The Lady Hermit (1971)

This is quite a lavish production with some great cinematography and charming special effects from director Ho Meng-Hua, in the upper-mid tier of female-led wuxia from the era.

It seems like it was intended to promote Shih Szu as Cheng Pei-Pei's successor in the wuxia realm, but struggles to make the case because her character here is such a brat. Her character actually has a lot in common with Zhang Ziyi's in CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON (with Cheng Pei-Pei's role inverted), but Shih Szu isn't able to project the same level of vulnerability to offset her arrogance.

Lo Lieh plays a sort of hapless romantic interest, tagging along and doing his best but not really pivotal to events - a role that rather suits him.

Cheng Pei-Pei is, as ever, the true star though, with her infinitely versatile expressions and effortless charm that light up the screen whenever she's on it - even hiding her behind a veil can't dim it.