The Eagle Shooting Heroes

Every cliché of the wuxia novel is gathered up and mocked: princesses swearing revenge, villains seeking immortality, sword masters in love with each other, disguises and love letters permanently misdelivered. The plot cannot be followed, and the film intends that. The film is not interested in story. It is interested in seeing the same actors doing the exact opposite of their serious roles: Hong Kong's heaviest stars behave ridiculously here, and the joke comes largely from that familiarity. The form is lavish parody: bright costumes, crude effects, fast cutting and a narrator who keeps interrupting. Its reason for existing is another film. When the budget of Ashes of Time went out of control, Wong Kar-wai decided to shoot a comedy quickly with the same cast in the same period and release it for Lunar New Year in 1993; the aim was to make money and rescue the other production. Both films come from the same novel and their tones are opposites. Jeffrey Lau directed and Wong Kar-wai produced. Leslie Cheung, Brigitte Lin, Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Tony Leung Ka-fai and Jacky Cheung are in the cast. Who it is for: viewers who like Hong Kong comedy and have seen Ashes of Time. Who it is not for: anyone unfamiliar with the genre. Nearly every joke refers to wuxia conventions and to the actors' known images.