Delightful Forest (1972)

February 20, 2017

Based off a small portion of the novel Outlaws of the Marsh a.k.a. The Water Margin, legendary Shaw Brothers directors Chang Cheh & Pao Hsueh-Li tell the tail of Wu Song who shows up in chapter 23 of the novels. The movie is as delightful as it’s name with a great story and wonderful action sequences. Like most of the Shaw Brothers films based off of novels The Delightful Forest is a great adventure film with a straight forward plot that you can just sit back and enjoy. I’m not going to go into the plot at all as it is best to experience it yourself, but I will say it is one of the more bloody Shaw Brothers I have seen.  Well worth the 92 minutes to watch.  I watched it via Amazon Prime.  It is the Celestial Pictures restored version although it was only available with English dubbing.

Chang Cheh, Director, Script
Pao Hsueh-Li, Director
Tong Kai, Action Director
Liu Chia-Liang, Action Director
Lau Kar-Wing, Action Director
Chan Chuen, Action Director
Ni Kuang, Script
Katy Chin Shu-Mei, Script

Ti Lung (Have Sword, Will Travel, Butterfly Lovers, Drunken Master II) as Instructor Wu Sung
Chu Mu (The Eagle’s Claw, All Men Are Brothers) as Jiang Zhong
Chiang Nan (The Legend of Madame White Snake, Smiling Swordsman, The Iron Bodyguard) as Commander Chang Du Jian
Lan Wei-Lieh (The Snowflake Sword, Come Drink with Me, The Water Margin) as Chang Tuan Lin
Tin Ching (The First Sword, The Kung-Fu Instructor, The Bare-Footed Kid) as Shi En, the Golden eye
Wong Ching-Ho (The Silent Swordsman, Vengeance Is a Golden Blade, The Vengeful Beauty) as Prison chief
Lee Man-Tai (The Water Margin, The 36 Crazy Fists, Drunken Arts and Crippled Fist) as Prison warden
Wang Kuang-Yu (One-Armed Swordsman, The Wandering Swordsman, Last Hurrah for Chivalry) as Zheng Qing
Yue Fung (Swordsman at Large, The Young Vagabond) as Sun Er Niang, the Witch
Kwok Chuk-Hing (The Jade Faced Assassin, The 14 Amazons) as Jiang’s wife
Lau Kar-Wing (The Sword and the Lute, The Duel, Once Upon a Time in China and America) as Ximen Xing
Wang Han-Chen (Trilogy of Swordsmanship, The Flying Guillotine, Disciples of the 36th Chamber) as Sheriff
Ho Kang (Trilogy of Swordsmanship, Assassin, The Idiot Swordsman) as Sheriff
Li Min-Lang (Son of Swordsman, Golden Sword and the Blind Swordswoman) as Jail warden Tong
Kong Ling (Trilogy of Swordsmanship,The Flying Guillotine) as Yu Lan
Pao Chia-Wen (The Iron Bodyguard, The Shadow Boxer) as Monk in flashback
Shum Lo (The Sword and the Lute, The Iron Buddha, Return of the Bastard Swordsman) as Casino manager
Liu Wai (Call to Arms, The Water Margin, Duel at Tiger Village) as Casino dealer

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Trivia:

• Ti Lung plays the character Wu Song in three movies.  The Water Margin (1972), Delightful Forest (1972) and Tiger Killer (1982)