Genre:
Action
Release Date: 06/14/2005
Sound: DD
Run Time: 95 min
Flags: Violence
Distributor/Studio: New Media Studio
The governor's son, on government business, is hijacked on the road and kidnapped by a ruthless gang of thugs who hold him as a hostage, demanding their leader's release from prison. The governor sends the legendary
Golden Swallow (
Cheng Pei-Pei) to rescue him.
Golden Swallow arrives in town disguised as a man, and soon meets up with members of the gang in a local pub. She orders them to surrender. They refuse, and test her, throwing various objects at her, which she calmly deflects, before mounting a full-scale attack. As they fight,
Drunken Cat (
Yueh Hua), a kung fu master disguised as a beggar, enters the pub and looks on amusedly. Soon the two join forces to rescue the governor's son, and to defeat the wicked monk who aids the gang, and who learned his skills from the same master who taught
Drunken Cat. Legendary Hong Kong action director
King Hu (
Swordsman) made
Come Drink With Me for the
Shaw brothers in 1966.
Come Drink With Me was one of the classic Hong Kong kung fu films that inspired
Ang Lee's
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and it contains many of the same elements from that film, including gender confusion, a stolen mystical weapon, and a wall-climbing woman warrior played by
Pei-Pei, whom
Ang Lee would cast as the villainous
Jade Fox in
Crouching Tiger.
~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
Come Drink With Me is a wonderfully entertaining kung fu action film from influential Hong Kong director
King Hu. The film is one of the forebears of
Ang Lee's international hit,
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. While
Come Drink With Me obviously doesn't have
Crouching Tiger's arthouse sheen, it's an equally well-acted film with beguilingly colorful sets and costumes. The story is surprisingly straightforward for a Hong Kong martial arts film. With its emphasis on the power of feminine grace and the corruption of religious power, it retains its interest to contemporary audiences. But its main appeal is the action setpieces, which range from chaotically bloody (the opening kidnapping scene) to gracefully economical (the slowly building pub fight).
Cheng Pei-Pei is impressive as the mighty swordswoman,
Golden Swallow, though many of the scenes of her fighting consist of tight shots of her waving her two swords around, followed by wide shots of bloodied thugs flying in all directions.
Yueh Hua is amusing and charming as the wily
Drunken Cat, who sings with a group of street urchins to raise cash when he's not kicking butt. The budding friendship between
Golden Swallow and
Drunken Cat is handled with touching delicacy, and their sincere reticence to fight makes them uniquely likeable action heroes.
~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
