Biography
He started out as a camera apprentice in Shanghi during the 1920's. He received his first notice as a director with his debut film Angry Tide Of China's Seas [Hong Kong: The Next Dimension]. He found work at the top studios of his time - Great Wall, Cathay, and eventually, Shaw Brothers. The film, The Swallow (1960), was instrumental, in that Martial-arts choreographer Han Ying-Chieh introduced the Trampoline, to give the illusion of incredible leaps and jumps. It has been an integral part of kung-fu films, since then.
His work at Shaw Bros' helped to establish him as one of the genre's leading forces, with the ability to flow from Dramas, Swordplay, to kung-fu films with ease. He even directed a young David Chiang in his first film, the 1960's film The Street Boys. The film Lady General Hua Mulan, was a breakthrough film for the studio, giving actress Ivy Ling-Po a Golden Horse award for her performance. The film The Young Avenger, was pivotal in launching Shih Szu as a leading actress and heir to Cheng Pei-Pei's crown, as top Swordswoman at Shaw studios.
Films like Bells Of Death, The Golden Knight, and (my personal favorite) The Magnificent Swordsman, showed that he had an eye for these types of films, even though they weren't his forte. Working on the Trilogy Of Swordsmanship, gave him a chance to work with Chang Cheh and Cheng Kang, on a film that would be one of his last at Shaw, before leaving to work on such independant films as A Gathering Of Heroes and 2 Cavaliers.
His work at Shaw Bros' helped to establish him as one of the genre's leading forces, with the ability to flow from Dramas, Swordplay, to kung-fu films with ease. He even directed a young David Chiang in his first film, the 1960's film The Street Boys. The film Lady General Hua Mulan, was a breakthrough film for the studio, giving actress Ivy Ling-Po a Golden Horse award for her performance. The film The Young Avenger, was pivotal in launching Shih Szu as a leading actress and heir to Cheng Pei-Pei's crown, as top Swordswoman at Shaw studios.
Films like Bells Of Death, The Golden Knight, and (my personal favorite) The Magnificent Swordsman, showed that he had an eye for these types of films, even though they weren't his forte. Working on the Trilogy Of Swordsmanship, gave him a chance to work with Chang Cheh and Cheng Kang, on a film that would be one of his last at Shaw, before leaving to work on such independant films as A Gathering Of Heroes and 2 Cavaliers.
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My Favorite Films
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