Blu-ray release: ‘The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter’

By   |  Mar 29, 2022

Arrow Video are bringing the 1984 Hong Kong martial arts classic ‘The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter’ (五郎八卦棍) to US Blu-ray on April 5, 2022.

Directed by Liu Chia-Liang, the film revolves around the son of a military family who goes looking for vengeance after his father and brothers are murdered in an ambush. The cast includes Gordon Liu, Alexander Fu Sheng, Johnny Wang Lung-Wei, Kara Hui, and Lily Li.

Synopsis: Loosely based upon the legendary Yang dynasty chronicled in Chinese folklore, the film starts as a family patriarch and all but two of his sons are brutally wiped out in a bloody battle with a rival family. One surviving son (Fu Sheng) returns to his mother and two sisters, driven mad with grief; the other (Gordon Liu) escapes and joins a nearby monastery while in hiding. Once he learns his sister (Kara Hui) has been captured by their enemies, however, the warrior-turned-monk realizes he must renounce his peaceful ideals in order to mount a rescue mission and avenge his family.

Features:
• New 2K restoration from the original camera negative
• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation
• Original lossless Cantonese, Mandarin and English mono audio
• Optional English subtitles
• New commentary by Jonathan Clements
• Newly filmed appreciation by Tony Rayns
• Interviews with stars Gordon Liu, Lily Li and Yeung Ching-ching (2004)
• ‘A Tribute to Fu Sheng’ short film
• Alternate opening credits
• Theatrical trailer
• Image gallery
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned
• Illustrated collectors’ booklet [First press only]

‘The 8 Diagram Pole Fighter’ is available to pre-order now from Amazon.com.

Phil Mills
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