Three swordsmen come to the aid of oppressed farmers who are driven to kidnap the local magistrate’s daughter in hopes of securing reforms.
The Magnificent Trio is a faithful remake of an earlier Japanese chambara film entitled Three Outlaw Samurai. Comparisons to this superior original are inevitable, but Chang Cheh’s version holds its own with swashbuckling choreography and solid performances from the leads.
Since Hong Kong filmmaking had been lagging behind both Japanese and Western production standards, Shaw Brothers had begun to draw on influences from Japan to raise the bar. They even went so far as to hire Japanese cinematographers and directors to work on their productions or provide consultation. But for The Magnificent Trio, they borrowed the story of oppressed farmers being aided by swordsmen. This premise is also similar to Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai.
A wandering swordsman named Lu Fang (Jimmy Wang Yu) who is returning from battle discovers that several farmers have kidnapped the local magistrate’s daughter. He sides with them after learning that this is an act of desperation to improve their low standard of living. The magistrate hires bandits and another fighter named Huang Liang (Cheng Lui) to get his daughter back. Huang recognizes Lu as a comrade in arms and joins him in fending off the bandits. The standoff comes to an abrupt end when the magistrate uses one of the farmer’s daughters as leverage to get his own daughter back. Lu convinces the magistrate to punish him in place of the farmers, but he’s lied to. The magistrate’s daughter (Chin Ping) and a fighter in his employ (Lo Lieh), along with Huang help Lu to escape. Once recovered, our heroes return to see that a petition from the farmers gets to a higher-ranking official.
This is a fairly sedate film by Chang Cheh’s standards. Of course this is 1966 and his manic bloodletting became more pronounced over the years, but the story itself also keeps him and the action in check. This isn’t such a problem for the Japanese version because chambara viewers expect more drama and historical context. But Cheh isn’t able to handle the drama or historical elements with enough subtlety or clarity.
Early acting performances from Jimmy Wang Yu and Lo Lieh are interesting to see, but they both go on to star in many, far better roles that are more suited for their abilities. The women in the film including the lovely Chin Ping receive top billing although they remain mostly in supporting roles.
Unlike many of the popular Chinese swordplay films being produced at this time, this one is less epic in scope and more focused on a very localized conflict. Japanese filmmakers excel at this type of scenario, but this and the adherence to a pre-fabricated story seems to only stifle the bold and exuberant Chang Cheh style. The film even opens with an explosive bout during the credits that is accompanied by a rousing march, but that proves to be a little misleading in tone. There are a number of good sword fights accompanied by the occasional wire-assisted leap or darts being tossed to the sound of piercing whistles. Expect to see plenty of arrow perforation and bloodied torsos. Yet, nothing stands out as particularly memorable.
The Magnificent Trio is a modestly entertaining film on its own. Without the same level of outrageous action seen in other Hong Kong films of the era, the typical flaws such as artificial sets, stagy costumes, and overacting become more pronounced. This is especially true when it is literally a scene for scene copy of a better Japanese version.
by Mark PollardRelated Topics:
The Magnificent Trio (1966)
