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The Valiant Ones is perhaps the last true wuxia film directed by celebrated filmmaker King Hu, an undisputed master of the genre. Shot back-to-back with The Fate of Lee Khan (but not released until two years later), it stands as a worthy follow-up to his earlier works Come Drink with Me, Dragon Inn and A Touch of Zen.
During the reign of the Jiajing Emperor (Zhao Lei), China’s coastal regions have come under attack by wokou – Japanese pirates under the leadership of the infamous Hakatatsu (Sammo Hung). To combat this threat, the Emperor tasks a trusted general, Zhu Wan (Tu Kuang-chi), with assembling a group of skilled warriors to find and eliminate the pirates. Under the command of General Yu Dayou (Roy Chiao), the band of soldiers – including husband-and-wife sword-fighters Wu Ji-yuan (Pai Ying) and Wu Ruo-shi (Hsu Feng) – set out to draw Hakatatsu, his ally Xu Dong (Han Ying-chieh) and their pirate clan into a series of spectacular showdowns.
Inspired by historical events and featuring several storied figures drawn from Chinese history, The Valiant Ones is a standout wuxia film produced during the dying days of the genre, as audience tastes were shifting towards more grounded kung fu cinema.
The Masters of Cinema series is proud to present the film on Ultra HD Blu-ray from a 4K restoration.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Limited edition O-Card slipcase featuring new artwork by Grégory Sacré (Gokaiju) [2000 copies]
4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray presentation, presented in Dolby Vision HDR from a 4K digital restoration of the original negatives gifted by director King Hu to the Hong Kong Film Archive
Uncompressed original Mandarin mono restored from the original soundtrack negative
Optional English subtitles newly translated for this release
Brand new audio commentary by Asian film expert Frank Djeng (NY Asian Film Festival)
Tony Rayns on The Valiant Ones – Brand new interview with critic and Asian film expert Tony Rayns
Tsar of all the Wuxia - a new video essay by David Cairns
The Life of a Lucky Stuntman – Brand new interview with stuntman Billy Chan
My Father and I – Brand new interview with actor Ng Ming-choi
Memories of Hu – Archival 2003 interview with Roger Garcia (Hong Kong International Film Festival Society) by Frédéric Ambroisine
Archival 2003 interview with actress Hsu Feng by Frédéric Ambroisine
Archival 2016 interview with actor Ng Ming-choi by Frédéric Ambroisine
A collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Jonathan Clements
Zhao Lei