The Legend of Wisely (Chinese: 衛斯理傳奇 or 衞斯理傳奇; released in the Philippines as Fighters of the Empire) is a 1987 Hong Kong fantasy adventure film directed by Teddy Robin based on Ni Kuang's novel series, Wisely Series, starring Samuel Hui as the titular protagonist. The film co-stars Ti Lung, Joey Wong and Robin himself.
| The Legend of Wisely | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Traditional Chinese | 衛斯理傳奇 |
| Simplified Chinese | 卫斯理传奇 |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Wèi Sī Lǐ Chuán Qí |
| Jyutping | Wai6 Si1 Lei5 Zyun6 Kei4 |
| Directed by | Teddy Robin |
| Screenplay by | Philip Cheng Gerald Liu Calvin Poon |
| Based on | Wisely Series by Ni Kuang |
| Produced by | Samuel Hui |
| Starring | Samuel Hui Ti Lung Teddy Robin Joey Wong |
| Cinematography | Peter Pau |
| Edited by | Cinema City Production Editing Unit |
| Music by | Lo Tayu |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Golden Princess Film Production |
Release date |
|
Running time | 86 minutes |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Cantonese |
| Box office | HK$18,712,571 |
Plot
editWisely, the famous writer/adventurer, is tricked by his friend (played by Teddy Robin, the film's director) into helping him steal the dragon pearl. Samuel Hui plays Wisely in this big budget Hong Kong movie, with production units filming some scenes by the Great Pyramids, and many scenes in Nepal. There are car chases and crashes, chases by horsemen and plenty of fights along the way. The Legend of Wisely is a live action comic book. A lot of effort went into making this movie, and it shows as Wisely goes from one hazard to another, a Hong Kong version of Indiana Jones.
Cast
edit- Samuel Hui as Wisely
- Ti Lung as Pak Kei-wai
- Teddy Robin as David Ko
- Joey Wong as Sue Pak
- Alan Ko as Little Master
- Bruce Baron as Howard Hope
- Heidi Makinen as Hope's assistant
- Blackie Ko as The Two Headed Snake
- Lee Hoi-hing as Hing
- Paulo Tocha
- Wellington Fung as Fake David Ko
- Kim Fan as Little Master's guardian
- Ng Chiu-leung
- Lee Tak-shing
- Chen Chun-kun
- Chang Sing-kwong
- Eva Cobo
Also known as
edit- Legend of Wisely
- Legend of Wu
- Wai Si-Lei chuen kei
- La Légende de la perle d'or
- The Legend of the Golden Pearl (UK title, 1987)
- Legenda o zlaté perle
- Wei si li chuan ji (China: Mandarin title)
- Wisely Legend (literal English title)
Release
editThe Legend of Wisely was released in Hong Kong on 21 January 1987. In the Philippines, the film was released by Pioneer Releasing as Fighters of the Empire on 9 March 1988.[1][2]
See also
edit- Wisely Series, the novel series by Ni Kuang
- Films and television series adapted from the Wisely Series:
- The Seventh Curse, a 1986 Hong Kong film starring Chow Yun-fat as Wisely
- The Cat (1992 film), a 1998 Hong Kong film starring Waise Lee as Wisely
- The New Adventures of Wisely, a 1998 Singaporean television series starring Michael Tao as Wisely
- The Wesley's Mysterious File, a 2002 Hong Kong film starring Andy Lau as Wisely
- The 'W' Files, a 2003 Hong Kong television series starring Gallen Lo as Wisely
References
edit- ^ "Dragon's Seed". Manila Standard. Manila Standard News, Inc. 6 March 1988. p. 10. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
Hundreds of Tibetan monks pay tribute to the golden girl believed to be the seed of the dragon.... [Fighters of the Empire] stars Bruce Baron, John Delon, Paul Duran with Kathy Lin and Heidi Makinen.
- ^ "Grand Opening Today". Manila Standard. Standard Publications, Inc. 9 March 1988. p. 11. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
Fighter 3: Philip Wisely