Dao (1995)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Hark Tsui

Writers:

Koan Hui (writer)
Hark Tsui (writer)

Release Date:

21 December 1995 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Drama | Action

Plot:

After the master of the Sharp Manufacturer saber factory abdicates and appoints On, his least popular worker...

Plot Keywords:

Hong Kong | Sword | Martial Arts | Remake

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Xin Xin Xiong	...	Fei Lung
Moses Chan	...	Iron Head
Man Cheuk Chiu	...	Ding On
Valerie Chow	...	Prostitute
Collin Chou	...	On's Real Father (as Sing Ngai)
Jason Chu
Michael Tse
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Chi Fai Chan
Ray Chang
Ricky Ho
Veronique Kaneta
Charles Shen
Sonny Song	...	Ling
Nei Suet	...	Ling (middle age)
Austin Wai	...	Master of Sharp Manufacturers

Also Known As:

The Blade (Hong Kong: English title) (USA)
Do (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)

Runtime:

Germany:101 min

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Cantonese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Philippines:R-18 | Australia:MA | Germany:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18

Company:

Golden Harvest Company

Goofs:

Continuity: The tattoos on Fei Lung's chest disappear when Ding On throws the blade at his throat in the finale.

Movie Connections:

Remake of Dubei dao (1967)

Also known as The Blade, said to be very influential in HK

Apparently, this is quite difficult to see in theatres. I managed to, but it is on video. I imagine that on video, the subtitles are as difficult to read as the ones in "A Chinese Ghost Story" (Another Hark title). Many of the fight scenes are, like the other title, shot on a set in near total darkness with some artificial light as "moonlight". Again, on a screen, beautiful, but on video, a bit hard to see. There is A LOT of fighting, chopped arms legs and heads. (What do you expect, with the action centered around a knife/sword factory?) It's so violent that after a while I found myself laughing to relieve the tension. And the spewing blood can be comical. Like many of these movies, even the "good" guys have questionable motives.

I was interested in this because I'd read that Hark stopped production in the middle because of one of the actress's complaints and rewrote it from a woman's perspective. Still, the main female character is whiny, silly and sheltered, little more than a typical HK plot device to get fights going. I found her character very annoying.

Plot: 4 of 10, fight scenes 8 of 10 IF you can see them on a large screen. Subtitles are lousy, but not really necessary.