Shanghai 13, also known as The Shanghai Thirteen, is a 1984 Hong Kong-Taiwanese martial arts film written and directed by Chang Cheh and starring an ensemble cast of notable film stars such as Andy Lau, Jimmy Wang Yu, Ti Lung, Chen Kuan-tai, Danny Lee, Bryan Leung, David Chiang, Chiang Sheng, Chi Kuan-chun, Chan Sing, Lu Feng and more.
| Shanghai 13 | |||||||||||
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Theatrical poster
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| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 上海灘十三太保 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 上海滩十三太保 | ||||||||||
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| Directed by | Chang Cheh | ||||||||||
| Screenplay by | Chang Cheh | ||||||||||
| Produced by | Chim Sek-fan | ||||||||||
| Starring | Andy Lau Jimmy Wang Yu Ti Lung Chen Kuan-tai Danny Lee Bryan Leung David Chiang Chiang Sheng Chi Kuan-chun Chan Sing Lu Feng | ||||||||||
| Cinematography | James Wu | ||||||||||
| Edited by | Lam Sin-leung | ||||||||||
| Music by | Wong Mau-san | ||||||||||
Production |
Hong Kong Chang He Motion Picture | ||||||||||
| Distributed by | Da Da Film Company | ||||||||||
Release date |
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Running time | 86 minutes | ||||||||||
| Countries | Hong Kong Taiwan | ||||||||||
| Language | Mandarin | ||||||||||
Despite not being a Shaw Brothers production, most of the casts and the crew are Shaw alumni.
During the Second Sino-Japanese War era in China, patriot Mr. Gao (Chiang Ming) is dissatisfied with the traitorous acts of the Reorganized National Government of China and together with thief Black Hat (Jimmy Wang Yu), he steals a traitorous contract set up by the government for the Japanese. Gao plans to bring the contract from ShanghaitoHong Kong and break it to the public, in hopes of exposing the traitorous acts of the Reorganized Government. Gao becomes the assassination target of the Reorganized Government's interior minister Hung Xu-wu (Seung Fung).
In order to ensure a smooth arrival of Mr. Gao and the contract to Hong Kong, Shanghai Tycoon Shen Gang-fu (Chen Kuan-tai) decides to send his underlings, the Shanghai 13, to protect Gao while on his way to the dock. Unexpectedly, there are moles among the 13 men who betray Gao and Shen. With obstacles ahead and pursuers behind, under the condition of obstruction by the traitors, can Mr. Gao successfully arrive to the dock? Are the Shanghai 13 loyal or evil? On the road to the dock, there are murderous traps everywhere and bloody battles appear one after another.