Explosive
Summary
Broken Oath has much to give and offer in the way of action, fights, and plenty of scuzzy bad guys for Mao to annihilate with her scorpions and kicks. The film is fast-paced, easy to follow, and Mao is one tough cookie with impressive footwork. Director Jeong Chang-hwa throws in some nudity and lecherous stuff to get the film started, and the movie never quite lets up with the stunts, hand-to-hand work, and solid choreography. All said, this was a pretty solid piece of kung fu cinema from the olden age of chop sockie.
Plot: A Buddhist nun becomes an instrument of vengeance.
Review: Born in a Buddhist convent to a mother that had been raped by a king’s guard, along with his crew of cretins, Pure Lotus (Angela Mao from Enter the Dragon) becomes an orphan when her mother is later murdered by other creeps who fear no retribution from a bunch of nuns. Years pass, and Pure is instructed in the ways of martial arts, and she picks up a very unique skill that is not condoned by her fellow nuns: How to use scorpions to kill. Expelled as a young woman for taking great pleasure in killing a brigand with her scorpions, Pure wanders the countryside with one purpose in life: To get revenge for the rape and murder of her mother. One telling sign she has in that the man who killed her mother has only one eye, and she eventually finds him and his crew living in some wealth and comfort in a nearby village, and she allows herself to be sold into a brothel as a virgin, with the hopes that she can get to work with her revenge. But before she can do any real damage, her real identity is discovered, and she has to escape the brothel before she’s totally overwhelmed, but she’s certainly no pushover, no: Pure Lotus is a badass with skills that surpass most fighters, and she has an unlikely ally in a vagabond (Bruce Leung) who has his own agenda for teaming up with her. An action-filled finale is a crowd-pleaser.
Broken Oath has much to give and offer in the way of action, fights, and plenty of scuzzy bad guys for Mao to annihilate with her scorpions and kicks. The film is fast-paced, easy to follow, and Mao is one tough cookie with impressive footwork. Director Jeong Chang-hwa throws in some nudity and lecherous stuff to get the film started, and the movie never quite lets up with the stunts, hand-to-hand work, and solid choreography. All said, this was a pretty solid piece of kung fu cinema from the olden age of chop sockie.
Eureka! recently released a loaded Blu-ray edition of Broken Oath, and the transfer shines from a 2K restoration. Two versions are included on the disc: A theatrical cut (which has an English dub), and an extended cut (without an English dub). Both versions are restored.
Bonus Materials
- Limited edition O-card slipcase featuring new artwork by Grégory Sacré (Gokaiju)
- 1080p HD presentation on Blu-ray of the uncut theatrical version from a brand new 2K restoration
- Original Mandarin audio and optional English dub tracks (original mono presentations)
- Optional English subtitles, newly translated for this release
- Brand new audio commentary by East Asian film expert Frank Djeng (NY Asian Film Festival)
- Brand new audio commentary by action cinema experts Mike Leeder and Arne Venema
- Brand new interview with actor Bruce Leung (The Dragon Lives Again)
- Patrick Macias on Lady Snowblood – new appreciation by film writer Patrick Macias
- Trailer
- PLUS: A Limited edition collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Kung Fu Cult Masters author Leon Hunt