(King Hu, 1973, Hong Kong/Taiwan, 106 minutes)

We’ve shown a number of wuxia master King Hu’s films in recent years (most recently Dragon Inn in February 2024) but somehow have not recently played The Fate of Lee Khan, one of his finest, and also arguably his most fun. The Lee Khan of the title (played by Tien Fung) is an official working for Emperor Yuan who gets his hands on a battle map belonging to the Chinese rebel army. Working undercover within Khan’s ranks are a gang of female rebels, composed of many of the biggest and best names to come out of Hong Kong action cinema: Hsu Feng (A Touch of Zen), Angela “Lady Whirlwind” Mao (Enter the Dragon), and Shaw Brothers icon Li Li-hua. This girl gang contrives to corner Khan in that favorite of King Hu locations, an inn. With action choreography by Sammo Hung.

In Mandarin with English subtitles.