comes to life in The Duel of the Century from director Chor Yuen and Shaw Brothers studios. Despite the swordplay and heroic posturing, this film is more soap opera than kung fu actioner as hidden plots unfold and mysterious characters are revealed as its protagonist searches for clues, much like a kung fu-fighting Sherlock Holmes in China’s golden age. Chor was SB’s leading wuxia filmmaker who had previously helmed many Gu Long adaptations and was thus more than qualified to take on this story surrounding an episode in the life of fictional martial arts hero Lu Xiao-feng. However, the film’s appeal rests more with the knowledge of its source material than with its screen representation which will be difficult for Western viewers to appreciate at face value.
The episode presented was again adapted for film in 2000 with The Duel starring Andy Lau and Ekin Cheng. It deals with a planned duel between two of the martial world’s top swordsmen. Ye Gu-cheng (Jason Pai Piao) challenges Shimen Chui-shiue (Yueh Hua), but questions surrounding his motivations surface. Lu Xiao-feng (Lau Wing), a mischievous and nosey hero with the unique ability to effortlessly lock any opponent’s weapon in the iron grip of his fingers plots with several friends to uncover the truth. Lu begins an investigation that reveals Ye’s life-threatening poisoning, a mysterious Tibetan lama and his clandestine meetings, and a cover-up that leaves a growing trail of dead bodies. As the fated time of the duel draws closer, Lu teams up with Shimen to combat assassins bent on keeping the truth from being revealed until its too late for our heroes to act.
The Duel of the Century is not a recommended movie for your average kung fu movie fan. The story itself overshadows the action, but it’s not engaging enough to make up for it. There is swordplay and high-flying wuxia action, but it’s limited by heavy doses of dialogue-rich intrigue and a combination of trick editing and doubling. Star Lau Wing is neither a martial artist nor proficient screen fighter and his dominant presence sets the tone for the film’s soap operatic atmosphere. The rest of the leading cast is filled out by similarly weak stunt actors including Yueh Hua and Jason Pai Piao. Perhaps the most talented kung fu actors in attendance are Sun Chien and Cheng Lee who are both relegated to non-action roles. That leaves top stuntmen like Yuen Wah and Yuen Bun to pick up the slack in minor roles or doubling duties.
One aspect of this movie that I did enjoy was the idea of having an unarmed hero in a world filled with swordsmen. It turns out that Lu Xiao-feng’s ability to securely grab any weapon wielded by an opponent makes him arguably the top fighter. Also, his casual demeanor is in stark contrast to the austerity projected by his proud peers. But perhaps the most compelling aspect of this movie is a statement made by Yueh Hua’s character where when a misguided assassin from the martial world is threatened by the emperor, he steps in to defend his sword-slinging colleague and essentially declares that the Emperor by birth is of little importance when stacked against a highly-trained knight and therefore is outside of imperial law. Thus, Gu Long establishes that in the martial world, the only real power is found in sword skill, even as he shows how possessing such notoriety comes with its own drawbacks.
Visually, the film is as fanciful and ornate as any Chor Yuen production. Yet seasoned SB watchers will easily recognize the same sets used in other movies. In set and costuming, it’s just more of the same house look with little innovation or adjustment from wuxia productions shot a decade prior. In this way, it’s not hard to see why the genre went into decline at this time. With action that fails to match the outstanding hard kung fu of classic chop sockies from the era and a rather dull mystery plot full of simplistic chatter and plot twists, The Duel of the Century is something more akin to the many swordplay dramas Shaw Brothers went on to produce exclusively for television.
by Mark Pollard
