Secret Service of the Imperial Court
Secret Service of the Imperial Court, also known as Police Pool of Blood, is a 1984 Hong Kong "wuxia" film produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio and starring Bryan Leung. The film is strikingly similar in style and plot to the 1988 ATV's The court Secret Agent (錦衣衛.), and is suggested to have been remade as, the 2010 film "14 Blades", which starred Donnie Yen. Plot. Captain Zhao Wu Yi is the leader of the Brocade Guards, the government's secret police. The sergeant of the force is Zhao's elder son, Zhao  Bu Fa. Zhao also has a younger son in the force, Zhao Bu Qun, whom he executes after he questions him about whether or not he would kill his father if he committed a crime, which he answers "No". The force works under a childish, womanizing Emperor who is irresponsible to his duties. The blood thirsty Eunuch Wang Zhen usually bribes the Emperor with woman and the Emperor gives his powers to the eunuch. Zhao Bu Fa has never been fond of the eunch. Eunuch Wang then orders The Brocade Guards to kill two righteous guards Yu Hua Long and  Li Yi. Zhao refuses to kill them and resigns from the force. The furious eunuch then orders Zhao Wu Yi to kill his son; he sends his men to kill him but his troupe are no match for Zhao. And so, Zhao survives every time. Zhao then goes into hiding with his wife Xue Liang and son Ding Dong in his ancestral village. His whole clan are there and his uncle Zhao Wu Ji is their leader. Things work out fine, until a message is sent to the village ordering the clan to Kill Zhao Bu Fa or they will  be executed. They decide to kill Zhao, where Zhao and his uncle engage in a duel and he kills his own uncle. Zhao's sister Wu Xiao Nan, who did not want to kill Zhao later gives Zhao a poisoned cup of tea; they engage in a fight where Zhao kills Wu, and he and his family escape. They meet up with Zhao's brother, who reveals that his execution was fake, it was just to show the Brocade Guards what would happen to them if they disobey an order. Bu Qun then treats his brother's poison and later  disguises himself as his brother. He ends up sacrificing himself for his brother and family to live a peaceful life. Xue Liang repays his kindness by killing herself. The Jinyi troupe brings Bu Qun's head to show Wu Yi, who is saddened and says that he does not actually want his son to die. Eunuch Wang tries to completely take over the Emperor's throne. Zhao Bu Fa calls for a duel with Wang. They engage in a duel in the mountains and Zhao chops off Wang's left arm, later killing him by chopping him in half. After  the duel, Zhao informs his father that he has killed Eunuch Wang. Reception. "Hong Kong Cinemagic" review it as One of the great qualities of this film is the emotional power generated by a scenario with many twists and turns that can be apprehended as a reflection on the duty: the duty of a son vis-à-vis his father, having a lawyer vis-à-vis political power and duty of a clan leader vis-à-vis the community. The answers to these questions are many and each character will have to decide on the subject: the story is even  more comprehensive. They summarized by writing The action scenes are perhaps the weakest of Secret Service Of The Imperial Court. There are many, certainly, but very often filmed so quickly as to lose a lot in authenticity. The cast is impeccable, Leung Kar Yan in mind that displays a real ease in drama and action scenes. Ku Feng, a father tortured, is equally convincing. Finally, we can say that "Secret Service Of The Imperial Court" is one of the last great achievements of the Shaw Brothers Studio at that time in artistic disarray. "Elitisti" offered "Secret Service of the Imperial  Court" was the last absolutely successful martial arts film made by the Shaw Brothers before they closed in 1986, and was the best of the 1980s, representing the new wave of Wuxia style at its best. They also wrote It combines the old-Wuxia tradition with the best elements of staggering actress performances, dynamic action, and with Japanese samurai film aesthetics. Box office. The film grossed HK$1,376,722 during its theatrical run from 19 October to 23 October 1984.