Directed by Liu Wenpu, local constable Xue Buyi keeps his distance from corrupt colleagues until he is framed for the theft of thousands of dollars in relief funds. Now he must choose: fight to clear his name or uphold the law he’s sworn to obey. Starring: Liu Fengchao, Chunyu Shanshan, Yuan Fufu, Liu Enshang, Gao Weiman, Liu Ben and Li Yunhe.
There are a few key things that any martial arts action film can do to make a solid piece of entertainment, and those are: having a good story, creating a balance between the fighting and that story, and having well-choreographed and edited fight sequences. The Butcher’s Blade has all of those things. One of the typical issues with this type of film is that they can tend to create either convoluted stories or make it too simple and solely rely on the action, Liu Wenpu does a good job of finding the middle ground. It’s not a particularly complicated story but it is also plenty to sustain the film.
It gives Liu Fengchao’s Xue Buyi a great motivation, provides him with that classic moral and ethical backbone, a staple of the genre, a quintessential underdog hero. Liu Fengchao’s performance fills that character with motivation, strength and resilience, he’s enjoyable to watch and has a charming personality, with empathy and courage. He’s then surrounded by an ensemble who all give great performances, while providing his character plenty of ethics to question and people to argue and/or fight with. Particularly Yuan Fufu’s Li Zhen who makes for an excellent sparring partner.
The fight sequences are terrifically shot, they’ve got a fantastic movement and fluidity to them. The editing is sharp to match the impact of the fighting, and never obscure it but only accent it further. The sequences don’t feel at all drawn out, which is always a bonus, and they aren’t over-used. That balance between telling the story and diving into the action is really well done. The cinematography is strong work, there’s a great colour to the aesthetic which has a richness that perfectly matches the era. There’s also a pretty good dose of blood and violence in there to feed into the darkness and brooding of the film.
The Butcher’s Blade is a great piece of entertainment, the fight sequences are sharp, it keeps the momentum going all throughout and it’s captivating viewing. Liu Wenpu gets that balance of action and story right where so many others have got it wrong, as well as coming it at that sweet spot of ninety minutes. It’s filled with strong performances, it’s shot well, it has an engaging energy and it’s highly enjoyable. It may not reinvent the wheel as far as action cinema goes, but it doesn’t have to.
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