Newly available on Blu-ray from Eureka’s Classics range is the thrilling 1968 Shaw Brothers production The Bells of Death. This sweeping and superbly choreographed tale of revenge, directed by the experienced Yueh Fang, is a prime example of the swordplay epics popular in Hong Kong in the years before the arrival of the kung fu craze of the ’70s.
The movie’s opening credits are reminiscent of the spaghetti westerns so prevalent at the time, as a group of horsemen thunder across the plain and a sub-Morricone soundtrack accompanies them. These riders are quickly identified as the villains of the piece as they attack and kill the family of the hero Wu Fei (Chang Yi). Within minutes, the plot is firmly established, and from that point on, bloody retribution is the order of the day – and boy, does it impress.
The film is a blatant remake of the superb 1966 Steve McQueen western Nevada Smith, but is none the worse for that; the villains are tracked down one by one and dispensed with by the hero, who we first meet as a humble woodcutter but who ultimately becomes the very epitome of a grim avenger with extraordinarily developed swordsmanship skills. This makes for a thoroughly entertaining adventure film which deserves to be seen by audiences previously unaware of its existence.
This Blu-ray release contains an English language dub of the film, but traditionalists can relax as there is a splendid subtitled version available too, plus the expected audio commentaries by afficionados of classic Hong Kong cinema that Eureka should be applauded for including on their discs.
If you are new to the wuxia films of the era, then you will be pleased to know that there are plenty more to come as the year progresses, and they can’t be recommended enough.
