# The Sentimental Swordsman (多情剑客无情剑)
**The Sentimental Swordsman** (多情劍客無情劍) is a 1977 Hong Kong wuxia (Chinese martial-arts fiction genre of heroic swordsmen) film written and directed by Chor Yuen and produced by the [Shaw Brothers Studio](https://www.edgepedia.org/shaw-brothers-studio), adapted from Gu Long's novel *Duoqing Jianke Wuqing Jian* of the Xiaoli Feidao (Little Li Flying Dagger) series. It stars Ti Lung as the swordsman Li Xunhuan, with Derek Yee, Ching Li, Candice Yu, Yueh Hua, and Ku Feng, and was released in Hong Kong on October 14, 1977.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076827/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | 多情劍客無情劍 (Duo qing jian ke wu qing jian)[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076827/) |
| Release | October 14, 1977 (Hong Kong)[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076827/) |
| Director and writer | Chor Yuen, screenplay under the pen name Chin Yu (秦雨); story by Gu Long[2](https://grindhousedatabase.com/index.php/The_Sentimental_Swordsman) |
| Source | Gu Long's 1970 novel *Duoqing Jianke Wuqing Jian*, first book of the Xiaoli Feidao series[3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPB1kfW0Qus) |
| Award | Special Award for technical excellence at the 15th Golden Horse Awards (1978)[4](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E5%A4%9A%E6%83%85%E5%89%91%E5%AE%A2%E6%97%A0%E6%83%85%E5%89%91/2648855?fromModule=lemma_inlink) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Li Xunhuan, famed in the martial world as "Little Li Flying Dagger," has spent ten years in retirement outside the martial world after giving the woman he loves, his cousin Lin Shiyin, in marriage to his savior and sworn brother Long Xiaoyun.[8](https://tv.apple.com/tw/movie/%E5%A4%9A%E6%83%85%E5%8A%8D%E5%AE%A2%E7%84%A1%E6%83%85%E5%8A%8D/umc.cmc.5mxujeik2vkgqm7mtghmetfcu) When the Plum Blossom Bandit, a masked killer from twenty years earlier, reappears and rumor blames Li, he returns to Long's estate, Xingyun Zhuang, to clear his name and to see Lin Shiyin again.[4](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E5%A4%9A%E6%83%85%E5%89%91%E5%AE%A2%E6%97%A0%E6%83%85%E5%89%91/2648855?fromModule=lemma_inlink)
A struggle over the gold armored vest, a protective garment said to withstand any blow, draws the martial world's attention, and Li is framed as the Bandit himself, culminating in his being taken to the Shaolin Temple for judgment.[9](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHhPUyHmsSQ) The schemes against him exploit the victims' own characters: Li's sentimentality and loyalty make him an easy target for a cold, ruthless killer.[10](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/the-sentimental-swordsman-chor-yuen-1977/)
### Sequels and legacy
The film was followed by *Return of the Sentimental Swordsman* (1981, released in Taiwan as *Duoqing Jianke Duanqing Dao* and also known as *Magic Sword*), directed by Chor Yuen with Ti Lung and Derek Yee returning, which adapted the novel's Money Gang storyline; that sequel was Chor Yuen's 100th film and Shaw Brothers' 1,000th production.[16](https://www.gulongbbs.com/html/glys20110212.htm) In 1982 Shaw Brothers released *Perils of the Sentimental Swordsman*, whose title links it to the series but whose story is adapted from Gu Long's Lu Xiaofeng novels rather than the Xiaoli Feidao series.[6](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/18995340/19057017/Chor%2BYuen_c.pdf)The film has been released on home video in the Arrow Video Shawscope Volume 3 box set (2024), with a commentary by martial arts film author David West, and it screened at the Shanghai International Film Festival in June 2023.[17](https://www.genregrinder.com/post/shawscope-collection-volume-3-complete-blu-ray-review) • [18](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076827/releaseinfo/)
## Production and adaptation
The film was produced by Shaw Brothers, with [Run Run Shaw](https://www.edgepedia.org/run-run-shaw) credited as producer on some records and Mona Fong as production manager or producer on others.[5](https://letterboxd.com/film/the-sentimental-swordsman/) Chor Yuen wrote the screenplay himself under the pen name Chin Yu, adapting the first half of Gu Long's novel, the Plum Blossom Bandit story; the novel's later Money Gang plot was left for the 1981 sequel.[2](https://grindhousedatabase.com/index.php/The_Sentimental_Swordsman) • [3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPB1kfW0Qus) It was the first film adaptation of the novel, and Ti Lung's performance made him the first screen Little Li Flying Dagger.[3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPB1kfW0Qus)
Chor Yuen had begun adapting Gu Long's wuxia novels for Shaw Brothers in 1976 with *[The Magic Blade](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-magic-blade)* and *[Clans of Intrigue](https://www.edgepedia.org/clans-of-intrigue)*, and eventually made 18 films from Gu Long's fiction, helping to set off a wave of Gu Long adaptations across Hong Kong and Taiwan cinema and television.[6](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/18995340/19057017/Chor%2BYuen_c.pdf) *The Sentimental Swordsman* was one of five films he directed in 1977 alone.[7](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2018/08/31/the-sentimental-swordsman-1977/)
## Style and reception
Unlike many of Chor Yuen's other Gu Long adaptations, which favor plot and spectacle, *The Sentimental Swordsman* is grounded in character psychology, and its fight scenes are staged more directly and realistically than the fantastic action typical of his films.[10](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/the-sentimental-swordsman-chor-yuen-1977/) • [7](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2018/08/31/the-sentimental-swordsman-1977/) The martial arts choreography by Tang Chia and Huang Pei-Chih is described as more grounded in reality, with supernatural wuxia feats present only as garnish.[7](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2018/08/31/the-sentimental-swordsman-1977/) • [11](https://fareastfilms.com/review/the-sentimental-swordsman/)
Location shooting in South Korea gave the film snowy landscapes for Li and Ah Fei's first meeting, adding to its atmosphere of suspense and desolation, and reviewers note that much more of the film takes place outdoors than in a typical studio-bound Shaw production.[12](https://www.hkmemory.org/shaw/text/index.php?catId=46&p=home) • [5](https://letterboxd.com/film/the-sentimental-swordsman/) The film won the Special Award for technical excellence at the 15th Golden Horse Awards in 1978, and Apple TV's synopsis credits it with the Special Award for Best Cinematography at that ceremony.[4](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E5%A4%9A%E6%83%85%E5%89%91%E5%AE%A2%E6%97%A0%E6%83%85%E5%89%91/2648855?fromModule=lemma_inlink) • [8](https://tv.apple.com/tw/movie/%E5%A4%9A%E6%83%85%E5%8A%8D%E5%AE%A2%E7%84%A1%E6%83%85%E5%8A%8D/umc.cmc.5mxujeik2vkgqm7mtghmetfcu) On IMDb it holds a rating of 6.6/10 from about 600 users.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076827/)
Reported running times differ across databases: 96 minutes (FilmAffinity and the Chinese Baidu entry), 97 minutes (Rotten Tomatoes and Apple TV), 101 minutes (Filmanic, [Letterboxd](https://www.edgepedia.org/letterboxd)), and 103 minutes (IMDb and the Grindhouse Cinema Database).[13](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film584448.html) • [14](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_sentimental_swordsman) • [15](https://filmanic.com/movies/the-sentimental-swordsman/10144023.film) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076827/)
## References
1. [The Sentimental Swordsman (1977), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076827/)
2. [The Sentimental Swordsman, The Grindhouse Cinema Database](https://grindhousedatabase.com/index.php/The_Sentimental_Swordsman)
3. [楚原製造第一代小李飛刀.1977 多情劍客無情劍, YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPB1kfW0Qus)
4. [多情剑客无情剑（1977年楚原执导的动作电影）, 百度百科](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E5%A4%9A%E6%83%85%E5%89%91%E5%AE%A2%E6%97%A0%E6%83%85%E5%89%91/2648855?fromModule=lemma_inlink)
5. [The Sentimental Swordsman, Letterboxd](https://letterboxd.com/film/the-sentimental-swordsman/)
6. [香港影人小傳檢索：楚原, 香港電影資料館](https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/documents/18995340/19057017/Chor%2BYuen_c.pdf)
7. [The Sentimental Swordsman (1977), Silver Emulsion Film Reviews](https://www.silveremulsion.com/2018/08/31/the-sentimental-swordsman-1977/)
8. [《多情劍客無情劍》, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/tw/movie/%E5%A4%9A%E6%83%85%E5%8A%8D%E5%AE%A2%E7%84%A1%E6%83%85%E5%8A%8D/umc.cmc.5mxujeik2vkgqm7mtghmetfcu)
9. [The Sentimental Swordsman (1977) Review, CoinOpTV, YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHhPUyHmsSQ)
10. [The Sentimental Swordsman (Chor Yuen, 1977), The Chinese Cinema](https://www.thechinesecinema.com/the-sentimental-swordsman-chor-yuen-1977/)
11. [The Sentimental Swordsman (1977) Review, Far East Films](https://fareastfilms.com/review/the-sentimental-swordsman/)
12. [邵氏電影：多情劍客無情劍, 香港記憶](https://www.hkmemory.org/shaw/text/index.php?catId=46&p=home)
13. [The Sentimental Swordsman, FilmAffinity](https://www.filmaffinity.com/us/film584448.html)
14. [The Sentimental Swordsman, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_sentimental_swordsman)
15. [The Sentimental Swordsman (1977), Filmanic](https://filmanic.com/movies/the-sentimental-swordsman/10144023.film)
16. [古龍影視資訊年表, gulongbbs.com](https://www.gulongbbs.com/html/glys20110212.htm)
17. [Shawscope Collection Volume 3 Complete Blu-ray Review, Genre Grinder](https://www.genregrinder.com/post/shawscope-collection-volume-3-complete-blu-ray-review)
18. [The Sentimental Swordsman (1977) Release info, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076827/releaseinfo/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Action and adventure films (individual works) › Martial arts films › Released 1943 to 1985*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license