Martial arts film: The Sword Identity

Tuesday 14th May, 6.

30pm,  Lecture Theatre 1.03, Malet Place Engineering Building.
Part of the UCL Festival of the Arts

Free tickets available from:
http://the-sword-identity.eventbrite.com/#

As a continuation of the UCL China Centre for Health and Humanity (CCHH) Festival of Film and the Body, we present The Sword Identity 倭寇的踪迹 (2011), directed by Xu Haofeng 徐浩峰, one of China's cutting edge young directors, and writer and lecturer at Beijing Film Academy.

In the postmodern world of martial arts,  Xu's debut film turns his novella of the same name into a film that is  'both a homage to and a comic deconstruction of the Chinese and Japanese martial arts traditions' (Kraicer, Cinemascope). This is a beautifully shot epic which draws on earlier generations of martial arts films with wit and artistry. Illustrating the complexities of wuxia society, the film contains a visual analysis of the subtle dynamics of combat chivalry and simultaneously captures the philosophy behind the skill of the swordsman.

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