Tsui Hark has one of the most unique voices of the Hong Kong new wave that revolutionized action cinema, kung fu and comedy in the late 70s and gave us a deep well of remarkable treasures that has yet to run out. Visually he is certainly among the best in the business, not only in Hong Kong, both as a director and a producer. The Once upon a time in China and Chinese ghost story series being particularly impressive examples of his prowess.
Butterfly Murders already contains many of his future hallmarks, especially in the imaginative cinematography. It's basically a blend of Kung Fu action and Giallo which I had yet to see. As such it is not fully successful. The visuals are quite amazing, very distinct and cinematic. They foreshadow both his own career and the new trajectory of Hong Kong cinema at the nadier of the more theatrical Shaw brothers productions. The limited setting is suspenseful and well utilized. The mystery story setup is also quite intriguing at first, but the conclusion left a few things left to be desired. The same goes for the fight scenes, which aren't done badly by any means but lack the fluency, creativity and splendor you associate with Tsui Hark. It appears he had yet to learn to marry the hypnotic beauty of his narrative shots with his action shots.
It's an entertaining romp throughout, so I don't want to come down on it too harshly, but it should or at least could have crescendoed to a true classic. I usually wouldn't suggest such a thing, but maybe this material could be made to shine with a remake by the master himself.
Butterfly Murders already contains many of his future hallmarks, especially in the imaginative cinematography. It's basically a blend of Kung Fu action and Giallo which I had yet to see. As such it is not fully successful. The visuals are quite amazing, very distinct and cinematic. They foreshadow both his own career and the new trajectory of Hong Kong cinema at the nadier of the more theatrical Shaw brothers productions. The limited setting is suspenseful and well utilized. The mystery story setup is also quite intriguing at first, but the conclusion left a few things left to be desired. The same goes for the fight scenes, which aren't done badly by any means but lack the fluency, creativity and splendor you associate with Tsui Hark. It appears he had yet to learn to marry the hypnotic beauty of his narrative shots with his action shots.
It's an entertaining romp throughout, so I don't want to come down on it too harshly, but it should or at least could have crescendoed to a true classic. I usually wouldn't suggest such a thing, but maybe this material could be made to shine with a remake by the master himself.