''The Hidden Power of the Dragon Sabre'' is a 1984 Hong Kong ''

wuxia ( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted f ...

'' film directed by

Chor Yuen Chor Yuen (), born Cheung Po-kin (; 8 October 1934 – 21 February 2022), was a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter, and actor. Chor is credited with over 120 films as director, over 70 films as a writer and over 40 films as an actor. Early ...

and produced by the

Shaw Brothers Studio Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. () was the largest film production company in Hong Kong, and operated from 1925 to 2011. In 1925, three Shaw brothers— Runje, Runme, and Runde—founded Tianyi Film Company (also called "Unique") in Shangh ...

. The film is a spinoff of

Louis Cha Louis Cha Leung-yung (; 10 March 1924 – 30 October 2018), better known by his pen name Jin Yong (), pronounced "Gum Yoong" in Cantonese, was a Chinese wuxia ("martial arts and chivalry") novelist and essayist who co-founded the Hong Kong dail ...

's novel ''

The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber ''The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber'' (), also translated as ''The Sword and the Knife'', is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It is the third and final installment in the ''Condor Trilogy'', preceded by ''The Legend of the Condor Heroes ...

''.

Plot

The film is a spin-off of the original story of ''

''.

Zhang Wuji Zhang Wuji () is the fictional protagonist of the ''wuxia'' novel ''The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber'' by Jin Yong. Fictional character biography Zhang Wuji's parents are from opposing sides of the ''wulin'' (martial artists' community). His ...

retrieves the Heaven-reliant Sword and the Dragon-slaying Saber and places them in the

Ming Cult The Ming Cult is a fictional cult and martial arts sect featured in the ''wuxia'' novel ''The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber'' by Jin Yong, first published in serial form from 1961 to 1963. It is also briefly mentioned in ''The Legend of the Cond ...

's headquarters. He carves the inscriptions from the '' Nine Yang Manual'' on the walls of a secret chamber and asks his godfather Xie Xun, who has become a monk, to help him guard the chamber. Zhang returns the original copy of the manual to the

Shaolin Sect The Shaolin Sect is a fictional martial arts sect mentioned in several works of ''wuxia'' fiction. It is one of the largest and best known orthodox sects in the '' wulin'' (martial artists' community). Its base is in Shaolin Monastery, Henan, Chi ...

. Song Qingshu, a defeated villain from the original story, returns and starts a reign of terror. He traps a beautiful Mongol princess and masters a new

Yin and Yang Yin and yang ( and ) is a Chinese philosophy, Chinese philosophical concept that describes opposite but interconnected forces. In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the c ...

-combined martial arts technique, becoming almost invincible. Zhang Wuji has to put an end to Song Qingshu's rampage.

Cast

Derek Yee Derek Yee Tung-sing () is a film producer, director and a former Shaw Brothers actor from Hong Kong. Early life Yee was born Yee Tung-sing in Hong Kong on 28 December 1957, the son of Yee Kwong (爾光), a film producer from Tientsin (Tianjin), ...

Ti Lung Ti Lung (born 19 August 1946) is a Hong Kong actor, known for his numerous starring roles in a string of Shaw Brothers Studio's films, particularly '' The Blood Brothers'', '' The Avenging Eagle'', ''Clans of Intrigue'', '' The Duel'', ''The Senti ...

as Tiezhen *

Alex Man Alex Man Chi-leung () is a Golden Horse Award-winning Hong Kong actor. Born in Hong Kong to Hakka parents, Alex Man became a television actor for ATV in the 1970s. He joined TVB Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) is a television bro ...

as Song Qingshu *

Cherie Chung Cherie Chung Chor-hung (; born 16 February 1960) is a retired Hong Kong film actress. Of Hakka ancestry, she was one of the top actresses in Hong Kong film during the 1980s. Background Chung participated in the 1979 Miss Hong Kong competition an ...

as Mongol princess *

Leanne Liu Liu Sue-Hua, also known as Leanne Liu, is a Golden Bell Award-winning Hong Kong actress. She first starred in Shaw Brothers films in Hong Kong, but moved to Taiwan in the 1980s to focus on her television career. She is particularly famous for ap ...

Zhou Zhiruo Zhou Zhiruo () is one of the two female lead characters in the wuxia novel ''The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber'' by Jin Yong. Jin Yong describes Zhou Zhiruo's physical appearance as "beautiful, pure and free of worldly traits".Quote: 清麗秀� ...

Ku Feng Chan Sze-man (born 3 July 1930), better known by his stage name Ku Feng, is a Hong Kong actor. Background He studied in Beijing, and has appeared in hundreds of films, many of which were produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio Shaw Brothers ( ...

Zhu Yuanzhang The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328 – 24 June 1398), personal name Zhu Yuanzhang (), courtesy name Guorui (), was the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty of China, reigning from 1368 to 1398. As famine, plagues and peasant revolts in ...

Lo Lieh Wang Lap Tat (June 29, 1939 – November 2, 2002), better known by his stage name Lo Lieh, was an Indonesian-born Hong Kong film actor and martial artist. Lo was perhaps best known as Chao Chih-Hao in the 1972 martial arts film ''King Boxer'' ...

as Xie Xun * Lung Tien-hsiang as Wei Yixiao * Dang Wai-ho as Yang Xiao *

Yuen Wah Yuen Wah (born Yung Kai-chi; 2 September 1952) is a Hong Kong action film actor, action choreographer, stuntman and martial artist who has appeared in over 160 films and over 20 television series. Early life Born Yung Kai-chi on 2 September 1950 ...

as Fan Yao *

Elvis Tsui Elvis Tsui Kam-kong (born October 12, 1961) is a Hong Kong actor and artist. Tsui is primarily known for his roles in erotic films and martial arts films, where he's more often cast as villains. Some of the famous characters he has portrayed repe ...

as Weizhen * Kwan Fung * Yeung Chi-hing * Shum Lo * Yuen Bun * Lam Wai * Hung San-nam * Ko Hung * Tam Bo * Lee Fat-yuen

References

External links

* * 1984 films Films based on works by Jin Yong Hong Kong martial arts films Works based on The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber Wuxia films Films set in the Yuan dynasty Shaw Brothers Studio films Films about rebels Films directed by Chor Yuen 1980s Hong Kong films {{1980s-HongKong-film-stub