King Hu

Directing

King Hu

Born 1932-04-29 · Beijing, China

Hu Jinquan (29 April 1932 – 14 January 1997), better known as King Hu, was a Chinese film director and actor based in Hong Kong and Taiwan. He is best known for directing various wuxia films in the 1960s and 1970s, which brought Hong Kong and Taiwanese cinema to new technical and artistic heights. His films Come Drink with Me (1966), Dragon Inn (1967), and A Touch of Zen (1970–1971) inaugurated a new generation of wuxia films in the late 1960s. Apart from being a film director, Hu was also a screenwriter and set designer.

Acting credits

Empress Wu poster
6.4

The renowned Li Li Hua plays Wu Ze Tian, the most famous woman in China's four thousand year history.

Empress Wu

1963

Sons of the Good Earth poster
5.5

The year is 1937, just prior to the Japanese invasion of China. Painters Ju Rui and Lao San stumble upon He Hua, a woman sold into the sex industry at a local brothel.

Sons of the Good Earth

1965

The Kingdom and the Beauty poster
6.9

This is a musical about a young emperor who is lured via stories told to a place called Kiang-Nan by his royal tutor. The empress mother has the tutor go to Kiang-Nan to bring him back.

The Kingdom and the Beauty

1959

Between Tears and Smiles poster
6.8

Fan Chia-soo is a kind-hearted student whose heart is captured by the sweet song of Shen Feng-hsien. However, he is not the only one who has eyes for Shen. The General's henchmen are also determined to present the songstress to their superior as a gift. Fan received help from an unexpected quarter to save the woman he loves.

Between Tears and Smiles

1964

The Dancing Millionairess poster
7.5

Chen Hou is a chauffeur who gets caught in a mistaken identity scandal linking him to businesswoman Lok Dai. Chen was supposed to audition for a job as her chauffeur, but a proposed musical show is far more attractive to the aspiring dancer. When a rumor gets out that the two are involved in an affair, she's angry and confronts him, but his charms overwhelm her, and it's revealed that she too desires to dance. Soon she's bankrolling the affair, the sets are being built, and the singing and dancing begin!

The Dancing Millionairess

1964

The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go poster
4.9

An American draft dodger and aspiring writer named Nero Finnigan becomes involved with the notorious Mr. Go, an organized crime mastermind. They conspire to blackmail an American weapons scientist into providing secrets to Mr. Go's organization for resale to the highest bidder. "The Dolphin" then arrives, who is an American CIA agent and James Joyce scholar, and is charged with recovering the scientist and his work by whatever means necessary.

The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go

1974

The Blue and the Black poster
6.6

It's a powerful melodrama about a thwarted romance in 1930s Tientsin, China, during the Japanese occupation, and it stars Linda Lin Dai, one of the era's most popular stars. It was part of Golden Horse's 100 Greatest Chinese-Language Films.

The Blue and the Black

1966

The King of Wuxia Part 1 poster
8.7

The life of the epoch-making master of martial arts cinema, King Hu.

The King of Wuxia Part 1

2022

Laughter and Tears poster
9.0

Tao Zutai, a bank employee, has five children. Tao's wife is addicted to gambling and spends too much and the eldest daughter Guiru is greedy for vanity. Tao is overjoyed when he is notified that he will be promoted to deputy manager.

Laughter and Tears

1958

The Dream of the Red Chamber poster
7.2

The Ching Dynasty novel The Dream of The Red Chamber is not only the most widely read, but also the most filmed book in Chinese history. The sprawling love story has proven a challenge to many filmmakers, but this version is acclaimed as the most successful. A sumptuous feature which took three years of planning and another for production, it was a hugely popular and critical hit which still stands out as a classic of both 18th century literature and 1960s moviemaking.

The Dream of the Red Chamber

1962

Revenge of a Swordswoman poster
NR

Adapted from Pingzong Xiaying Lu by Liang Yusheng

Revenge of a Swordswoman

1963

Back Door poster
8.0

A middle-aged couple adopt a young girl.

Back Door

1960

The King of Wuxia Part 2 poster
NR

No synopsis available yet.

The King of Wuxia Part 2

2022

Les Belles poster
7.0

Linda Lin Dai and Fanny Fan join the dancing troupe of Kao Pao-shu. Linda and Kao's son Peter Chen, manager of the troupe, have misunderstandings and dislike each other.

Les Belles

1961

When the Peach Blossoms Bloom poster
NR

The Shen couple had six children. For years Mr Shen had been the only one to support the family. One day, Mr Shen was on a crashed plane in Singapore and everyone believed he had died. Mrs Shen then went to Singapore to prepare for his funeral and the eldest daughter took charge of the family. However, the brothers and sisters would never listen to their eldest sister. The second brother was extremely bad-tempered and always beat the others up when they did not listen to him. The fourth sister was extremely gluttonous who would never help with any housework. The eldest sister was annoyed and could do nothing.

When the Peach Blossoms Bloom

1960

Love Parade poster
10.0

The winning couple of Linda Lin Dai and Peter Chen Hu light up the screen in the delightful Shaw Brothers musical Love Parade. The manager of a dance company places a personal ad in the newspaper. He receives a response but has no idea the woman is his top dancer, with whom he has an antagonistic relationship.

Love Parade

1963

Kiss for Sale poster
10.0

A Shaw Brothers comedy starring Peter Chen Ho and Fanny Fan Lai.

Kiss for Sale

1961

Little Angels of the Streets poster
7.0

Li Han-Hsiang directed film.

Little Angels of the Streets

1957

Springtime in Paradise poster
NR

A Shaw and Sons production

Springtime in Paradise

1957

My Lucky Star poster
10.0

A Shaw Brothers production

My Lucky Star

1963

Blood in Snow poster
7.0

A behind the scenes story of a small time folk opera troupe and other performers in Northern China in the 1930s.

Blood in Snow

1956

The Magic Touch poster
7.0

Early Shaw Brothers comedy

The Magic Touch

1958

The Angel poster
9.0

Angel is a pretty young girl who debates in a furious manner at a Women's Day Meeting against the unequal law of the Ching Dynasty which permits Chinese males to have concubines. This leads to a series of complications that affects those close to her including her younger sister.

The Angel

1958

The Deformed poster
8.0

Nurse Leng Shuxian is forced by family circumstances to marry Long Yusheng (King Hu), a grossly disfigured Quasimodo with a heart of gold. Shuxian tries but is unable to accept his deformity and they remain a couple in name only. With the appearance of Yusheng's cousin, she has to make a choice between personal happiness and family duty. From the start, Loh's character and drove the action, evoking a great intensity of emotions along the way: suffering, resignation and loneliness. Loh was lauded as the "Queen of Tragedy" after her heart-wrenching portrayal in this film. Winner of two Golden Harvest Awards – for best screenplay and best black-and-white cinematography – at the 8th Asian Film Festival in 1961.

The Deformed

1960

Behind the camera

Swordsman poster
7.0

A kung-fu manual known as the Sacred Scroll is stolen from the Emperor's library. An army detachment is sent to recover it. Meanwhile, a young swordsman and his fellow disciple are accidentally drawn into the chaos.

Swordsman

1990

A Touch of Zen poster
7.6

Yang Hui-zhen, a mysterious princess on the run from corrupt government officials, is joined in her endeavors by skilled Buddhist monks and an unambitious painter named Gu Sheng-zhai.

A Touch of Zen

1970

A Touch of Zen poster
7.6

Yang Hui-zhen, a mysterious princess on the run from corrupt government officials, is joined in her endeavors by skilled Buddhist monks and an unambitious painter named Gu Sheng-zhai.

A Touch of Zen

1970

Come Drink with Me poster
6.7

Golden Sparrow is a fighter-for-hire who has been contracted by the local government to retrieve the governor's kidnapped son. Holding him is a group of rebels who are demanding that their leader be released from prison in return for the captured son. After a brief encounter with the gang at a local restaurant, Golden Sparrow is joined by an inebriated wanderer Drunken Cat who aids her in her mission.

Come Drink with Me

1966

Come Drink with Me poster
6.7

Golden Sparrow is a fighter-for-hire who has been contracted by the local government to retrieve the governor's kidnapped son. Holding him is a group of rebels who are demanding that their leader be released from prison in return for the captured son. After a brief encounter with the gang at a local restaurant, Golden Sparrow is joined by an inebriated wanderer Drunken Cat who aids her in her mission.

Come Drink with Me

1966

Dragon Inn poster
7.4

China, year 1457. The Minister of Defense is executed, and his children are sentenced to exile by order of the tyrannical Tsao. Fearful of future revenge from the young people, Tsao sends cruel soldiers to murder them, but a brave group of swordsmen can change the course of the battle at the Dragon Inn.

Dragon Inn

1967

Dragon Inn poster
7.4

China, year 1457. The Minister of Defense is executed, and his children are sentenced to exile by order of the tyrannical Tsao. Fearful of future revenge from the young people, Tsao sends cruel soldiers to murder them, but a brave group of swordsmen can change the course of the battle at the Dragon Inn.

Dragon Inn

1967

The Valiant Ones poster
6.9

A righteous husband-and-wife swordfighting duo struggle to protect China from the machinations of Japanese pirates and corrupt officials.

The Valiant Ones

1974

The Valiant Ones poster
6.9

A righteous husband-and-wife swordfighting duo struggle to protect China from the machinations of Japanese pirates and corrupt officials.

The Valiant Ones

1974

The Valiant Ones poster
6.9

A righteous husband-and-wife swordfighting duo struggle to protect China from the machinations of Japanese pirates and corrupt officials.

The Valiant Ones

1974

Legend of the Mountain poster
7.4

A traveling scholar is intent on translating a Buddhist sutra that is said to have power over the creatures of the afterlife. He slowly finds himself entangled in a mysterious plot involving witchcraft, demons, and a battle to preserve his own soul from the attacks of the supernatural underworld.

Legend of the Mountain

1979

Legend of the Mountain poster
7.4

A traveling scholar is intent on translating a Buddhist sutra that is said to have power over the creatures of the afterlife. He slowly finds himself entangled in a mysterious plot involving witchcraft, demons, and a battle to preserve his own soul from the attacks of the supernatural underworld.

Legend of the Mountain

1979

Legend of the Mountain poster
7.4

A traveling scholar is intent on translating a Buddhist sutra that is said to have power over the creatures of the afterlife. He slowly finds himself entangled in a mysterious plot involving witchcraft, demons, and a battle to preserve his own soul from the attacks of the supernatural underworld.

Legend of the Mountain

1979

All the King's Men poster
7.3

It's the 10th century BC, the emperor is not well, and the medicines he is receiving from con artist "Immortal Li" are in reality only making him worse.

All the King's Men

1983

All the King's Men poster
7.3

It's the 10th century BC, the emperor is not well, and the medicines he is receiving from con artist "Immortal Li" are in reality only making him worse.

All the King's Men

1983

Painted Skin poster
5.9

A roving ghost spirit controlled by Ying Yang the Evil paints her face in the guise of a concubine. Her spirit can only be released by a ghostbusting monk who comes to her rescue.

Painted Skin

1993

Painted Skin poster
5.9

A roving ghost spirit controlled by Ying Yang the Evil paints her face in the guise of a concubine. Her spirit can only be released by a ghostbusting monk who comes to her rescue.

Painted Skin

1993

Raining in the Mountain poster
7.3

In Ming Dynasty China, the retiring abbot of a Buddhist monastery invites two dignitaries to help him choose a successor, not suspecting that both of them have hired help to steal a priceless parchment kept in the temple.

Raining in the Mountain

1979

Raining in the Mountain poster
7.3

In Ming Dynasty China, the retiring abbot of a Buddhist monastery invites two dignitaries to help him choose a successor, not suspecting that both of them have hired help to steal a priceless parchment kept in the temple.

Raining in the Mountain

1979

Sons of the Good Earth poster
5.5

The year is 1937, just prior to the Japanese invasion of China. Painters Ju Rui and Lao San stumble upon He Hua, a woman sold into the sex industry at a local brothel.

Sons of the Good Earth

1965

Sons of the Good Earth poster
5.5

The year is 1937, just prior to the Japanese invasion of China. Painters Ju Rui and Lao San stumble upon He Hua, a woman sold into the sex industry at a local brothel.

Sons of the Good Earth

1965

Four Moods poster
6.8

Directed by some of most well known Chinese-language directors of the time, the portmanteau film Four Moods was an attempt to alleviate Li Han-hsiang’s financial troubles during the late 1960s. Arguably one of his best works, King Hu’s short Anger is an adaptation of the famous Peking opera San Cha Kou; set to opera instrumentation and stylishly shot, the film deftly captures the tense showdown between political schemers, avengers and vagabonds inside an inn. Li Han-hsiang’s Happiness, inspired by the Strange Tales of Liaozhai, tells a tale of reprieve for a kind-hearted ghost, while Pai Ching-Jui’s Joy and Lee Hsing’s Sadness both explore the fateful encounters between mortal men and ghostly women.

Four Moods

1970

Four Moods poster
6.8

Directed by some of most well known Chinese-language directors of the time, the portmanteau film Four Moods was an attempt to alleviate Li Han-hsiang’s financial troubles during the late 1960s. Arguably one of his best works, King Hu’s short Anger is an adaptation of the famous Peking opera San Cha Kou; set to opera instrumentation and stylishly shot, the film deftly captures the tense showdown between political schemers, avengers and vagabonds inside an inn. Li Han-hsiang’s Happiness, inspired by the Strange Tales of Liaozhai, tells a tale of reprieve for a kind-hearted ghost, while Pai Ching-Jui’s Joy and Lee Hsing’s Sadness both explore the fateful encounters between mortal men and ghostly women.

Four Moods

1970

The Fate of Lee Khan poster
6.8

Lee Khan, a high official under Mongolian Emperor Yuan of the Yuan dynasty procures the battle map of the Chinese rebel Chu Yuan-Chang's army. Rebel spies, aided by treachery within Khan's ranks, strive to corner him in an inn.

The Fate of Lee Khan

1973