Although my initial response to The 8 Diagram Pole
Fighter was more or less lukewarm, particularly in the wake of watching so
many Lau Kar Leung-directed masterpieces, it’s a film whose massive effect on
the kung fu cinema fanbase has always intrigued me. I know, I know. The fact
that I don’t adore this film automatically makes kung fu fans want to defang me
like a wolf. Still, it’s a film that often stretches itself thin with its
ambitions in some small ways.
As a narrative, The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter is an
epic. Its story around the Yang family, the performances of its characters -
mainly the pronounced trauma of its initial two leads, Gordon Liu and Alexander
Fu Sheng, and its incredibly agile and dynamic fight work make it the true
classic Shaw picture. If anything, it's almost too ambitious at times and so
many of its secondary plots and themes tend to fade out. A phenomenal one scene
appearance by director Lau Kar Leung as a hermit adds so much intriguing back
story to the main plot, but it’s brushed over. They make the best of it,
particularly in how the performances mesh with the emotions that feed into the
action, but there is always a sense that the limits of its budget and other
factors prevent this one from freeing its soul in complete glory.
Not to mention, The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter also had
to deal with the horrific tragedy that one of its leads passed away during
production. Despite this, it is a fairly effective and thought-provoking take
on the aftermath of the Yang family massacre, a story that has seen a multitude
of cinematic representations throughout the years. Had Alexander Fu Sheng, who
died in a car accident during filming, been allowed to finish the film, The
8 Diagram Pole Fighter would have been even more effective in its story.
Rather than having to substitute in one of the Yang sisters, played with scene
stealing finesse by Kara Hui, it could have completed his character arc.
Not that the final act is a mess because of it. On the
contrary, Lau Kar Leung manages to pull it off with the littlest friction
possible. The final battle is one of the most iconic ones for the studio with
stacked coffins and enough dental trauma to make me schedule a cleaning this
week, but it also manages to tie in a few key pieces around its main themes
concerning violence, peace, and the role of good men who do nothing.
This is not the first time this film has seen a US release,
previously being granted a fairly impressive Dragon Dynasty DVD release and for
those of us with international tastes, 88 Films dropped a UK edition that was a
solid step up. Yet, this latest Arrow Video version comes out swinging its own
pole to vie for being the best release. It’s a brand new 2K restoration of the
film’s negative (meaning we can see the true Shaw Brothers logo sequence from
the time period!) and a slew of extras exclusive to this disc. The short film,
A Tribute to Fu Sheng, is a nice touch on the features, but Rayns retrospective
and commentary by Clements end up being the highlights of this release and fans
of Shaw Brothers who may already have prior releases will want to add this one
for those reasons.
While my own enjoyment of The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter
has certainly warmed over the years, it’s nice to see this impressive
standalone release from Arrow Video. It has already achieved its untouchable
classic status over the years and seeing it in this new 2K restoration with all
of the analysis makes it worth continuing to look at. With its incredible
performances, impressive fight sequences, and thematic punch, it’s hard to
knock The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter when it’s knocking your teeth
out.
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