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Wuxia Fiction
The wuxia films that we see today are derived
from modern wuxia literature. This literature has its roots in Tang
dynasty chuanqi (prose romances), which contained many of the elements
found in the modern wuxia genre (e.g. magic, supernatural events and vengeance),
and the huaben tales of Song dynasty storytellers. Huaben tales were extremely
popular during this period, the name coming from the prompt books used
by the storytellers as mnemonic devices. Subjects included yinzi'er (tales
of strange events) and gongan (detective stories), and tie qi'er
(tales of martial heroism). However, the pioneers of the wuxia genre
wrote during the Ming and Qing dynasties, and set many of the standards
for modern wuxia novels. Novels like The Water Margin,
were thinly veiled criticisms of the government. Others novels, like the
various gongan (exemplified by the Judge Dee novels) were
made for popular consumption. The modern wuxia novel came into being
following the May 4th movement of 1919. A new literature evolved,
calling for a break with Confucian values, and the xia emerged as
a symbol of personal freedom, defiance to Confucian tradition, and rejection
of the Chinese family system. As a form of protest, wuxia films
and literature were banned at various times during the Qing dynasty, and
Republican era. These bans hurt the growth of the genre, but following
World War II, a new phase of excellence emerged in wuxia literature,
exemplified by the work of Huanzhu Louzhu (author of Blades from
the Willows). Other influential authors of the time include Wang
Dulu who introduced the use of melodrama, and Yao Minai, who wrote about
secret societies. During this period, wuxia novelists were divided
into Northern and Southern schools. The Northern school was centered on
Beijing, and followed a traditional approach. They focused on traditional
values, were based in realism, and set their stories in a historical context.
The
Romance of Three Kingdoms is typical of this style, even though
it was not written during this period. The Southern school was centered
on Shanghai, and developed from the new literary movement. Novelists were
influenced by the West, and wrote what could be called pulp fiction. A
second phase was launched in the mid-50s by the work of Jin Yong (author
of Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain). His contemporaries
include Liang Yusheng, who introduced the concept of the hero as in intellectual,
and Gu Long who viewed the xia as a solitary ascetic.
Chinese wuxia films which grew from the literary
tradition include fantasy films with flying swordsmen, and the more conventional
martial arts kung-fu film. The former category traces its lineage back
to the first wuxia film, The Burning of Red Lotus Monastery
filmed in 1928 and based on The Legend of the Strange Hero
by Xiang Kairen. This film, and its sequels, were the prototype of the
wuxia
fantasy genre. In it are all the elements of modern wuxia fantasy
films, including special effects to simulate palm power, and the use of
wire-work to simulate flying. The anti-Confucian themes, violence, and
supernatural elements in these films however, lead the government to ban
their production in the 1930s, citing their content as being a negative
influence on China's youth. When these films were again produced in the
1950s, they took stylistic elements, and conventions from traditional Chinese
opera, which included the promotion of a rigid orthodox moral code. However,
by the mid-60s, a synthesis with the new literature movement changed the
one dimensional xia of earlier films to a more complex character
with human flaws, and produced the wuxia film as we know it today.
King Hu (PY: Hu Jinquan) introduced a style of imagery and beauty that
appeals to our senses, while Chang Cheh (PY: Zhang Che) introduced the
style of violence and bloodshed popular with gorehounds. Most however,
are most familiar with the fantasies of Tsui Hark (PY: Xu Ke), who captures
our imagination, and the choreography of Yuen Woo-Ping (PY: Yuan Huo-Pin)
that makes the pulse race with excitement.
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