Bai Lian Xie Shen
1993 / 96m - Hong Kong
Action
3.0*/5.0*
White Lotus Cult poster

Watches

May 11, 2022

3.0*/5.0*

A second rate martial arts film. It's from the blessed year 1993, which means there's a baseline quality present that keeps it fun to watch, but the derivative setting, the minor cast and the lack of memorable scenes don't work in the film's favor. You're probably better off watching Once Upon a Time in China once again.

China is under threat of foreign invasion, the White Lotus Clan makes handy use of that fear to get people to join their cult. San and Kuang try to stand up against the cult, but when Kuang joins them, San finds him myself stumped. Luckily, he gets some help from more experienced martial arts masters, so he has a fighting chance against the cult leader.

You can see there were some experienced people on board, as the camera work, cinematography, costumes are all on point. It's just that the film feels like a lazy copy of better (and older) films, with no intention to improve upon the established formula. It's fun filler, but I had hoped for something more.