A CHINESE COURTESAN Double Feature Celebrates Seduction and Savagery

Exploitation genre cinema comes in all shapes, sizes, and flavors, and Hong Kong filmmakers were usually ahead of the curve on most of them.

Rape/revenge films, for example, have been around for quite a while, but leave it to the Shaw Brothers to mix the niche subgenre with both softcore erotica and bloody martial arts action.

Imprint Films' Imprint Asia line has just released a new hard-box double feature collecting two Shaw Brothers films that are related in that genre-bending spirit. 1972's Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan kicks off the pair, and it's a fantastic reminder not to judge a film by its title. Sure, there's the expected T&A here, but it also delivers a seriously crafted tale of class and power, infused with a bloodthirsty quest for vengeance.

Lady Chun Li (Betty Pei Ti) runs the Four Seasons Spring Brothel, where she takes zero guff. Her sexual interests sit exclusively with women, but she'll tear through men and women alike to keep her grip on power. New arrival Ai Nu (Lily Ho) -- an 18-year-old recently abducted and sold to the brothel -- becomes her latest obsession, but while she thinks she's gotten the young woman under control, Ai Nu has instead made other plans. Any man who has his way with her is going to die.

Director Chor Yuen sprinkles in some martial arts during the first two acts, but the focus is on Ai Nu's journey from resistant prisoner to reluctant courtesan on a mission. Ho does good work on both fronts with a believably affecting turn twisting into something colder and deadlier.

Pei is equally compelling as a woman whose wants are at odds with her needs, and together they make a formidable pair. The film would go on to influence 1992's far more exploitative Naked Killer, but it still finds its own moments destined to upset conservative viewers of the time.

The Shaw Brothers' studio lot is put to great use here as snowy exteriors give way to elaborately designed interior sets. The fight choreography is what you should expect from an early 70s Shaw Brothers production, but it entertains with style, wire work, and a finale filled with blood sprays, throat tears, and justice for the working women. Strong dialogue and a memorable final face-off bring it all to an unforgettable end.

Chor returned 12 years later to essentially remake the film with 1984's Lust for Love of a Chinese Courtesan, but there's enough differences to warrant a watch. For one thing, it's a decade later, which allowed for a lot more skin and brutality, but there are also changes to character elements and story beats.

Ai Nu's (Hu Kwan-chen) indoctrination is more graphic this time around, both in her sensual time spent with Lady Chun (Yu On-on) and the vicious breaking-in she gets from four customers. The drama is similarly played up as flashbacks make clear the difficult childhoods and lives endured by the leads. This time around, that includes a man named Hsiao (Chang Kuo-chu), a friend to Lady Chun since they were kids and now her lover. It's not quite a love triangle, but it definitely adds a wrinkle absent from the first film (for better or worse).

The sexual action heats up, but Chor seems less inclined to do the same with the fight scenes. There are still a few sword fights, to be clear, but the action chops are given to Hsiao instead of the two women, which is a real disappointment. This change also leaves the film without an epic finale, as it instead settles for romantic tragedy instead. Different strokes for different folks, but the 1972 original is vastly superior.

Both films are presented via high-definition transfers sourced from 35mm originals, and both colors and details are strong throughout. Each film is on its own Blu-ray disc in its own case, both housed in the hard box. Special features are primarily located on the first film's disc, and they include trailers and the following.

- Commentary by author Stefan Hammond and Asian film expert Arne Venema (on Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan)
- Film Historian Paul Fonoroff on Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan [12:53]
- Intimate Confessions of 3 Shaw Girls [12:06]
- Archival interviews with Dr. Sze Man Hung, Kwan King-chung, and Clarence Fok [18:01]
- Commentary by film historian Samm Deighan (on Lust for Love of a Chinese Courtesan)

Imprint Films is the boutique label of Via Vision Entertainment. Visit their official site for more information and to place an order for the limited edition.