One of those movies that’s so well known that I figured I must have seen it. I mean, I love Sammo Hung and I’ve been watching Hong Kong films for close to 30 years, so of course I’ve seen Warriors Two.
But I hadn’t. And what a treat to watch this one for the first time. Inventive choreography, excellent staging and a mostly effective story once it gets going (except for poor Cheung Man-Ting who gets nothing to do here except die). Warriors Two is a high point of one of the best years in Hong Kong film.
What a wild year 1978 was in Hong Kong theaters! The 36th Chamber of Shaolin opens in February. Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow opens in March. Drunken Master in October. And then, at the end of December, Warriors Two wraps up the year. These films basically define sub-genres of kung fu movies and are classics in the careers of their creators.
And (I think) it’s also the start of some beef. I talked about this in my review of 1979’s The Magnificent Butcher, but I find the interplay between the Lau Kar-Leung Crew and the Yuen/Hung Crew pretty fascinating. I think Lau Kar-Leung and his movies’ focus on Hung Fist martial arts is a big reason why Warriors Two goes in to so much detail about Wing Chun and why the training sequences are so thorough. Look at how great the Wing Chun style is! Take that, Lau Kar-Leung!
Magnificent Butcher sharpens this beef (to mix metaphors) by joining Sammo Hung with the Yuen Clan and directly teasing Lau’s school. But Sammo’s stating his allegiances pretty clearly in Warriors Two as well.
