Imagine mincing the subtle comedy of Dragon Inn with the sprawling epic of his late 70s films. Add a small dose of extremely distinct choreography, and that is Tian Xia Di Yi or All the King's Men in English. There are a lot of familiar faces in the film such as Golden Swallow or Cheng Pei-pei from Come Drink With Me as well as Tian Feng who plays the ill emperor.
If you follow King Hu's films, you will easily see a lot of hidden themes, usually meant to be criticisms on the mainland government, which can be seen in this magnificent epic written by no other than Wu Nien-Jen, who wrote some of the greatest screenplays including A City of Sadness and Yi Yi for some of the most famous Taiwanese directors. This film is another indicator of why King Hu is truly the master of martial art films, and there would never be another one like it again.
If you follow King Hu's films, you will easily see a lot of hidden themes, usually meant to be criticisms on the mainland government, which can be seen in this magnificent epic written by no other than Wu Nien-Jen, who wrote some of the greatest screenplays including A City of Sadness and Yi Yi for some of the most famous Taiwanese directors. This film is another indicator of why King Hu is truly the master of martial art films, and there would never be another one like it again.