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TRAIL OF THE BROKEN BLADE (1966) is another Shaw Bros. swordplay adventure from the mid-1960s directed by Chang Cheh and starring Jimmy Wang Yu before he became a kung fu star with THE Chinese BOXER (1970, aka HAMMER OF GOD). There is plenty of swordfighting and it's consistently exciting, even though it's not terribly realistic. The hero tends to slash his opponents and kill them dead without much in the way of real sword technique or bloodshed. He also makes those superhuman high leaps and acrobatic flips found in the early swordplay films. More authentic martial arts techniques would take hold the next year with ONE-ARMED SWORDSMAN and its sequel, RETURN OF THE ONE-ARMED SWORDSMAN (1968), both also starring Wang Yu and directed by Chang Cheh, with action scenes by Tang Chia and Liu Chia Liang.
The intricate storyline here has Wang Yu play Li, a fugitive wanted for killing the official who framed his father. His girl, Liu, still pines for him although she is loved by Fang, a swordsman hired by her father to teach her self-defense. Fang, seeking to make Liu happy, sets out to find Li. When he does, the two form an immediate, instinctive bond of friendship. Eventually, Li's enemies locate him and issue a challenge to fight them on Flying Fish Island. Li swims there alone, followed soon after by Fang and Liu who join him for the final battle, although they first have to negotiate a cave filled with traps.
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