Golden Swallow (1987): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1987, Golden Swallow is an action, fantasy, drama and adventure film directed by O Sing-Pui, running about 93 minutes.

What it’s about. A poor scholar named Lo Chih-Chiu, played by Anthony Wong Yiu-Ming, rescues a swallow from three mischievous boys, and frees the bird afterward. The bird then magically takes the form of a beautiful lady named Hsiao-Hseuh, played by Cherie Chung, who falls in love with the scholar because he had saved her life. She returns the deed by rescuing him from a ruthless band of warlords. She and her sister, Hsiao-Shang, are both originally swallows, but can change into human forms due to witchcraft and wizardry. Hsiao-Hseuh later confronts Chih-Chiu, and later reveals she is a servant of an evil witch queen, who feeds on human blood. When the witch discovers their friendship and bond, she was on the verge of destroying him, but Hsiao-Hseuh pleads for his life in exchange for their separation. After being back in the custody of the witch queen, Hsiao-Hseuh sneaks out and reunites with Chih-Chiu, but posing as a different person to hide her identity.

Who’s in it. Golden Swallow stars Anthony Wong Yiu-ming as Scholar Lo Chi Chau, Cherie Chung as Siu Suet, Norman Chui Siu-Keung as Fung King Tin and Ivy Ling Po as Old Lady, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 4.3/10, Golden Swallow has proved divisive with audiences.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Golden Swallow page.

If you liked it. Fans of Golden Swallow tend to enjoy The Dark Knight, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Inception and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.