Come Drink with Me

Dir: King Hu

1966

****

King Hu's 1966 martial arts extravaganza Come Drink with Me is a true kung-fu classic. A clear influence on every martial arts film made since, it marked a new best in the wuxia genre. It is set towards the end of the Ming dynasty but there is also an element of Shakespeare about the story. A general's son is captured by a group of bandits who at first are the assumed good guys, it is only when his sister, the general's daughter, comes to rescue him is it clear she is the intended hero of the story. At first she is assumed by all that she is in fact a he. This isn't clear to the viewer at first as it is pretty clear that she is in fact a she, but if it worked for the bard then I guess they thought they could get away with it. Thankfully everyone acknowledges her sex before it gets too annoying and the amazing kung-fu action begins. It's consistently inventive, exciting as well as suspenseful and it never skimps on the blood and gore. I don't always like the humour used in in old kung-fu movies, much of the time it doesn't work but here it is subtle and somewhat refined. It has a particularly cheerful musical number that I found to be quite an unexpected delight. I can see a lot of it in the work of Takeshi Kitano and Quentin Tarantino, indeed, Tarantino intended to make a remake of it for quite some time. If you want to get into kung-fu, this is a great place to start.