In collaboration with Taipei Cultural Center in New York, Chicago's Asian Pop-Up Cinema Season 13 (APUC) will screen four restored wuxia classics by late director King Hu (胡金銓) online across the United States from Sep. 22 to 28.
Wuxia films by Hu will include "Dragon Inn (龍門客棧)," "A Touch of Zen (俠女)," "Legend of the Mountain (山中傳奇)," and "Raining in the Mountain (空山靈雨)." In addition, the most impactful "Dragon Inn" will show on the big screen at the ChiTown Drive-in theater on Sep. 28.
"Dragon Inn" set box-office records in Taiwan, Korea, and the Philippines in 1967 and proved to have a broad and lasting impact. Hu’s next directorial effort could not hit screens until 1971, after three years of filming.
"A Touch of Zen" took the Technical Grand Prize award at the Cannes Film Festival in 1975, propelling Hu onto the world stage, and its bamboo forest duel became a classic scene and an indelible contribution to cinema.
"Legend of the Mountain" was described as one of Hu's most visually ravishing works, and it swept six major awards, including Best Director, at the 16th edition of Golden Horse Awards, while Raining in the Mountain became a virtuoso showcase for Hu’s typically luxurious mise-en-scène and elegant action choreography.
King Hu was a Chinese film director and actor based in Hong Kong and Taiwan. He was 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.
Asian Pop-Up Cinema, initiated in 2015, will present 30 films this year at an in-person and drive-in festival, with selected titles available for online streaming.