1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

Chen Kuan-tai Chen Kuan-tai (; born 24 September 1945) is a Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Ko ...

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

Chang Cheh Chang Cheh (; 10 February 1923 – 22 June 2002) was a Chinese people, Chinese filmmaker, screenwriter, lyricist and producer active in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Chang Cheh directed more than 90 films in Greater China, the majority of them wi ...

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

film noir Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...

Hong Kong New Wave The Hong Kong New Wave is a film movement in Chinese-language Hong Kong cinema that emerged in the late 1970s and lasted through the early 2000s until the present time. Origins of the movement The Hong Kong New Wave started in 1979 with the rele ...

wuxia ( , literally "martial arts and chivalry") is a genre of Chinese literature, Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fantasy literature, its popularity ha ...

Empress Dowager Cixi Empress Dowager Cixi ( ; 29 November 1835 – 15 November 1908) was a Manchu noblewoman of the Yehe Nara clan who effectively but periodically controlled the Chinese government in the late Qing dynasty as empress dowager and regent for almost 50 ...

Qing empire The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

Forbidden City The Forbidden City () is the Chinese Empire, imperial Chinese palace, palace complex in the center of the Imperial City, Beijing, Imperial City in Beijing, China. It was the residence of 24 Ming dynasty, Ming and Qing dynasty, Qing dynasty L ...

tael Tael ( ),"Tael" entry
at the

Han Chinese The Han Chinese, alternatively the Han people, are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the list of contemporary ethnic groups, world's la ...

villagers, is ambushed and staked alive. It falls to Leng to execute his companion and end his suffering. Then Leng hunts down the two bandits to the seaside where they are, once again, ambushed. Soon thereafter, they also discover a highly skilled assassin, Fan Jin-Peng, whom the bandits want to hire to assassinate Leng. Leng ultimately defeats the assassin, but gets injured and loses the older constable, Ma Zhong. Later, the constables are attacked by gang leader Fang Feng-Jia and the remaining bandits. Thanks to the unexpected return of Leng's brother, Leng survives and is carried unconsciously on horseback to the residence of Fang. There he is welcomed by the bandit's blind daughter, Xiao Lan, who tends to his wounds. Later when Fang returns, the two men hide their conflict for Xiao Lan and pretend to be friends. After leaving Fang's home, Fang is wounded by Leng, but he still manages to escape to his hideout. When Leng finds Fang, they are both attacked by a mysterious group of armed men that do not appear to belong to the group of robbers. Fang, dying from the wounds inflicted by Leng, reveals it was Lord Liu that had sent his troops after them and that he in fact arranged for the gold to be stolen. He choose Leng to hunt down the robbers, knowing he would not spare their lives, and in this way hide all evidence. Fang then offers to sacrifice his life in order to let the constable escape. However, this is on the condition that Leng promises to take care of his blind daughter. Leng survives the attack and soon discovers his brother was killed by Lord Liu's troops. A grief-stricken and betrayed Leng seeks vengeance. He succeeds in murdering Lord Liu, but not before he activates a trap mechanism that kills Leng. We are left with the daughter of gang leader Fang waiting in vain for either her father, or Leng, to return.

Cast

Law enforcement and state officials

The outlaws

Themes

Social Inequality

An underlying theme in ''Killer Constable'' is the oppression of the poor and famished

Han Chinese The Han Chinese, alternatively the Han people, are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the list of contemporary ethnic groups, world's la ...

by the corrupt and greedy

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...

ruling class (which include the protagonist). Film historian

David Bordwell David Jay Bordwell (; July 23, 1947 – February 29, 2024) was an American film theorist and film historian. After receiving his PhD from the University of Iowa in 1973, he wrote more than fifteen volumes on the subject of cinema including ''Na ...

points out that the cruelty of class warfare is, as also in many of Kuei's previous works, an important theme in ''Killer Constable'' and quotes director Kuei : “I simply wanted to depict how insignificant commoners are and how, under totalitarian rule, they turn out to be the victims”. Similarly, movie critic John White of the Digital Fix highlights the "dramatic message of a political class which uses the security force/police as its tool for keeping the people oppressed and itself enriched".

Justice

In the 1970s, crime-centered themes gained traction in Hong Kong cinema and, as in the case of ''Killer Constable'', spread into the Kung Fu genre. Researcher Benjamin Freudenberg argues that the figure of the Killer Constable represents "the traditional Confucian fear of mechanic enforcement of the legal text". Film writer Hayley Scanlon similarly states that "Killer Constable is a critique of blind justice... " and that "the only good and true thing in the cruel wold of Killer Constable is the blind daughter of one of the criminals". In one instance constable Ling and gang leader Fang go as far as pretending to be old friends in order to prevent her from finding out the truth, a scene that may have inspired a similar event in The Killer by

John Woo John Woo Yu-sen ( zh, t= ; born 22 September 1946) is a Hongkongers, Hong Kong film director known as a highly influential figure in the action film genre. The recipient of various accolades, including a Hong Kong Film Awards, Hong Kong Film Award ...

.

Production

''Killer Constable'' was produced by the

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

using a Hong Kong-Korea co-production construct. Filming occurred in Hong Kong and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

and included a Korean assistant director Kim Seon-Gyeong. Several Korean actors picked up minor rolls, such as Kwan Yung-Moon. An altered version of ''Killer Constable'', 노명검 (''The No-myung Sword''), was made for the Korean market, with different scenes, extended runtime and altered plot. For the main character of the ''Killer Constable'' director Chih-Hung Kwei has explained that he was influenced by '' Doctor Zhivago'': "I love Dr. Zhivago. In Killer Constable, I want to create a character like Zhivago. Despite his position in the high court, the protagonist is a righteous man. Yet in the corruption and poverty-stricken era at the end of the Qing dynasty, there is not much good he can do on his own. Hence he is deluded by society and lives his life foolishly. " Lead actor

Chen Kuan-tai Chen Kuan-tai (; born 24 September 1945) is a Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Ko ...

had previously left

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

in a contract dispute, but was available as he re-joined

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

in 1978. He had starred as the lead in earlier successful movies directed by Chih-Hung Kwei, such as '' The Teahouse'' (1974) and ''

Big Brother Cheng Big Brother Cheng is a 1975 sequel to the Hong Kong hit crime drama '' The Teahouse'' directed by Kuei Chih-Hung Kuei Chih-Hung (桂治洪, aka Kwei Chi Hung, Gui Zhi-Hong, Gwai Chi-hung) (20 December 1937 – 1 October 1999) was a filmmak ...

'' (1975), that also share the same screenwriter Szeto On. The movie marks the start of the long-time collaboration of Chih-Hung Kwei with cinematographer Lee San-Yip, who would film nearly all of his following movies such as the Hex series and ''

The Boxer's Omen ''The Boxer's Omen'' (魔, ''Mó'', ''Magic'') is a 1983 Hong Kong horror film directed by Kuei Chih-Hung and produced by Shaw Brothers Studio. It is sometimes described as a sequel to '' Bewitched (蠱)'' (1981), also directed by Chih-Hung. ...

''. During shooting, director

Kuei Chih-Hung Kuei Chih-Hung (桂治洪, aka Kwei Chi Hung, Gui Zhi-Hong, Gwai Chi-hung) (20 December 1937 – 1 October 1999) was a filmmaker who worked for the Hong Kong-based Shaw Brothers Studios, directing more than 40 films throughout the late 1960s, 19 ...

aimed for a large degree of realism. In a 2002 interview,

Chen Kuan-tai Chen Kuan-tai (; born 24 September 1945) is a Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Ko ...

has stated that "We were using real weapons" in ''Killer Constable'' and that a fellow actor chopped off his right-hand pinky finger when shooting a fight scene. Actor

Austin Wai Austin Wai Tin-chi (13 August 1957 – 4 October 2012) was a Hong Kong actor and choreographer. He was the elder brother of actress Kara Wai. He had notable roles in the martial arts films like ''The 36th Chamber of Shaolin'', '' 5 Superfighter ...

was originally panned to star in ''Killer Constable'', but had to leave due to a severe back injury.

Release

''Killer Constable'' ran in Hong Kong theaters from 28 March 1980 to 3 April 1980. At the 5th edition of the

Hong Kong International Film Festival The Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF) is one of Asia's oldest international film festivals. Founded in 1976, the festival features different movies and filmmakers from different countries, and takes place in Hong Kong. HKIFF screens ...

, it was selected as one of eight feature films of the ''Hong Kong '81'' section and was also part of the special retrospective on ''A study of the Hong Kong swordplay film''. The Korean version of ''Killer Constable'', ''The No-myung Sword'', opened in cinemas on 20 March 1981. ''Killer Constable'' was also theatrically released in

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

under the title ''Der gnadenlose Vollstrecker'' in 1981. The US theatrical release occurred four years after the release in Hong Kong, under the title ''Karate Exterminators'', in November 1984 by distributor World-Northal Corporation (World Wide Entertainment), who also managed the US television broadcast rights.

Reception

''Killer Constable'' has been lauded as Chih-Hung Kwei's masterpiece and one of the best movies to emerge from the Shaw Brothers studio. Author Stephen Teo labels it as "... one of the best Shaw Brothers wuxia films of the eighties..." in this book 'Chinese Martial Arts Cinema – The Wuxia Tradition' and movie critic John White of the Digital Fix argues 'This is one of the best films Shaw Brothers ever made'. The

Hong Kong Film Critics Society The Hong Kong Film Critics Society (HKFCS; Traditional Chinese: 香港電影評論學會), founded in 1995, is the peak organization of film critics and professionals in Hong Kong. It is also a member of FIPRESCI. Objectives The objectives of the H ...

included ''Killer Constable'' in their list of "The Best 200 Chinese-language Films". Contemporary reviews, such as those in the popular Hong Kong movie magazine , praise the carefully crafted atmosphere through set photography and martial arts arrangements. In a modern review, Matthew Le-feuvre o
cityonfire.com
gives the film a 9/10 rating and finds that "the real beauty is within the film’s iconography". Similarly,

Grady Hendrix Grady Hendrix is an American author, journalist, public speaker, and screenwriter known for his best-selling 2014 novel '' Horrorstör''. He lives in Manhattan, and is one of the founders of the New York Asian Film Festival. Life and career Hend ...

notes that the cinematography of Lee San-Yip shows a "style that found its strength in his harshly geometric compositions, stylized lighting, and Lee’s uncanny ability to shoot coherent action in near-total darkness." A less favorable view was given by 135 readers o
LoveHKFilm.com
who voted 'Killer Constable' to place 100 in a ''Top 100 Hong Kong Films of the Eighties''. More critical reviews argue the movie has an uneven quality, in particular finding the fight choreography lacking. However, film critic David Chute praises the sword battle scenes in the 1993 issue of Asian Trash Cinema.

Box office

''Killer Constable'' was no box office success and grossed HK$984,108.50 (approximately 176 000 US$) at the Hong Kong box office, becoming the 74th-highest grossing Chinese film of the year 1980. In

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

, 28 548 tickets were sold in

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, grossing approximately (about ).

Home media

VHS

In the US market, home video releases of ''Killer Constable'' emerged that were not sanctioned by the Shaw Brothers, some appearing under the title ''Lightning Kung Fu''.

GoldStar GoldStar was a South Korean electronics company established in 1958. The corporate name was changed to LG Electronics and LG Cable on February 28, 1995, after merging with LG Chem, Lucky Chemical. LG Cable was spun off from LG Electronics and ch ...

Home Video released a Korean version of ''Killer Constable'' in 1986.

DVD

Blu-ray

References

External links

* * *
Killer Constable
' at

Hong Kong Cinemagic Hong Kong Cinemagic, sometimes referred to as HKCinemagic, was a bilingual ( French and English) website providing a repository for information about Chinese language films from Hong Kong, China and Taiwan, and the people who created them. The we ...

*
Killer Constable
' at the

Korean Movie Database The Korean Movie Database (KMDb; ) is a South Korean online database of information related to Korean movies, animation, actors, television shows, production crew personnel and other film-related information. Overview KMDb was first published ...

{{Kuei Chih-Hung Kung fu films Hong Kong martial arts films 1980 martial arts films 1980 films Shaw Brothers Studio films Films set in 19th-century Qing dynasty Hong Kong films about revenge 1980s Mandarin-language films 1980s Hong Kong films

Plot

Cast

Law enforcement and state officials

The outlaws

Themes

Social Inequality

Justice

Production

Release

Reception

Box office

Home media

VHS

DVD

Blu-ray

References

External links