Director: Tony Lou Chun-Ku
Screenplay: Cheung Kwok-Yuen, Tony Lou Chun-Ku
Starring: Bryan Leung Kar-Yan, Tony Lau Wing, Nancy Hu Guan-Chen, Ku Feng, Lo Meng, Lo Lieh, Eric Chan Ga-Kei, Lau Yuk-Pok, Fong Yi-Jan, Phillip Ko Fai, Eddie Koo Koon Chung
Country: Hong Kong
Running Time: 91 min
Year: 1984
BBFC Certificate: 15
The Hong Kong director, actor and writer Tony Lou Chun-Ku was not previously a familiar name to me, but I’ve watched a few of his films over the past year or two, and he’s fast becoming one of my favourite martial arts movie directors. Holy Virgin vs the Evil Dead was rather silly and messy, but I enjoyed it a lot. Then you’ve got The Lady Assassin, which I thought was a well-rounded, classic case of the Shaw Brothers doing what they do best. Then, only a few days ago, I watched Bastard Swordsman and was blown away. It builds from being a straightforward but decent wuxia to being a batsh*t crazy extravaganza with ‘cult classic’ written all over it. I’m yet to see what is one of Tony Lou Chun-Ku’s most popular titles, Holy Flame of the Martial World, but I’ve heard great things about that too.
Now, 88 Films have switched me on to another gem from the filmmaker, Secret Service of the Imperial Court (a.k.a. Jin yi wei), which they’re releasing on Blu-ray. I checked it out, and my thoughts follow.
To give an idea of what the film is about, here’s the synopsis from 88 Films: “During the Ming Dynasty, the Emperor’s elite Chin Yi Secret Service was created to crush rebellion – but under the corrupt rule of Eunuch Wang Chun (Lau Wing), it has become a weapon of tyranny. Loyal captain Chao Pu-Fan (Leung Kar-Yan) faithfully carries out brutal orders until he realises he’s merely a pawn in Wang’s reign of terror. When he defies the command to murder innocents, Pu-Fan becomes the hunted, forced to fight his own family and the empire itself to reclaim his honour.”
Secret Service of the Imperial Court feels more like a classic Shaw Brothers tale, akin to The Lady Assassin, rather than the wilder adventures of Bastard Swordsman and Holy Virgin vs the Evil Dead. That’s not meant to be a derogatory statement though, it’s just a different type of film. Secret Service takes its story and characters seriously but effectively so. There are some rousing moments, as our hero faces near-certain death in the name of justice. Its message that people shouldn’t blindly follow ruthless leaders has never been more relevant, so it all plays very well. As the tragedies mount in the second half, the film becomes quite melodramatic, but again, this is well handled and plays in its favour, adding genuine stakes to the finale.
The film is technically impressive too, with great use of lighting, movement, colour and elements like smoke and fire. It’s also quite sharply edited, making good use of some fairly quick cuts and visual storytelling.
Action fans needn’t worry though – all this talk of drama and cinematic technique doesn’t mean it’s lacking on the martial arts front. In fact, Secret Service is stuffed to the gills with fight scenes, and they’re well choreographed, if not quite as inventive as some of the greats.
The fights are bloody too, giving the feel of a Chang Cheh film, on top of all the po-faced heroism.
Overall then, Secret Service of the Imperial Court is a thrilling, dramatic, bloodstained treat. Shaw Brothers fans should snap this up as soon as they can. Here’s looking forward to the next Tony Lou Chun-Ku release coming my way.
Film: 
Secret Service of the Imperial Court is out on 26th January on region B Blu-Ray, released by 88 Films (pre-order it here). It looks good, with lovely colours and a sharp, clean print. It looks possibly too clean, with very little grain and a slightly plastic look in places, but I find that with a lot of these Shaw Brothers releases, so it might be a source issue. I’ve used screengrabs throughout this review to give you an idea of how it looks, though these have been compressed.
You get two audio options, with mono 2.0 tracks for both the Mandarin and Cantonese versions. I opted for Cantonese and, other than the usual issues with harsh S sounds that you get with most Hong Kong films from the era, it was a decent track.
LIMITED EDITION FEATURES:
– O-ring with new artwork by “Jung Fu Bob” O’Brien
SPECIAL FEATURES:
– High Definition Blu-ray presentation in 2.35:1 Aspect Ratio
– Original Mandarin and Cantonese Mono 2.0 audio tracks with newly improved optional English Subtitles
– Stills Gallery
– Reversible sleeve with brand-new artwork from R.P. “Kung Fu Bob” O’Brien and original Hong Kong art
Sadly, the only on-disc extra we get with this is a stills gallery.
I must give a shout-out to Kung Fu Bob for his fantastic cover design though.
So, it’s a vanilla disc, but the film is great, so Shaw Brothers fans should still pick it up.
Disc/package: