The Golden Eagle

Dir: Chan Ching-po
Scr: Chan Chiu
Prod: Feng Huang
Cast: Gao Yuan, Chu Hung, Chen Chuan-chuan, Chang Tseng, Weng Wu
1964 | Colour | DCP | Mandarin | Chi & Eng Subtitles | 107min

The very first Hong Kong film shot on location in Inner Mongolia, The Golden Eagle transplants the anti-feudal, anti-exploitation themes of progressive Mandarin cinema onto the grassy prairie of northern China. A young man nicknamed Golden Eagle wins a wrestling competition but makes an enemy of a cruel nobleman and is forced to go into hiding, changing his name. He falls in love with a beautiful girl but holds back on expressing his feelings. Forced to flee after his true identity is exposed but learning that the girl has been captured by the nobleman’s son, he sneaks back with his friends for the rescue…
 
Grassland culture is an integral part of China’s national fabric. The Golden Eagle portrays in vivid Eastmancolor and widescreen the landscape and practices of the region, capturing the vast prairies, the nomadic lifestyle, the herd animals, the religious rituals and folk customs as well as performances of ethnic music and dance. The film’s celebration of ethnic minority culture and sceneries of remote areas were rare for 1960s cinema, leaving behind valuable record. Stars Gao Yuan and Chu Hung took horseback-riding lessons to prepare for the film and they turn in convincing performances for their Mongolian roles. When a character played by Chang Tseng disguises as a lama to disrupt a royal wedding, the introduction of comic touches to the fighting is an early example of Hong Kong cinema’s penchant for blending action with laughter.
 
The Golden Eagle ran in theatres for 54 consecutive days and became the first film in Hong Kong history to earn more than $1 million at the box office.

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