Monkey Saint Raids the Monastery

Monkey Saint Raids the Monastery

Dir/Prod: Chan Cheuk-sang
Scr: Szeto On
Orig Story: Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en
Prod Co: The United
Cast: Yu Kai, Cecilia Lee Fung-sing, Lee Hong-kum, Yuen Siu-fai
1965 | B&W | DCP | Cantonese | 88min

Journey to the West has a way of capturing the Chinese imagination. Adaptations reached a height in the 1950s and 60s, when fantasy action films were in vogue, taking advantage of the novel's capacity for whimsical stories and visual spectacles. Chan Cheuk-sang hopped on the Monkey train in 1959 with two productions and again in 1965, with Monkey Saint Raids the Monastery, complete with a spider vixen, the Dragon King and assorted beings, engaging in devious schemes. Chan not only produced and directed the film but also drew animation effects himself to spice up the fanciful plot and colourful characters!

The film was promoted for its colour effects when first released but its only existing copy is in black and white. The image and sound quality of this sole copy is short of ideal. We appreciate your understanding.

日期 日期 Date 時間 时间 Time 地點 地点 Venue
9/9/2018 (Sun) # 4:00pm Cinema, Hong Kong Film Archive

# Post-screening talk with Lam Kee-to

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