| Legendary Chinese director King Hu had a surprisingly small output, given his master’s reputation. This, though, maybe only be my own bias when compared next to Chang Cheh and Lau Kar-leung’'s output, who have directed well more than a dozen movies each than Mr. Hu in about the same time period (Mr. Chang directing nearly 100 movies himself!). Nevertheless, in 1979, King Hu directed two movies that are often mixed up. One is a ghost story, 'Legend in the Mountain', and the other is 'Raining in the Mountain', a heist movie with a Zen sensibility.
In the guise of doctors willing to help a dying Abbot in a temple, a greedy Esquire and his thieving 'concubine' enter the temple with the intention of stealing a priceless scroll. Life in the temple is not so simple, as the different characters deceive, suspect and accuse each other of various bad deeds. The plot unfolds intelligently, breathing naturally but never getting long.
Slow and steady, the editing follows the movie until something happens, then the editing really speeds up, emphasizing the importance of the event. The announcement day, for example, has fast editing, catching your attention, telling you something's going to happen. The announcement, true to intention, surprises everybody.
In the best Hitchcockian tradition, Mr. Hu introduced a maguffin: the scroll. Its secrets are worth dying for, or, at least, killing for. It's never really explained, other than its contents being important. It drives the plot, being at the centre of everything, though you never know what it is. People try to steal it, fight for it and want its secrets, and at the end of the movie we still don't really know why it’s so important. The message, though, isn't what’s important.
The movie definitely has veiled criticisms of government and its constituents. The temple as a microcosm of life in the real world is fairly thin and idealistic, but it's nice to see. The different monks have different flaws, though some crave, say, power more than others. The only slightly unrealistic thing is that the truly enlightened individual gets to be the boss, but the characters do share meaning. It's interesting to watch, nonetheless.
This may not be King Hu's best, but it's fun to watch. The plot unfolds intelligently, and you get the right information at the right time, without it seeming contrived. The style is definitely something to watch. The slow and assured camera moves only come when a director knows what he's doing, and Mr. Hu isn't called a master for nothing.
OVERALL: The movie is pretty good and any fan of either King Hu or old school Hong Kong flicks. The cinematography is great and the picture is a joy to watch. King Hu showed he could still do nice movies... |
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