Lau Kar-Wing, born in 1944 in Hong Kong, is a significant figure in martial arts cinema, known for his roles as an actor in films like The Duel (1971) and Master of the Flying Guillotine (1976). As a member of the Sammo Hung Stuntmen's Association, he contributed to the evolution of action choreography during the golden age of Hong Kong cinema. His performances in Shatter (1974) and The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974) further cemented his legacy in the genre, showcasing his remarkable skills and dedication to the craft.
Master of the Flying Guillotine
The film concerns Wang's one-armed martial arts master being stalked by an imperial assassin, the master of two fighters (the Tibetan lamas) who were killed in the previous film. The title refers to the assassin's weapon, the "flying guillotine", which resembles a hat with a bladed rim attached to a long chain. Upon enveloping one's head, the blades cleanly decapitate the victim with a quick pull of the chain. The Boxer's adversary is the assassin Fung Sheng Wu Chi who is blind, is an expert user of the Flying Guillotine, and relies on others to identify one-armed men, which he then kills. When the One-Armed Boxer is invited to attend a martial arts tournament, his efforts to lie low are unsuccessful, and the assassin soon tracks him down with the help of his three subordinates competing in the tournament: a Thai boxer, a yoga master, and a kobojutsu user. The One-Armed Boxer leaves the tournament and, using a series of traps, defeats the assassin's subordinates. Unable to directly confront the deadly assassin himself, the One-armed Boxer devises a plan that uses misdirection. Taking advantage of the assassin's blindness by using bamboo poles as a lure, each time the blind assassin throws his weapon, it becomes snagged on one of the bamboo poles effectively removing the inner blades of the assassin's deadly weapon; however, as it still contains a jagged outer edge it is still a formidable weapon. The One-armed Boxer then proceeds to convert a coffin-maker's shop into an elaborate trap. Once the weapon is finally destroyed, the One-armed Boxer engages the assassin in a duel and defeats him.
