This just might be my single favorite Shaw Brothers film. There is more going on here than in most of the Shaw Brothers films I've seen. No, I don't mean it's more complex or complicated I simply mean that was more character depth here than in most I've seen. The fighting was decent and quite brutal for the time, the acting was actually more restrained which was a nice touch. But it was the direction, cinematography, and score that lifted the film. Chang Cheh's use of slow motion, close-ups, score, and framing really gave the film a mythic feel. The main lead Lo Yi seems compelled against his will to get involved even though he knows how things will turn out. This was grand stuff, there was so much back story missing and so much left unsaid but instead of lessening the film, this plays as a strength as it makes this feel like this was just a single chapter in a much larger story.