Cheng Pei Pei as Golden Swallow in COME DRINK WITH ME (1966).
© Genius Products

Mania Grade: A-
DVD: Come Drink with Me
Rating: Not Rated
Starring: Cheng Pei Pei, Yueh Hua
Written By: King Hu
Directed By: King Hu
Distributor: Genius Products
Original Year of Release: 1966
Extras: Audio Commentary, four featurettes, trailer gallery

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DVD Review: COME DRINK WITH ME

Back in the early 80’s a local TV station here in the Detroit area used to have something called Kung-Fu Theater every Saturday night. These were very cheaply made films with little plot and even less character development but it didn’t matter…These were Kung-Fu films and young male viewers ate them up. It seemed they all had a Bruce Lee clone as the star and they even used variations of the late actor’s name such as Bruce Lei or Bruce Le. It was all good stuff!

A bandit clan has kidnapped the son of a governor and is holding him as ransom for the return of their leader who is imprisoned. Instead, the Governor sends his daughter, the expert swordswoman named Golden Swallow to rescue her brother. The bandit second-in-command, Jade Faced Tiger, sends a group of his men to try and kill Golden Swallow at a nearby Inn. This sets up the first major fight of the film as Golden Swallow shows off her skills, easily defeating the bandits. Quentin Tarantino was heavily influenced by this scene for the restaurant fight in Kill Bill Part 1. Golden Swallow was the prototype for Uma Thurmond’s character.

When she tries to rescue her brother from the temple the bandits have taken over, she finds herself vastly outnumbered but gets aid from the near-mythical master martial artist known as Drunken Cat. Pulling the strings behind the bandits is Drunken Cat’s rival the evil Abbot Liao Kung who murdered Cat’s master years earlier. 

Come Drink With Me is a remarkable film on several levels. Neither of the main two stars were proficient in the martial arts before making the film. Their abilities came from a combination of training during the film, brilliant choreography, and clever film tricks. The film techniques look a bit dated over forty years later but you can certainly see why this film was such a hit in Hong Kong and considered one of the best martial arts films ever made.

Cheng Pei Pei is dynamic as Golden Swallow and the fact that a female was cast as the heroic lead in a film from the 1960s is truly amazing. She is beautiful, tough, and yet still sensitive in her portrayal, reluctantly taking aid from Drunken Cat. Yueh Hua was equally adept as master Drunken Cat, providing comic relief initially appearing as a drunken fool but aiding Swallow so skillfully that it went without notice.

The widescreen DVD release is a gorgeous transfer and you’d never guess the film was over forty years old. The rumor is that Quentin Tarrantino is planning on doing a remake of the film.

Genius Products has provided fans with several outstanding extras for the DVD release. There is an audio commentary with Cheng Pei Pei and Hong Kong film expert Bey Logan. Other features include:

“The King and I” Acclaimed filmmaker Tsui Hark remembers the late King Hu

“Come Speak With Me” an interview with Cheng Pei Pei (15:00) who still looks fabulous over forty years later.

“A Classic Remembered” Bey Logan provides a retrospective on the film and its tremendous influence on modern directors (17:24)

“Return of the Drunken Master” An exclusive interview with the lead actor, Yueh Hua, who played Drunken Cat (18:00)