The plot deals with a deadly harp (ooooh, scary!) which is in the hands of a witch played by Brigette Lin. Apparently, when Lin plays the harp, a lot of pretty colors come out and people die. So, of course, every clan in the land wants it. And that's the main problem with Deadful Melody (besides a stupid title). There are just way too many characters in the mix -- there are really no heroes to root for or villains to boo. Even though Yuen Biao is the defacto hero of this movie, his status as that character is undermined by some really lame scriptwriting that depends way too much on plot twists rather than plot construction and/or exposition.

If there had been some decent action in this movie, I may have been able to forgive some of its' shortcomings. But the fights here consist mostly of people getting "hit" by badly animated lasers or whatever from the harp. There's next to no real action in here, and as such, there's next to no real excitement or any real reason to watch it unless you are a masochistic fan of Yuen Biao or Brigette Lin.

REVIEW:
Deadful Melody is a classic movie unfairly criticized by hardcore swordsman movie fans. I won't reveal the plot details as to ruin your enjoyment, but I must tell you this is a brilliant movie. Much better than say, SWORDSMAN and FONG SAI YUK. The story brilliantly balances moments of drama, comedy, action and romance.

Brigitte Lin stars with Yuen Biao, complemented by a cast of Hong Kong stars such as Carina Lau (in her only swordsman style movie role) and Wu Ma. Brigitte Lin is wonderful as the sensual lyre playing master. While Yuen Biao is fantastic as the security guard sent out to deliver the magic lyre. The biggest surprise is Carina Lau who is supremely dynamic and manages to even outshine the likes of Wu Ma who is also brilliant.

The direction is also flawless. The magical effects are exhilarating, especially for a Hong Kong movie. The cinematography is fantastic and the storyline is really good.

The test for any movie is it's soundtrack, and I'm pleased to say the soundtrack in this movie is exhilarating. Especially the lyre pieces which are beautiful and haunting.

What can I say? All I can say, is see this underrated masterpiece and enjoy watching this, with fantastic performances all around, brilliant cinematography, an exhilarating soundtrack, flawless direction and a bitter-sweet denouement between the relationship between Yuen Biao and Carina Lau. What more could you want?

The film offers nothing innovative plotwise but benefits from some garish special effects and brooding, horror-influenced visuals (frequent Wong Kar-wai collaborator, William Cheung Suk-ping, was one of the art directors). Like many 90s films of this type, the darker moments are offset by some shrewd satire, invariably at the expense of the power-mad villains (though unlike similar productions from Film Workshop, this independent film lacks overt political subtext). The action scenes are among the liveliest and most bizarre in memory, with numerous flying swordsmen being blasted in atoms by Snow and her lyre. As the avenging "witch" of the piece, Lin offers her imposing screen presence but seems rather hemmed in by this familiar character (who, predictably, spends a great deal of time disguised as a man). In contrast, Carina Lau gives a wonderfully animated performance that is almost matched by veterans Wu Ma (as "The Fire Master") and Lam Wai (as "The Ghost Master"), who obviously relished the chance to play such comical grotesques. The excellent, rousing soundtrack, by James Wong Jim and Mark Lui Chung-tak, includes cues heard previously in the duo's scores for THE MOON WARRIORS and THE SWORD STAINED WITH ROYAL BLOOD.