10TH OLD SCHOOL KUNG FU FEST: SWORD FIGHTING HEROES EDITION REVIEW!
Three sisters, XiuFeng (Li-Hua Yang), ChiFeng (Ching Liu), and QiFeng (Mei Chin), lost their parents at a young age–murdered right in front of them. At that moment the three sisters were separated, and now, fifteen years later, they will have the opportunity to reunite. They are all set on revenge, and on their journeys they will find one another once more. This is the story of the Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters.
For all intents and purposes Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters is a pretty simple story. Three sisters who were separated at a young age after the murder of their parents. The story is easy to follow, and it rarely veers from its very linear path. Beyond the story, however, Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters is simple in other ways as well. Shot entirely in black and white, the film is void of color, eliminating any potential for vibrancy in this regard. There’s often a very mystical and magical tone present in mid-twentieth-century Asian cinema–and a lot of that relies on the colors used. Color often helps tell the stories in these films–but that’s not the case here. Developing a film entirely in black and white forces viewers to make connections with the characters rather than the other things that they see on screen–and that benefits the character development in a number of ways.
Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters is obviously focused heavily on the three sisters–and if viewers aren’t able to appreciate them then the film as a whole struggles. Eliminating other distractors allows viewers to focus on these characters, to connect with them and their journey.
Not heavily driven by dialogue, Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters relies very much on the visuals and the score to tell the story of the three sisters. Again, the film doesn’t do much to develop powerful images, and it becomes the sisters themselves that remain in focus. The score supplements the sisters impressively, and it is paired with their every move. Every look, every movement, every new revelation is paired with the score in a way that only makes those moments stronger and more accessible to all. The score present in Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters is powerful on its own, and it honestly could have worked to strengthen even a series of poor performances or uninteresting content–but working alongside the rest of the film, one that is more than effectively scripted, it becomes even more intriguing and entertaining.
Once again, the sisters are the focus of the film–which makes sense considering its title. The rest of the film works to ensure that the sisters not only succeed, but shine brightly. The absence of color, the electric score, and the simple storyline work together to bring the sisters to the forefront of Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters. Each and every aspect of the film in this regard succeeds, and the film as a whole flourishes as a result. Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters is a prime example of when less is more.
Directed by Hung-Min Chen.
Written by Ko Chu.
Starring Li-Hua Yang, Ching Liu, Mei Chin, Hsiao-Pao Ko, Tu Chin, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐½/10
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