Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

The Sentimental Swordsman Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 22, 2024

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Arrow's Shawscope Volume Three set.

It's maybe not even that much of a joke to state that lately it has felt like there's a new Blu-ray release of a venerable Shaw Brothers film coming out every week, and in fact there have been some weeks where my own review queue has had more than one Blu-ray release of a Shaw Brothers film in any given seven day period. That said, and even granting a two title per week release schedule, it would take literally years, and arguably maybe even a decade or more, for labels to get around to releasing the entire Shaw Brothers output. In that regard, then, this massive newest volume in Arrow's evidently ongoing Shawscope series may be thought of as something of a "shortcut", at least in terms of offering a veritable gaggle of films, even if wending your way through this gargantuan enterprise will hardly seem short in any way, shape or form, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Once again, as with the first two volumes in this series, Arrow has aggregated both better known and lesser known films, delivered with typically solid technical merits and some very appealing supplements. This set has been packaged to be a shelf mate with its two "siblings" (for more information on the packaging, see the supplements section in the main Shawscope Volume Three Blu-ray review).

For "rabid completists" interested in what's already been released by Arrow in the Shawscope department, the following review links may be of some assistance:

Shawscope Volume One Blu-ray review

Shawscope Volume Two Blu-ray review

That oft quoted adage states "you can't go home again", and The Sentimental Swordsman's focal character Li Xunhuan (Ti Lung) may offer a prime example why. This probably overstuffed entry in the Shaw Brothers' canon was evidently hugely popular in its day, which may actually surprise some contemporary viewers trying to follow an almost insanely byzantine plot and a surplus of ancillary characters who just keep showing up, if only to more or less disappear sometime later. There is nonetheless a somewhat elegiac tone to Li Xunhuan's tale, especially once his backstory starts to be revealed, where it's disclosed that when he was "home" initially a decade or so ago from the film's main time frame, things may not have gone exactly to plan, especially with regard to Li Xunhuan's then girlfriend, Lin Shiyin (Candice Yu On-On). That's barely the tip of a very convoluted iceberg, so to speak, as Li Xunhuan also gets wrapped up in quasi-mythic quests for both artifacts and villains.

This is another showcase for Ti Lung, but the narrative is so almost willfully labyrinthine that it can be hard to care after a while. The film still benefits from some typically lush production values and some especially beautiful cinematography that actually utilizes actual outdoor locations more than the standard Shaw Brothers outing, but this is one of those films where one suspects it's not any "lost in translation" situation going on, but simply too many interwoven plot points and way too many (and needless) supporting characters and supposed connections.

The Sentimental Swordsman Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Sentimental Swordsman is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Arrow's almost overwhelming insert booklet lumps all the films together on its informational page about the transfers, as follows:

All fourteen films in this boxset are presented in their original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, with their original Mandarin plus Cantonese and/or English (where applicable) monaural soundtracks. Every effort has been made to present these films in their original and complete versions using the best materials available.

One-Armed Swordsman was restored in 4K resolution by Celestial Pictures and L'Immagine Ritrovata in 2020. Additional grading was completed at R3store Studios, London in 2024.

Return of the One-Armed Swordsman, The New One-Armed Swordsman, The Lady Hermit, Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan, The 14 Amazons, The Magic Blade, Clans of Intrigue, Jade Tiger, The Sentimental Swordsman, The Avenging Eagle, Killer Constable, Buddha's Palm and Bastard Swordsman have all been newly restored by Arrow Films in 2024, in collaboration with L'Immagine Ritrovata, Hong Kong Film Archive and Celestial Pictures. The original 35mm negatives for these films were scanned at L'Immagine Ritrovata Asia and restored in 2K resolution at L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna. Return of the One-Armed Swordsman, The New One-Armed Swordsman, Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan, The 14 Amazons, The Avenging Eagle, Killer Constable and Buddha's Palm were graded at R3store Studios, Lady Hermit, The Magic Blade, Clans of Intrigue, Jade Tiger, The Sentimental Swordsman and Bastard Swordsman were graded at Dragon DI, Wales. These restorations have used the entire film negative without resorting to the practice of "framecutting" resulting in the loss of film frames at each negative splice point.

The mono mixes were remastered from the original sound negatives at L'Immagine Ritrovata. Additional sound remastering was completed by Matthew Jarman/Bad Princess Productions. The audio synch will often seem loose against the picture, due to the fact that the dialogue and sound effects were recorded entirely during post-production, as per the production standards of the period.

All original materials supplied for these restorations were made available from the Hong Kong Film Archive via Celestial Pictures. The additional sequences in the uncensored version of Clans of Intrigue were sourced from a 35mm print held by Celestial Pictures. For the presentation of the alternate South Korean cut of Killer Constable, efforts were made to access original film materials for this version held at the Korean Film Archive, but this was not possible. A Korean VHS copy was used as a guide to reconstruct this cut in high definition, using the new 2K restoration of the original Hong Kong version for the bulk of the film and standard-definition inserts for the audio and unique footage. The original trailers were restored by Arrow Films from the original 35mm materials held at the Hong Kong Film Archive.

This presentation really struck me as one of the more consistently enjoyable in the set, no doubt aided and abetted by the general excellence of the production design and cinematography. While there's some the same splotchy yellow clumped grain mentioned in several other reviews of films in this set, it really tends to be relegated here mostly to opticals like the opening credits. Otherwise, grain is nicely tightly resolved throughout the presentation. Detail levels are typically excellent as well, and fine detail on the opulent costumes looks precise. But it's the palette that will probably impress the most on initial viewing. Everything from some really bright, vivid primaries (like blood red) to more nuanced hues like the purples that are utilized in several of the costumes pop pretty gorgeously throughout. This is another presentation that has some of the same kind odd looking anamorphic anomalies, including some near fish eyed moments.

The Sentimental Swordsman Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Sentimental Swordsman features either Mandarin or Cantonese audio presented in LPCM Mono. Both tracks get the job done without any real issues, and both show at least intermittent "loose sync" at times, but the Cantonese track struck my ears as noticeably louder and especially brighter on the high end. That high end probably may make things sound a bit thin a times, but it also made help to provide just a bit more clarity in scoring and effects in particular. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Sentimental Swordsman Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary by David West


• Theatrical Trailers

  HK Theatrical Trailer (Mandarin #1) (HD; 3:06)

  
  

  HK Theatrical Trailer (Mandarin #2) (HD; 3:37)

  
  

  HK Theatrical Trailer (Cantonese) (HD; 3:06)

The Sentimental Swordsman Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There is so much going on in The Sentimental Swordsman that it's almost hard to keep track of. The nonstop introduction of ultimately pointless characters keeps interrupting an already complex storyline, and as such despite some occasionally interesting swordplay, there's not much momentum to the narrative. Technical merits, especially video, are generally solid, and the commentary provides a worthwhile listen, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.