"Heroic Grace" catalog - UCLA Film & Television Archive

FRIDAY MARCH 14
BLOOD BROTHERS [CI MA]
Hong Kong 1973 Director: Zhang Che
This widescreen epic of love, loyalty and betrayal is based on actual events surrounding the assassination of a general in the waning
years of the Qing Dynasty (late 19th century). According to the story, the general was killed by one of his right-hand men who was
avenging a brother. This retelling finds David Jiang Dawei (David Chiang) and newcomer Chen Guandai as bandit brothers who befriend
the mercenary warrior Di Long (Ti Lung) after trying to rob him. The stage is set for tragedy when Di Long falls for Chen’s neglected wife.
BLOOD BROTHERS represents a turn by Zhang toward ever-greater psychological complexity. Di Long is no longer a happy-go-lucky
fighter (Chen Guandai inherits that role), but a brooding, tormented man. And as the female lead and fulcrum of the love triangle, Jing Li
gets to play a role with more depth than almost any other woman in a Zhang Che film. While her character is typically portrayed as a
heartless temptress in other versions of the story, here she is as conflicted as the men around her.
Nevertheless, the film’s attention constantly returns to the men. From one tortured hero in ONE-ARMED SWORDSMAN (1967) to two in
VENGEANCE! (1970), Zhang now has three protagonists, the better to indulge his passion for the sadomasochistic display of the male
body under duress. This threesome whose devotion grows into jealousy, treachery and revenge prefigures John Woo’s BULLET IN THE
HEAD (1990), and indeed, Woo served as an assistant director on BLOOD BROTHERS.
—David Pendleton
Studio: Shaw Brothers. Producer: Run Run Shaw (Shao Cunren). Screenplay: Ni Kuang, Zhang Che. Cinematography: Gong Muduo. Martial
Arts Directors: Tong Kai (Tang Jia), Lau Kar-leung (Liu Jialiang). Art Director: Quang Sheng. Editor: Guo Dinghong. Sound: Wang Yonghua.
Music: Chen Yongyu. Cast: David Jiang, Di Long, Chen Guandai, Jing Li, Tian Qing.
35mm, in Mandarin with English subtitles, 118 min.
Print Source: Celestial Pictures Ltd.
© Licensed by Celestial Pictures Ltd. (a company incorporated in Hong Kong SAR). All rights reserved.
DAVID JIANG DAWEI (David Chiang)
The son of thespian parents, David Jiang graduated from
child actor to stuntman to superstardom in the early
’70s with a string of box-office hits directed by Zhang
Che , including THE HEROIC ONES (1970), VENGEANCE! (1970)
and THE BOXER FROM SHANDONG (1972). Jiang was frequently
honored for his acting ability as well as his martial
arts skill, and his slender frame, fierce agility and
urbane screen presence further set him apart from the
Shaw Brothers pack. Jiang remains active as an actor in
Hong Kong and Taiwan.
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DI LONG (Ti Lung)
As a young actor Di Long earned the attention of director
Zhang Che, who cast him in RETURN OF THE ONE-ARMED
SWORDSMAN (1969) and later paired him with David Jiang
in such hits as VENGEANCE! (1970), THE NEW ONE-ARMED
SWORDSMAN (1971) and BLOOD BROTHERS (1973). The actor,
a Wing Chun exponent, also headlined a number of the
Chu Yuan-Gu Long films, most notably THE MAGIC BLADE
(1976) and THE SENTIMENTAL SWORDSMAN (1967). After a
career lull in the early ’80s, Di Long made a triumphant
comeback opposite Chow Yun-fat in John Woo’s A BETTER
TOMORROW (1986).