Wen Ling
Northeastern China is infested with bandits. Hsiao Kai (Paul Chang Chung), a wandering knight, captures a white horse from thieves. His skilful handling of the horse earns his admiration of fellow traveler Chu Ching Hsu (Wong Chung Shun). They arrive at Lo Lung Kow, where the villagers hunt for a living and are constantly terrorized by bandits. Grocer Ting Tze Pao (Ngai Ping Ngo) returns from his negotiations with the bandits with bad news. They intend to collect furs from the villagers at a fixed price. Village leader Mu (Yuen Sam and his daughter Tsui Ying (Pat ting Hung) run a tavern. She wonders how the white horse belonging to a Sinkiang youth named Sha Yi Ti (Man Ling) is now in the possession of Hsiao Kai.
Taiwan's submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1964
Spy films had always been popular in Chinese-language cinema, with stories set mostly in WWII or the warlord era. The Tender Trap of Espionage, made two years before Dr. No (1962) which kickstarted the Bond film craze, is a story of intrigue between spies and counterspies within the Japanese Occupation force. The film was shot in Taiwan, offering unique visages, with cat-and-mouse mind games set in motion against trust, betrayal and seduction. Based on the British film The Two-Headed Spy (1958), future action maestro Chang Cheh wrote the script while husband-and-wife team Lo Wei and Lau Leung-wah star together as agents, with Lo doubling as director.
