In 1985, "Shanghai Beach" starring Zhou Runfa was introduced to the mainland and broadcast, which quickly swept the north and south of the river.
After the drama was broadcast, it could be described as a crowded alley, not only the characters of Xu Wenqiang, Ding Li and Feng Chengcheng in the play became a symbol of the times, but also influenced the creative road of later Chinese film and television dramas, bringing out a boom in the filming of Republic of China dramas set against the background of the old Shanghai gangster fights in the early Minchu.
Coupled with the popular martial arts film boom in the mainland film and television circle at that time, major film studios have begun to shoot Minchu Kung Fu martial arts films set on the beach, such as the big director Zhang Che's "Great Shanghai 1937" and Zhang Xinyan's action comedy "The Changing Thief".
The initiator of this film trend is naturally the Shanghai Film Studio with its back to the real Shanghai Beach.
In 1988, Shen Yaoting, an old director of Shanghai Film Studio who had filmed "405 Murder", began to actively explore Haipai films, determined to rely on Shanghai Beach as a background to create a set of "Huangpu River Series" feature films.
This series of works has a variety of styles, ranging from the suspense theme of "Fraudster", to the adventure comedy "Rogue Lupin", or the anti-war theme of "Wind and Rain Love Goose", in addition to the opening work of the series is particularly worth mentioning, is a kung fu martial arts film "Ma Suzhen's Revenge".
The film tells the chivalrous story of Ma Suzhen, the sister of the folk legendary martial arts master Ma Yongzhen in the late Qing Dynasty, who avenged her brother, and was quite popular after its release that year, with 76 million viewers, ranking 6th in the mainland box office ranking that year.
In this issue of "Forgotten Domestic Genre Films", let's revisit this kung fu film from 33 years ago.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="20" > "Ma Suzhen's Revenge"</h1>
Ma Su Cheng Takes Revenge
The film was released in 1989 and was produced by Shanghai Film Studio.
Director Shen Yaoting is a well-known genre film director, and his debut film "Donggang Spy Movie" has caused great repercussions.
In the early 1980s, Shen Yaoting's "405 Murder" once caused a huge response, with hundreds of millions of viewers, after which Shen Yaoting actively explored various commercial entertainment films, and in the mid-to-late 1980s, martial arts action films were popular in the market, and Shen Yaoting filmed the movie "Gold Rush King", which was a great success again.
The story of "Ma Suzhen's Revenge" is adapted from a folk story, in folklore, she is the sister of the boxer Ma Yongzhen at the end of the Qing Dynasty, and like her brother, she has a special skill from childhood, and is jealous and hateful, after learning that her brother was killed, she bravely went to the beach to avenge her brother.
In 1972, the great director Zhang Che filmed the movie "Ma Yongzhen", which was very popular in Hong Kong and Taiwan at that time. At that time, Taiwanese film dealers quickly followed the trend and put the story of Ma Yongzhen's sister on the screen, and in the same year, three movies were launched: "Ma Suzhen on the Beach", "Shandong Big Sister Ma Suzhen" and "Ma Suzhen Revenge for Brothers".
The heroine of the mainland version of "Ma Suzhen's Revenge" is Li Yunjuan, she is from peking opera knife Ma Dan, once starred in the 86 version of "Journey to the West" in the role of scorpion essence to become famous, "Ma Suzhen's Revenge" is her first starring in the movie.
The story takes place in the last years of the Qing Dynasty,
Ma Suzhen, dressed in men's clothing, was galloping from Shandong to the beach.
Not long ago, Ma Suzhen learned that her brother Ma Yongzhen died tragically in Shanghai, and rushed to Shanghai in grief.
At this time, at the home of Mr. Chai at the Shandong Guild Hall in Shanghai, the Chai family and their Fellow Villagers in Shandong were holding a funeral for Ma Yongzhen.
When Ma Suzhen rushed to the spirit hall, she saw her brother's coffin and asked everyone present, who is her brother Ma Yongzhen?
She reported to her family that if she could not avenge her brother, she would ask the Chai family to prepare an extra coffin.
The implication is that this blood feud is destined to be unending.
When Old Master Chai saw Ma Suzhen single-handedly taking revenge, he had the heart to persuade her to give up seeking revenge, after all, the enemy family was huge.
Ma Suzhen did not answer, and casually lit up his own kung fu,
Only to see her pick up the stone platform on the table, and crush the stone platform with the force of her palms;
Then he threw out a stone and knocked the bird outside the window to the ground.
However, Old Master Chai was timid and afraid of things, and did not want to implicate more lives, refusing to tell Ma Suzhen that he had killed his brother's enemy.
Fortunately, Chai Gongzi, the son of Old Master Chai, admired Ma Suzhen, and he visited late at night to tell the beginning and end of Ma Yongzhen's murder.
According to Chai Gongzi, the person who killed Ma Yongzhen was a famous bully in Shanghai Beach, Who had diarrhea.
This person is not only strong in martial arts, but also has a background in the underworld, relying on helping foreigners sell opium and making a fortune, and now he is collecting disciples in the KaixiangTang in Shanghai Beach, plus he has the protection of foreigners, and gradually becomes a difficult land snake for the government, and there are thugs known as the Four Great Kongs as bodyguards.
Time back a month ago.
Ruilin Foreign Firm, run by local foreigners, has encircled a piece of land without authorization, planning to build a racecourse.
The local people did not want to demolish, so the foreign firm found white leprosy and led his goons, and all kinds of threats and severe beatings of villagers who did not want to be demolished.
Just at this moment, Ma Yongzhen, who had come from Shandong to sell horses, saw this situation and drew his sword to help, and beat up the white leprosy's men.
The people of the trading house also found foreigners to patrol, and Ma Yongzhen was bold and drove away the foreigners with three fists and two feet.
Ma Yongzhen thus broke into a famous hall on Shanghai Beach and was invited by Chai Laoye of the Shandong Guild Hall to be a doorman of the house.
Later, at a banquet in Chai Province, Ma Yongzhen became acquainted with a singer, Hua Baoqin.
The white leprosy was greedy and lustful, forcing the singer to marry as a concubine, and Ma Yongzhen took the initiative to save the singer at the wedding.
After this storm, The white leprosy has a new hatred and an old hatred, and vows to find a way to get rid of Ma Yongzhen.
Knowing that Ma Yongzhen was highly skilled in martial arts, He bought Cheng Si, the leader of the Axe Gang of the local gang.
Cheng Si was cunning and treacherous, so he teamed up with Bai Leprosy and set up a poisonous plan against Ma Yongzhen.
Old Master Chai had planned to let Ma Yongzhen return to his hometown to avoid the storm, but Cheng Si designed to move the tiger away from the mountain and lure Old Master Chai away.
Then the white leprosy with the axe gang killer broke into the Chai Mansion and secretly attacked Ma Yongzhen with lime.
Taking advantage of Ma Yongzhen's blindness in both eyes, he cut off Ma Yongzhen's arm, and everyone rushed up, and Ma Yongzhen died tragically on the spot.
Learning that his brother was murdered by an adulterer, Ma Suzhen is determined to avenge his brother.
The next day, Ma Suzhen changed into men's clothes and claimed to be a businessman who came to talk about a big deal with Bai Leprosy.
After entering the White Mansion, Ma Suzhen quietly took out a dagger, intending to end up with the life of the white leprosy, but did not expect to be recognized by the other party.
The white leprosy will be calculated, and deliberately take Ma Suzhen to the bathhouse, trying to force Ma Suzhen to undress and expose her identity.
Ma Suzhen knew that the plan was exposed, and immediately took action, and with a skillful kung fu, he defeated The White Leper's men.
The vitiligo diarrhea fled into the bathroom, and Ma Suzhen engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the vitiligo in the bath, and the two sides fought very badly.
But after all, it is difficult to fight with two fists and four hands, Ma Suzhen is about to be captured, and at the critical moment, Chai Gongzi arrived and saved Ma Suzhen.
After the battle in the bathroom, The White Leper learned Ma Suzhen's amazing martial arts, and did not dare to take it lightly, and has been hiding in secret.
On Ma Suzhen's side, when he learned that his brother's friend Ding Desheng was now imprisoned in the official prison, he planned to rob the prison to save people.
Unexpectedly, Ma Suzhen had just rescued Ding Desheng, and he was assassinated by the axe gang killer, and Ding Desheng died tragically.
In order to inquire about the whereabouts of the white leprosy and settle accounts with the Axe Party, Ma Suzhen decided to first seek revenge on Cheng Si of the Axe Gang.
Ma Suzhen heard that Cheng Si had a well-known prostitute in the brothel, so she came to the brothel in disguise.
However, Shi Ye was already on guard, and the room was full of axe gang killers, and Ma Suzhen was ambushed and arrested.
However, instead of killing Ma Suzhen, Shi Ye negotiated with her to get rid of Bai Leper by his hand.
After all, a mountain does not allow two tigers, and the white leper has the support of foreigners, and now it is already powerful, and Cheng Si is afraid that his strength will be weakened, so he takes the initiative to persuade Ma Suzhen to cooperate with him, expressing his willingness to help her complete her revenge.
Ma Suzhen naturally did not believe Cheng Si's conditions, but the other party told the truth that shocked her:
Ma Suzhen has a spy with white leprosy around him, and this spy is Chai Gongzi.
It was his informant that led to Ma Suzhen's failed prison robbery and Ding Desheng was killed, and Cheng Si was also able to prepare an ambush in advance.
Cheng Si let Ma Suzhen go, and Ma Suzhen found Chai Gongzi in the casino.
Under duress, the other party admitted that he could not withstand the temptation of white leprosy, and promised to become the other party's spy.
Ma Suzhen was grateful for The kindness of Old Master Chai and did not kill Prince Chai, but only let him go to Old Master Chai himself to confess his guilt.
On the other hand, the white leprosy, which has always been lawless, finally couldn't hold back his loneliness and brought his bodyguards to the theater to listen to the play.
Ma Suzhen received the wind and also came with the brothers of the Shandong Hometown Association, and the two sides launched a big scuffle in the theater garden.
During the melee, the white leprosy escaped wounded and disappeared, never daring to show his head again.
Ma Suzhen did not give up, and she found an acacia bird left behind when the vitiligo diarrhea escaped at the scene.
Following this clue, I found that the men of the white leprosy often haunted the ruined temple Baiyun Nunnery on the nearby mountain.
At this time, the master of the Axe Gang also sent a letter to Ma Suzhen, saying that The White Leper was currently hiding in Baiyun'an.
Therefore, Ma Suzhen once again went into the Tiger's Den alone and ventured into the Baiyun Temple.
However, unexpectedly, in order to prevent Ma Suzhen's arrival, the white leprosy set up an organ in the broken temple and trapped Ma Suzhen.
Seeing Ma Suzhen lying in the middle, the white leprosy diarrhea appeared and proudly ordered his men to kill Ma Suzhen.
Who expected Ma Suzhen to also have a backhand ——
She had already informed the people and horses of the Shandong Guild Hall to ambush nearby, only to wait for the vitiligo diarrhea to be induced before proceeding.
In this way, the two sides engaged in a scuffle in the temple, and Ma Suzhen escaped from the trap and hunted down the white leprosy.
Bai Mimi rode away on horseback, but Ma Suzhen clung to it, and the two chased all the way to the mountain.
On the top floor of the hilltop city, the white leprosy diarrhea is desperate, and has to fight the final battle with Ma Suzhen.
After a series of vicious fights, Ma Suzhen was exhausted and injured, but she still refused to let go of the white leprosy,
In the end, Ma Suzhen knocked the white leprosy off the cliff and finally avenged her brother.
Ma Suzhen, who took revenge and hatred, took the earrings left by her brother and walked away again, and the story ended here.
In the middle and late 1980s, the mainland film industry was very popular with such chivalrous martial arts films, and at the same time, there were also "Thirteen Sisters of Chivalrous Women" of The North Film Studio, "Ranger Black Butterfly" of the Changying Film Studio, etc. The plot of this genre is basically the same, all of them are the heroines with extraordinary skills, revenge and hatred as the main line, and most of the heroines in the film are beautiful and heroic and have extraordinary martial arts, walking alone on swords and horses, and achieving chivalrous fever in the field of mainland martial arts films.
The heroine of this "Ma Suzhen's Revenge" Ma Suzhen is a chivalrous woman who does not let her eyebrows be shaved, she is not only strong in martial arts, but also bold, in order to avenge her brother and face strong enemies alone, in the film Ma Suzhen often dresses up in men's clothing, which implies her experience of often walking in the rivers and lakes, and also shows her chivalrous and courageous identity as a strange woman who does not lose to men.
Lead actor Li Yunjuan because of the skills trained by peking opera knife Ma Dan for many years, shooting martial arts scenes can be described as handy, plus her own appearance is both feminine and heroic, men's appearance is dashing and handsome, women's appearance is full of charm and femininity, director Shen Yaoting is also looking at this point to choose her to play the heroine Ma Suzhen.
In terms of story, director Shen Yaoting is very good at the shooting of thrilling suspense films, so the film does not adopt a linear narrative for the story of Ma Suzhen's revenge, but takes Ma Yongzhen's death as a suspense, and gradually uncovers the truth through Ma Suzhen's visit and investigation of the Chai family's father and son, brother and friend Ding Desheng and the singer Hua Baochun, making the story more complicated and ups and downs.
In terms of martial arts, the mainland martial arts films of that year pursued hard bridges and hard horses, but the design of the fight scenes was relatively weak.
A slight pity about this film is the lack of an excellent action director, a large number of action scenes in the film are repetitive and monotonous, and over-reliance on the design of smashing things, characters falling down and flying out, etc., are relatively mediocre from the current point of view.