Legend of the Mountain (Shan zhong zhuan qi )

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Movie Info & Cast

Director:

King Hu

Producer:

Cheuk-Hon Wong

Writer:

Ling Chung

Release Date:

Feb 2, 2018

Runtime:

3hr 12m

Synopsis

A scholar, tasked to copy a sutra, meets with a mysterious old lady and her daughter in the mountains.

Cast

  • Chun Shih
  • Feng Hsu
  • Sylvia Chang
  • Hui-Lou Chen
  • Chang-Ken Chin
  • Rainbow Hsu
  • Sook Jeon
  • Wenting Jin
  • Chun Lu
  • Yueh Sun

Letterboxd User Reviews

4.0
6.3K
7.5K
2.2K
RATINGS 50 FANS
4.0
  • Mar 30, 2018

    Kind of crazy to get the sort of narcotized, liminal drone that I crave from directors like Rivette, Rollin, and Franco in a high-art wuxia by King Hu. This is hypnotic, spinning an altogether not too complicated story out over the span of three very long hours that feel…

    165 Likes
    Liz
    Liz
    Nov 1, 2021

    There is nothing like watching a nearly 3,5 hour long King Hu fantasy flick to herald in the new month. Legend of the Mountain really is the epitome of "Every Frame a Painting." Even the movie's most mundane sequences are elevated to unparalleled heights by the God-tier…

    146 Likes
    Lou (rhymes with wow!)
    Lou (rhymes with wow!)
    Dec 2, 2019

    80 Odyssey of process - following and chasing and discovering and losing a sense of being 'lost' in favor of finding elements anew. King Hu's work continues to be a treasure.

    102 Likes
    SilentDawn
    SilentDawn
  •
    Jan 9, 2018

    Very much empathize with Shih Chun in this as I too am just desperately looking for a quiet place to work yet am constantly being interrupted by annoying little demons. More to come.

    99 Likes
    Sean Gilman
    Sean Gilman
    Nov 12, 2020

    A epic view of various kinds of magic, natural and unnatural, at work on the skeptic. As funny as it is bewitching and unsettling, with Ho's bumbling inability to process a world that gets weirder around him set against metaphorically obvious yet nonetheless eerie b-roll…

    83 Likes
    Jake Cole
    Jake Cole
    Nov 10, 2018

    Hu's style is so transcendental because of his synergized approach with nature - rather than adorning and mistifying the film's matter in a logical procedure, he just lets the film be engulfed in the most expansive and respectful way possible by the sun, the trees, flowers…

    78 Likes
    Diogo Serafim
    Diogo Serafim
  •
    Sep 4, 2026

    Through the early morning sun I can see her, here she comes She bangs the drums

    48 Likes
    Jerry
    Jerry
    Jul 26, 2021

    every shot and frame of movement heralds the dehomogenization of what we perceive as real in a manner so indescribably beautiful and overwhelming—it's unique only to this film's ethereal metaphysics. hu's cinema is continually fixated on creating labyrinthian, serpentine…

    72 Likes
    cleansing my soul of addiction🦋
    cleansing my soul of addiction🦋
    Jul 25, 2025

    So far my favorite wuxia director has been King Hu, who first made the subgenre popular with Come Drink With Me and then produced more high quality work in the 70s in Taiwan, especially the masterpiece A Touch Of Zen.  In 1979 Hu shot two films simultaneously in South Korea…

    62 Likes
    jryn7
    jryn7
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Metacritic

67
metacritic
Based on 4 Critics
tbd

USER SCORE (1)

No score yet based on 1 Reviews
70
Feb 3, 2018

Beautiful settings and eccentric effects work enliven a tale that's more than meets the eye.

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Metacritic review by John DeFore
John DeFore
The Hollywood Reporter
80
Feb 1, 2018

Legends of the Mountain’s narrative fuse may be long, but Hu knows exactly when to light it and when to snuff it out.

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Metacritic review by Simon Abrams
Simon Abrams
Village Voice
50
Feb 1, 2018

All these attractions are a necessary balm given that Ho turns out to be a deeply uninvolving character (Mr. Shih mostly smiles, grimaces or looks amazed), a wan placeholder for a character in a narratively thin film that runs over three very leisurely hours.

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Metacritic review by Manohla Dargis
Manohla Dargis
The New York Times
See All Critic Reviews on Metacritic.com

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is Legend of the Mountain (Shan zhong zhuan qi ) (2018)?
The movie is 3hr 12min long.
What's Legend of the Mountain (Shan zhong zhuan qi ) (2018) about?
A scholar, tasked to copy a sutra, meets with a mysterious old lady and her daughter in the mountains.
Who's the cast of Legend of the Mountain (Shan zhong zhuan qi ) (2018)?
  • Chun Shih as Ho Qingyun
  • Feng Hsu as Melody
  • Sylvia Chang as Cloud
  • Hui-Lou Chen as Taoist priest Yang
  • Chang-Ken Chin as Superior Monk Fa-yuan
  • Rainbow Hsu as Madam Wang
  • Sook Jeon as Madam Chuang (Cloud's mother)
  • Wenting Jin as Qing (Maid)
  • Chun Lu as Monk
  • Yueh Sun as General Han
Who's the director behind Legend of the Mountain (Shan zhong zhuan qi ) (2018)?
King Hu directed Legend of the Mountain (Shan zhong zhuan qi ) (2018).
Who produced Legend of the Mountain (Shan zhong zhuan qi ) (2018)?
Cheuk-Hon Wong produced Legend of the Mountain (Shan zhong zhuan qi ) (2018).
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