Rider of Revenge (1971)

A notorious bandit is rescued from death row by a group of villains, not for his own benefit but because they want to know where he hid all the loot. The local magistrate's daughter sets out to hunt them down, and encounters several other characters who are also on his tail, for uncertain motives.

Rider Of Revenge is one of the better wuxia films that Union Films produced in the early 1970's, with a relatively original story and strong characterisation.

Hsiung Ting-Wu was assistant director on several of Chang Cheh's early films, and his first shot at directing reveals an assured hand with a gift for action storytelling. The 20 minute fight in and around an inn in the middle of the film is a fine example of it, with characters and narrative being developed with minimal dialogue. The action is thoughtfully staged, each move contributing to the whole. The film's final fight is much shorter but again well constructed and executed.

Hsiung Ting-Wu only directed a handful of films, one of which is a co-director credit with Chang Cheh on 7 MAN ARMY... which has made me more interested in seeing that particular film than I ever was previously. Whilst still not up to the standards of King Hu's work for the studio, this is one of the few films that at least deserves a seat at the table when they're being discussed.