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絕處逢生 (1985)
Out of Danger


Reviewed by: Gaijin84
Date: 05/28/2007
Summary: Unfortunately typical mainland wushu offering...

When a prominent general is set up for treason by a corrupt lord, his most loyal friend escapes with his two children in order to save their lives. He is pursued and nearly caught, but is able to leave the daughter in a safe haven to be cared for by a female monk. He continues on with the son and raises him in the Shaolin temple. Later, once the son is grown, it is revealed to him what happened to his parents and he sets off for retribution. Ironically, the daughter (Lee Bing) has been training with the corrupt lord's daughter and they have become friends, leading to an unexpected conflict for the revenge-bent son.

Out of Danger is a mainland film with the same trappings that leave other movies from this period in the bin collecting dust. The martial arts are decent enough, with mostly wushu inspired choreography, but the story is complicated and plagued with plot holes. The films looks to have been heavily edited as seemingly prominent characters disappear suddenly from the story and entire story lines are never resolved. Unfortunately, there is also not much to distinguish one actor from another and this added to the confusion. I found myself asking questions like "Wait, didn't that guy just get killed?" or "What? I thought he was part of their group! Why is he attacking her?" By then end I was thoroughly confused, and waiting for everything to be wrapped up with a good fight, which never really materialized. The movie was disappointing, but not much worse than I expected.

3/10

Reviewer Score: 3