The Butterfly

The shortest distance between two points may be a straight line but revenge is often circular

The Jade Raksha started out as a typical revenge wuxia and then dug a little deeper to give it a nice twist. Cheng Pei Pei once again played a confident swordswoman but this time she was more anti-hero than hero. Three fathers died and three children swore revenge in a vicious violent circle.

Leng Qiu Han has been rampaging against the Yan family in a desire to make them pay for murdering her family. The problem is, she doesn’t know which one did the vile deed. She crosses paths and swords with Xu Ying Hao. Xu tries to convince her to find evidence as to which Yan killed her family instead of taking the lives of innocent people. Leng has no intention of discontinuing her blood-letting. Xu can’t hang around because he has his own revenge to fulfill against the man who killed his father which in turn will spawn a new cycle of revenge.

I was relieved that there wasn’t a romance between Leng and Xu as Tang Ching was twice Cheng Pei Pei’s age in real life. The film did seem to be trying to make Xu younger than Tang Ching’s grizzled appearance. Leng could be difficult to like as she sliced her way to the top of the Yan family because Xu did have a point. At first, I wasn’t sure if she was avenging her family’s death or punishing the Yan’s crimes against animals and fashion. Many of them wore some atrocious looking animal furs. Interestingly, Xu’s sense of morality didn’t make his revenge any more righteous than hers. In the end, many revenge plot points were finally pulled together in a long exposition dump in the villain’s dungeon of doom.

There was fun wuxia action to be had---running on water, fighting on the top of bamboo trees, bamboo pole vaulting over a flaming bridge, and light body leaping onto roofs. The sword fighting was average for the time period, nothing terribly inspiring. The sets and scenery set the mood for the different scenes perfectly. The dungeon of doom had a specialized guillotine for head and arms which was demonstrated. There were enough traps and torture devices that it made the virtuous Xu question the philanthropic lead Yan’s innocence. I loved that the secret door leading to the dungeon had a sign reading “Always Be Kind”. Of course, the sign at the gate of the fortress read, “Home of Mercy.” False advertising at its best.

This was not my favorite Cheng Pei Pei role though she was fine in it. Leng's kill first, ask questions later attitude and penchant for jealousy made the character difficult to connect with. As I mentioned, Tang Ching seemed a little too long in the tooth for the hero but he did well as the swordsman who wanted to do the right thing but made some unfortunate choices. One of my favorites, Ku Feng, gave depth to the story as a blind father with a dark secret. Get in line, buddy, there were plenty of secrets to go around. And plenty of revenge. The film showed that the road to revenge is not always a straight line or as simple as it might seem.

16 Dec 2023

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Death Kappa attempted to be a combination of parody and homage to Kaiju movies of old. What I discovered was that 56 years before this film was made, Honda Ishiro made a more believable world using miniatures and a guy in a monster rubber suit.

Kanako returns home after a failed attempt at becoming a Jpop star. Her grandmother’s dying wish is for her to protect Kappa, the local Yokai. It just so happens the Kappa has awakened and enjoys Kanako’s music and the cucumbers she leaves out for him. Dancing with the turtlish Yokai, how sweet! But wait! In the same area, a crazed scientist has been creating super soldiers by combining men and women with Kappa DNA. Before you know it, body parts are flying when they go on a tear. Kanako and the Kappa end up in the bad guys’ lair and within minutes bullets are flying and a nuclear bomb is set off. Cut to a local downtown where Kaiju Hangyolas is destroying the city and killing people with his stomping power and flame flowing breath. What is Hangyolas and where did he come from? Was he created from the radiation from the explosion? The world may never know. When all seems lost a super-sized irradiated Kappa arrives and it is on like Donkey Kong.

This film injected campy humor into the death and mayhem. Dolls were flattened, melted, and blown up. Godzilla era vintage planes on wires made an appearance, showing more wires than were necessary. The town was quite artificial making it obvious everyone was on a soundstage.

The first half of the film was filled with Yokai dancing and cucumber eating which devolved into militaristic soldiers bent on conquering the United States with mutant ninja turtle warriors and an atomic bomb. It also had a character who might have been practicing necrophilia. The acting and production values were average at best, with much of the acting being over the top. After the blast, the film took a hard right and focused on a Kaiju WWE throw down complete with a volleyball match. The inept and powerless humans found their “savior” was far more lethal than the initial destroyer. If only Kanaka had survived the nuclear blast! Death Kappa put the fever in fever dream, truly one of the more bizarre Kaiju films I’ve seen.

10/22/23

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"Which elementary school did you go to?"

The Night of the Undead had zero zombies in it if that’s what you are looking for. Without giving away any plot points, the title refers to a dark night with aliens and humans who all seemed very difficult to kill. The movie was far more comedic than frightening.

So Hee is living a great life. She resides in a huge apartment and has a gorgeous husband who cooks her breakfast every morning. When Man Gil’s late nights at work and disturbing text messages pique her curiosity, she goes to The Mystery Research Lab. Broccoli, the man in charge of the shabby agency, follows her husband and brings back a disturbing report. Man Gil is not only a philandering husband, he’s also an alien. When her loving hubby attempts to murder her, So Hee calls upon Broccoli and her friends Sera and Yang Sun to help her put a permanent stop to his lethal ways. Killing a murderous alien was harder than it looked as he was nigh on indestructible. He also had his own crew of indestructo buddies. The Korean version of Men in Black were also hunting down the unbreakable Choi Man Gil. It might take a combination of the Earthly forces and a bizarre feline concoction to save the planet.

The film ran too long, it would have benefited from a 90 minutes running time. Some comic schticks were beaten dry of any humor from situations. Having said that there were genuinely funny moments. If you were needing something suspenseful, look elsewhere. Due to the comedic nature of the film, the grim happenings couldn’t be taken too seriously. The story had serious plot holes and implausible elements which were difficult to overcome. This was also one of those films that only had enough money to pay for the rights to one song---Billie Eilish’s Bad Guy played several times.

It’s rare for a sismance to take center stage in a movie, but So Hee, Sera, and Yang Sun banded together despite their differences in the past. And any woman would be lucky to have a friend willing to take a cleaver to her psychotic alien husband bent on exterminating humans and taking over the world. Night of the Undead may have been a deeply flawed film but it had some entertaining moments.

10/20/23

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"Our power is justice!"

Based on two television shows from the 1970’s, Bravestorm combined the Silver Mask and the Super Robot Red Baron to try and save the Earth from an alien invasion. The film used a combination of time travel and mecha suits and while it resembled a television episode more than a film, for fans of the genre it might be enough to entertain them.

In 2050 after an alien invasion that resulted in the Earth being terraformed for the aliens’ benefit, the human population is next to extinct with 96% of the population eradicated and a small portion enslaved. Siblings Koji, Haruka, and Kozo are sent back to their grandfather, Kenichiro, in 2013 to prevent the invasion. In 2018, Kenichiro’s ne’er do well brother, Ken, is recruited after an alien confrontation at an underground fight ring. Kenichiro has built a giant mecha suit for Ken to control in order to combat Black Baron, the aliens’ giant terraforming robot. Ken is less than enthused about joining the gang but is finally convinced to help.

The siblings’ abilities were varied. Koji was the brave brother who wore the silver suit of armor capable of 500% of a human’s strength. Haruka, had one expression throughout the film and few lines. She was gifted with second sight, perception, psychic ability, any power they needed her to have in a pinch, and swordswomanship. Poor Kozo had little to do and was stuck being the techie. He had a special pair of glasses that could determine whether a person was human or not. Ken was a boxer who earned money in illegal fights and was quite angry with the brother who disappeared a few years earlier. This character came across as an idiotic jerk for much of the film until he was given what he considered a better reason than humankind’s imminent demise to finally suit up. Kenichiro was the most interesting of the characters as the robot and AI specialist and surrogate father to the group.

The CGI ranged from cheap television effects to proper film CGI. Red Baron and Black Baron for the most part were well done. There were also alien robots in human suits, such as the fearsome Bald Borg. The creepy Chigrises, which I could swear I’ve seen in another movie, could also take human form. The Killgis CGI was uneven, terrible in one scene but better in another. Interestingly, the Killgis chose our planet because of humanity's warlike nature and destiny to self-destruct. Might as well move the timetable up. Harsh.

The music was drawn from a variety of films. There were times I expected to see Christopher Reeve’s Superman fly in, or Luke Skywalker, or the Rebel Alliance. It was like a patchwork quilt of famous action movie scores.

At just over 80 minutes the movie sped by and there wasn’t much time for character development. When dealing with giant mechas all can be forgiven if the battle is spectacular. Disappointingly, the final battle was short and definitely not epic and the heroic actions felt rushed particularly in the villain’s lair. The movie also ended on a cliffhanger apparently in the hopes of a sequel. For fans of the old tv shows or the genre in general, it is one to check out. For everyone else, if you keep your expectations quite low, you might find parts of it entertaining.

10/17/23

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Director Yuen Woo Ping gathered his family together to make The Miracle Fighters---a combination of kung fu, magic, and slapstick comedy. While it was fun to watch the Yuens and Bryan “Beardy” Leung, the story was a bit of a mess and dragged badly in the middle.

Kao Hsiung’s wife is killed because of their mixed marriage-a Han and a Manchu. In order to escape execution and a dangerous sorcerer, he takes the royal son as hostage. When the boy is inadvertently killed, Kao is distraught. He later takes in an orphan named Shu Gut and raises him. The royal sorcerer eventually catches up with Kao and hopes to use the now grown boy to impersonate the prince. Things don’t go to plan for anyone and Shu finds himself with two old sorcerers. The Old Man and the Old Woman have few peers with magic, but bicker constantly even resorting to dividing their property with painted red rocks. They agree to train Shu so that he can defeat the evil sorcerer and be free from his threat.

Yuen Yat Choh had spent most of his career in bit parts. He was adequate in the role of Shu Gat but he was a better fighter than actor. Yuen Cheung Yan was funny in his role of the Old Woman who could fight and make you see double. Yuen Shun Yee as Sorcerer Bat provided the menacing force needed to give the story some movement. At the sorcerers’ altar, Woo Ping honored the late Yuen patriarch Simon Yuen, with a large painting of him from his role in Drunken Master. Bryan Leung made for a spry Old Man with more than a few tricks up his sleeves.

The fights mixed with magic were cuckoo crazy and everyone of the Yuens and Leung could be counted on to do their part to sell the moves. Shu had to not only fight other sorcerers but also a giant wooden stick man that looked straight out of Angry Birds. The problem was when no one was fighting. The slapstick shenanigans wore thin quickly for me. It was like they knew where they wanted the story to end up, with a magic free-for-all, but didn’t create a compelling, coherent story to get there. At 100 minutes, the movie ran ten minutes longer than many other kung fu flicks and those extra ten minutes of bickering sorcerers was not spellbinding. If you enjoy slapstick kung fu and want to know if you should watch this, my Magic 8 Ball says, “without a doubt”. If you don’t care for slapstick and long sequences between action bother you, *shake, shake*, the magic ball reads, “my sources say no” or at best, “reply hazy, try again later.” The Miracle Fighters had entertaining parts to it, especially when the Yuens leaned into their strengths. I only wished they had done more of what they do best because more miraculous fists and kicks would have done the trick.

10/14/23

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Love with a hopping vampire!

When hopping vampires come to town, who are you going to call? Vampire Cleanup Department! This Hong Kong production starred several older actors from the golden era of fists and kicks kung fu movies as well as two younger actors. The film had a few gruesome scenes but overall was a more lighthearted romance and coming of age vampire wrangler story.

Tim witnesses a vampire attack and after being bitten by a vampire and not transforming is recruited by the Vampire Cleanup Department. On a mission outside of town he accidentally transforms a gruesome water vampire back into her original form. Summer, the young vampire woman looks normal but is unable to talk except with the help of his phone which she had swallowed and hops like the rest of the vampires. He’s tasked with cremating her back at headquarters but instead hides her nearby. From there the story becomes about him training her to be more human. At the VCD, faster than you can say “wax on, wax off!”, Tim has learned kung fu from repeatedly sweeping the floors. He runs afoul of his trainers when he wants to help the vampires instead of killing them. A competing agency causes problems for the cleanup department when they steal Summer and attempt to lure her maker, a devilishly dangerous landlord vampire, so that they can capture him for research.

I was thrilled to see Toad Venom Lo Meng as one of the fight trainers who also loved plants. Yuen Chueng Yan played the priest who provided the amulets. Aside from acting Yuen spent much of his career as a martial arts director for numerous films. Chin Siu Ho as the trainer who was toughest on Tim, started his martial arts training at the age of 10. These three alone made my geeky martial arts loving heart tremble. Richard Ng played the director in charge of tech support and cremation. Babyjohn did a good job as the naïve, bumbling, vampire cleanup trainee who falls in love with a partially transformed hopping vampire. Lin Min Chen gave Summer a kind quality as she hopped about and learned more human traits, but wasn’t asked to stretch much acting-wise.

The quality of the CGI, vampires, and fights weren’t bad for this genre of film. Thankfully, the humor wasn’t overly slapstick. Though at 90 minutes the movie tried to do too many things leaving many issues resolved thinly or not at all. Vampire Cleanup Department wasn’t a blockbuster type movie, just a nice little Hong Kong hopping vampire story with a surprisingly heartfelt center to it.

10/12/23

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"Truth and falsity mix in this world"

Taoist Master: Kylin was a sequel in the telling of Zhang Dao Ling’s story, the founder of the Way of the Celestial Masters sect of Taoism. In this direct to video film Zhang was not only searching for the root of the Tao, but also the mountain god credited with scaring two hunters to death.

The cinematography of the mountains and river where the story takes place was lovely. Disappointingly, the story lacked the same care. Zhang and his disciple Wang come to Mount Yun Jing during their travels. Two men were found dead on the mystical mountain. Determining they were scared to death, Zhang promises the mother of one of the men that he will find what killed them. From there he meets a corrupt official, the Drug Master and his crew, the Elder, a man driven insane by the mountain god, and a strangely wise beggar. Zhang Dao Ling sets to discovering the secrets of the mountain and the Tao.

Taoist Master felt more like a very special episode of Scooby Doo about the dangers of magic mushrooms. Aside from Louis Fan’s ZDL, few of the other characters were memorable. There were a couple of fights but they were ruined by slow motion and stop motion shots, or overcranked shots, and way too close of close-ups. What could have proved to be an interesting fantasy tale was brought crashing down to earth in Scooby Doo fashion. The villagers at one point all but said, "meddling kids/priest!" Full disclosure, I love spiritual dramas whether they are about my faith or not. I’m fascinated by early pioneers who walked the earth or sat on mountaintops or meditated under a tree and would have relished this short film if it had been more about Zhang’s spiritual enlightenment. The writers tacked on that element after the underwhelming mystery was solved:

“As long as you have a heart for the Tao, you understand the world.
The mountains and rivers are not under your feet but inside your heart.”

10/11/23

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Puk! Puk! Puk! Puk! Super Chicken!

Before men landed on the moon in real life, people were headed to Mars in The X from Outer Space. The previous missions to Mars had ended in disaster when UFOs from Mars or Venus diverted or destroyed the Earth ships. AAB Gamma aka Astro Boat had strapping Capt. Sano at the helm which meant the aliens didn't know what they were in for or maybe being constantly distracted by two women, he didn't.

Capt. Sano, Lisa, Miyamoto, and Dr. Shioda begin their mission successfully until the apple pie shaped UFO appears and AAB Gamma barely makes it to the moon base intact. Michiko works at the moon base and is in love with Sano as is the buxom blonde bio scientist, Lisa. Shioda is suffering from space sickness and is replaced by a continually complaining Dr. Stein. Back into space the intrepid team goes but are stalled when strange luminescent pods become attached to the ship. Lisa and Sano collect a sample and dislodge the rest. Back at home the sample appears to have been stolen from the lab. The crew finds chicken-like prints leading to a hole in the floor. Before the team can have a nightcap, a giant monster appears crushing buildings and blowing things up. The chicken-like monster is named Guilala. They need a secret weapon to destroy it---Guilalanium! Guilalanium will prevent the monster from absorbing energy. But first the team has to return to the moon base, make more guilalanium, avoid the UFO and arrive back at the Astro Development Center before Guilala destroys Japan. No problem for this super crew if they can get everyone to stop lusting after Sano.

The miniatures and space craft were comparable to movies of this genre during the 1960's. The buildings were better than some of Godzilla's cardboard downtowns. Where the movie failed was the monster, it didn't hold up against Toho's guys in rubber suits productions. The acting was average but not the worst for a monster movie. Lisa and Michiko spent a lot of time mooning over Sano. The space jaunts eventually amounted to nothing, they never reached Mars nor made actual contact with the aliens. All they managed to do was bring back the lethal Guilala spore and set it loose. It took an hour before the monster showed up to relieve us of the lackluster love triangle and useless space trips.

This was not a classic Kaiju film though it does have a cult following. You could put it in the so bad it's fun category if you don't look too closely at it, especially the hilariously bad alien chicken. Although I'd take the super chicken over the tepid love triangle any day.

10/3/23

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Ghost Sweepers aka Fortune Tellers was a frenetic mish-mash of half told stories and back stories labeled as a ghost comedy. Whether you find it funny will depend on how much you enjoy slapstick hammy humor and acting. It looked extremely low budget and low tech and hasn't aged well.

A wealthy woman who wants to develop a small seaside town invites 50 shamans to rid the place of a malevolent ghost who has killed 87 people over the last 50 years. Once the shamans arrive, they are attacked by a vicious spirit and most hightail it out of town. The five remaining shamans include---a scientific ghost buster, a young woman who can see the past, a small boy who can see the future, a Buddhist monk who can see the spiritual world with his mystical eye, and a shady shaman who uses his abilities to become rich. Along for the ride is a reporter in trouble with her boss whose father died in the town years ago. The local fishermen work for the ghost, a ghost who is protecting a Japanese treasure on the sea floor.

The movie started out promising by introducing the characters and their abilities. Unfortunately, the female shaman and the school age boy had little to do in the movie and they had potential. One of the five was cut down early, which was too bad, he was one of the most interesting of the characters. In their throw everything at the wall and see if it sticks mode, the story included an estranged father and son. One of the problems being that in real life the actors were only 14 years apart. A father and daughter separated by a mysterious death had a couple of side stories. None of the "emotional" backstories were delved into but took up time in a too long movie. The biggest problem I had with the movie was the female lead. Kang Ye Won overacted and the character was written as illogical, childish, and annoying. She and the shady shaman were given the lion's share of the screen time along with the ghost buster. I enjoy Lee Je Hoon's acting but his character felt underdeveloped.

No part of the movie was polished-the story, acting, or CGI. At times it almost felt like a high school play where they were making up it up as they went along. There were parts of it that were entertaining and if a competent enough hand could have brought the circus under control it could have been quite a good little ghost movie. As it was, I struggled to finish it little caring who made it out alive, which I'm sure the little boy could have foretold if he had been given enough screen time.

10/2/23

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Angel Terminators was a dark entry in the Girls with Guns genre. With the exception of Kenneth Tsang's Big Bad, the predominant cast members were all women---Sharon Yeung, Kara Hui, Carrie Ng, Nishiwaki Michiko, and Cheng Yuen Man. There was plenty of action and misogyny to go around. Not as coherent as Michelle Yeoh's 'Yes Madam' it still had enough kung fu and gun play to satisfy people who enjoy the genre.

The film started out clumsily with a car chase and gun fire. Ida and Hon seem to always be in the neighborhood when super cops are needed to bring down bad guys, including a kindergarten being held hostage by jewelry thieves. As Hon is leaving on a plane for Scotland to further her training, Sawada is landing. Sawada has been in Thailand for seven years to avoid being arrested. He has come to town to reclaim his drug and criminal territory. Ida's snitch, a prostitute named May, feeds her intel about Sawada's huge drug deal going down. The cops arrive and a ferocious shootout ensues. Sawada has a mole in the police department who helps him set up an ambush for Ida in retaliation for her interfering in his business. The mole is a gambler who happens to be married to Carrie, Sawada's former lover. Before long Ida and Carrie are in dire trouble when they find themselves in the frightening clutches of Nishiwaki.

Firearm acuity was not the movie's strong point. The opening shootout showed shooters trying to push the bullets out of their guns or closing their eyes when shooting. Another time when the police had the high ground and the bad guys surrounded they still managed to miss most of the baddies. Sharon could hold her own in the fists and kicks fight department and make the moves believable even when they defied gravity. Ida could have beaten the Olympic pole vault record by about twenty feet. With kung fu veterans like Alan Chui Chung San and Dick Wei, Sharon always had an accomplished opponent to spar with. Jacky Chen designed several creative fights though I don't envy the stuntmen who took some hard falls. The Hong Kong police department in the movie was going to need a hiring push after a significant portion of its police officers were mowed down.

This film would have been more entertaining if they'd left the Very Special Episode about Drug Abuse out of the middle section. I also deducted points for a scene where Sawada urinated all over Carrie, the woman he supposedly loved. It was disgusting and unnecessary. When the film focused on Sharon and Kara, either their friendship or when they fought the baddies together it was at its strongest. The two women had nice chemistry together and I fail to understand why they split them up for much of the movie. Angel Terminators kept the action and adrenaline pumped up, never slowing down to let the writer put together a more coherent plotline. The ending was bonkers and baffling. Only for Girls with Guns fans or old kung fu addicts.

9/27/23

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"Something big is behind this!"

In the 1970's sexploitation was rampant and Hanzo the Razor was an excellent example of it. Despite the copious amounts of spewing blood and overall lightheartedness, the underlying theme that rape is okay and something to be enjoyed has aged badly in a world where women now have a say and are able to write critiques.

*Because of the nature of this movie, I use some male anatomical terms*

Hanzo is honorable and incorruptible, a pike in his higher up's sides as he berates them for accepting bribes. After his confrontation over oath taking Hanzo has himself tortured so that he will know how prisoners feel and then pounds his penis with a wooden stick. After that he works it out in a burlap sack filled with raw rice. When he has thoroughly exercised his third leg which had to have been at least 18inches/47cm long, seriously how did he not pass out from all his blood headed south, he stumbles across a clue that Kanbei the Killer has escaped his banishment. He frames Kanbei's lover who is now his boss' mistress for murder and hauls her in for "questioning." Omino is stripped and bound. Hanzo begins his special interrogation of Omino with his Mr. Winky, stopping intermittently so that she will answer questions and beg him to continue. He later questions another woman while she is hanging from a net giving an all new meaning to the term 'whirlibird'. She, like Omino, was sent into the throws of ecstasy from his huge and talented member and told him everything he wanted to know.

The case showed the corruption of the court and magistrate's office, but the case itself was limp. It simply gave Hanzo the opportunity to cause some spewing blood deaths and chances to interview women with his super ding-a-ling. The thing to keep in mind about the women he interrogated is that they hadn't committed any crimes. One might have been harboring a fugitive, but by that time the fugitive was dead. As much as he worked Little Hanzo out, it made me wonder how many women he questioned a week. Did he interrogate male suspects the same way? Kung fu specialists learn to pull their equipment in, but apparently in Japan it's hardened into a weapon.

Hanzo the Razor, yeah I don't think they were talking about his sword, had some humorous moments. But the utter lack of consent and warped view of rape and women overshadowed anything positive about the film. Hanzo was known to be honorable and a man who protected the people. I'm just not sure how honorable rape is.

9/19/23

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Better than a sleeping pill if you have insomnia

The first ten minutes of 36 Crazy Fists showcased Jackie Chan working with the actors in the movie. To be clear, despite many posters and VHS/DVD covers, he was not in the movie. He was the martial arts director and due to contractual issues was not allowed to act in it. He dodged a bullet.

Wong Tai Kwong is befriended by two Shaolin monks when they rescue him during a fight. Turns out his father had been murdered by the gang for not paying protection money. The two monks talk their sifu into training him so that he can have his revenge. Most of the time Wong does chores and only when a passing drunk fights with him does he learn any kung fu. Eventually, he has to fight two thugs from the gang in duels and finally the Big Bad at the end. That's it. There was a lot of "comedic" subterfuge thrown in but the story was thin even by kung fu standards.

Aside from Ku Feng and maybe Chiang Cheng, everyone else was about as interesting as wallpaper paste. Tony Leung Siu Hung would go on to act in Ip Man. He also became a respected martial arts director, including working on Ip Man. But this was not Ip Man. This was not even a bad Jackie Chan movie. The acting was abysmal and the story was as slow and uninteresting as the fights.

But @Butterfly this was a movie with Jackie Chan as the martial arts director so the fights must have been great-right? Wrong. The fights were s-l-o-w. It was either kung fu posing or a bad kung fu dance off. The fights used many of the same poses over and over occasionally throwing in a back flip or two. The funniest bit in the whole movie was when they sped up Ku Feng having a meltdown and it made me wish I could do the same thing. Or that they would speed the whole movie up and let it be a Chipmunk Martial Arts Movie Special. At least if they'd sped the action up, the fights would have been normal speed. People missed their marks and one stuntman literally rolled under a fighter for him to jump over. The fights were painfully bad.

If the fights, story, and acting weren't bad enough, at one point they sent a prostitute into the monk's bedroom to blackmail him into training Wong. For way too long her bare breasts filled the entire screen as she shook them, and shook them, and shook them. I truly cannot think of one thing to recommend this movie. Unless you are on a mission to see anything Jackie was involved in or fancy watching the bouncing boobies, I'd avoid this disaster.

9/15/23

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"I don't have time to die"

When Jimmy Wang Yu jumped off the Shaw Brothers ship, he sailed to Taiwan and made seven films there in 1971. Blood of the Dragon aka The Desperate Chase was one of those films. This film boasted many Taiwanese regulars-Lisa Chiao Chiao, Yi Yuan, Lung Fei, and Miao Tian. The fights, as many were from this time, utilized weapons instead of fists and kicks.

A young beggar is asked by a dying rebel to take a small bamboo container with a SECRET LIST to the prince. Jimmy Wang Yu's White Dragon uses his silver spear to save the boy when Lung Fei and his goons capture him to acquire the list. The White Dragon/Lung Tai and Ni Chiu take the list to the prince but are attacked as the prince is holding a grudge against Lung Tai. The prince uses a trick sword and Lung Tai's ambivalence about fighting the prince to wound the legendary warrior in white. Lung Tai and the boy escape to Lisa Chiao Chiao's restaurant where more bad guys are waiting to attack. After defeating or running off the bad guys all while bleeding copious amount of blood, Lung Tai explains that the hotheaded prince is actually a true patriot and at the top of the Secret List's names of rebels. The prince and Lung Tai make nice before Miao Tian and Yi Yuan bring their forces against the restaurant to retrieve the list.

I know that Wang Yu has been revered by kung fu fans but I've never cared for his acting. He tends to come across as stiff and smug and his fighting sluggish. I was pleased that he was looser in this film and his fighting quicker. Lisa Chiao Chiao didn't have much to do except wring her hands and stand around. You Long as Ni Chiu did a good job and thankfully the kid wasn't written as distractingly annoying as so many were. Miao Tian, Lung Fei, and Yi Yuan had limited scenes but could always be counted on to be properly menacing as the bad guys.

With the exception of one fight most of the fights were one man against several or many. Lung Tai had his silver spear, while the prince had a magic blade, Lung Fei had a chain with a blade covered metal ball, and Yi Yuan had a sword that could transform into a chain and back again. Yi Yuan's general also had the equivalent of throwing stars. The fights ranged from well done to sloppy. When the big groups were fighting against one, there were times that stuntmen flipped or fell back when they were nowhere near the action. Bodies being thrown or kicked far distances looked absurd even for a wuxia. You could also see at least one person tuck the spear under his arm when he was supposed to be run through with it. Overall, the fights and there were a lot of them, were entertaining with high stakes and numerous combatants.

More importantly than Jimmy Wang Yu for me was director/writer Kao Pao Shu. She was one of the very few women who had the chance to direct these masculine movies. I wish there had been stronger women in the film but we can't have everything. The White Dragon was an anti-hero, the lone loner who wanted to be alone, but when the chips were down could be counted on to stand up and fight for what he thought was right no matter the cost. The pace of the film kept it engaging as the swords and spear flashed almost continually.

9/15/23

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Knife fights with a side of kung fu

The Iron Triangle of Ti Lung, David Chiang and Director Chang Cheh set aside kung fu for the most part and picked up knives instead for The Duel aka Duel of the Iron Fist. The grand duel foreshadowed from the start would pit allies against each other in a fight that could not be avoided.

Set during the early part of the 20th century, Ti Lung's Tang Jen Chieh is the godson of a local Triad lord and brother to Ku Feng's Jen Lin. A hired killer, David Chiang's "Rambler," helps Jen Chieh when fights breakout. With buddy Hsiao Mao (Cheng Kang Yeh) they seek to protect Shen Tian Hung, but he is murdered during one of the huge brawls that begin the movie. Jen Chieh takes the fall for the fight, bids his girl Butterfly goodbye, and hides in the south until the heat is off. He returns home after numerous attempts on his life with only Hsiao and his now drunken brother on his side. The former accountant Kan has taken over the gang and is seeking his death. Jen Chieh is devastated to find that Hu Di/Butterfly is now a prostitute. With his world turned upside by treachery and death, Jen Chieh vows vengeance on those responsible.

The Duel's strength was the prickly bromance between Jen Chieh and the Rambler. Their complicated relationship gave depth to the impending collision. I've never been a David Chiang fan, but he and Ti Lung did have a nice chemistry together. I'm always happy to see Ku Feng, especially when he's a good guy. The problem I had with the movie was that the narrative felt poorly paced and needlessly confusing in others. Fortunately, the relationships between brothers and frenemies created a compelling movie when the plot lines didn't.

Tang Chia and Yuen Cheung Yan kept the fights interesting even when they were the few or the one against many. Close-ups were used which meant they couldn't have randomly flying bodies in a huge scrum. The slices and kicks were well timed and for a 1971 Hong Kong film---fairly fast. Instead of fists and kicks most of the fights involved knives or other sharp objects. The duel commenced after another free for all brawl in the rain with the two combatants wielding bamboo poles fighting in a puddle-filled courtyard. The death toll was high for this film, high even for a kung fu flick. I was disappointed that guns were brought in for the final battle. I don't mind trampolines, wires, and creative filming, but for me, guns don't belong in kung fu films. Because of the rapidity of skirmishes it was hard trying to distinguish the faces of the stuntmen extras and fighters-Chan Sing, Jason Pai Paio, and Yuen Woo Ping were among the many familiar names.

The Duel was an entertaining, if slightly different, film for the genre. The action rarely slowed down and the double crosses and revelations kept going until the end. Ti Lung and David Chiang displayed the special rapport that saw them through 20 films together. If you are a fan of old martial arts movies, this is one to try.

9/14/23

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"Can't I find my own happiness?"

Ozu once again examined how a traditional family was forced to confront modern thinking in relation to love and marriage. He did so in a humorous manner without wandering into the dark side as he was capable of doing. In Equinox Flower a father with two independent minded daughters found himself suffering in a sea of his own inconsistencies from which only the women in his life could save him.

The film opens at the train station with a storm warning. If only the men in this film knew the storm of independent thought that was going to upend their lives. Hirayama Wataru gives an emotional toast at a young couple's wedding. He praises them for marrying for love because his marriage had been a pragmatic arranged marriage. Later that week an old friend visits him and asks him to check on his daughter, Fumiko, who has left home. She didn't want an arranged marriage estranging their relationship. Wataru found her working at a bar and in love with a musician, but happy and healthy. No problem there. One of his daughter's friends, Yukiko, asks for advice dealing with her mother who is always trying to matchmake for her. He tells her not to be in a hurry to marry. "You may think marriage is golden, but it can end up being brass." When she dreams of a love match-no problem. When a young man name Taniguchi comes to his office asking permission to marry his oldest daughter, Setsuko---big problem. He was not consulted and didn't even know they were dating. Without realizing it he begins to set into motion the kind of estrangement his friend had with his daughter. The women around him begin to mobilize in their own subtle and not so subtle ways to help him change his mind and give his blessing to the young couple.

Setsuko and Yukiko pinky swore to help deal with their domineering parents and Yukiko laid the perfect trap for Wataru. Wataru's youngest daughter, Hisako, pushed for Setsuko to have a love match knowing it would be her turn next. Kiyoko, gently nudged her husband to do the right thing, always believing that he eventually would. With four women against him he never stood a chance no matter how controlling and cantankerous he could be.

I had to remind myself numerous times that this was 1958 when Wataru dropped his clothes on the floor for Kiyoko to deal with, told her to turn the radio off like you would a child, and went drinking or on reunion trips with his buddies. He also grounded Setsuko and told her to quit her job because he was angry with her. Ozu's wives always seem terribly confined to the house with no social life whatsoever except caring for their husbands. Wataru worked late and spent time afterwards with male friends. Kiyoko stayed in the house with only a maid for company. When Kiyoko yearned for the days during the war when the family huddled together in the bomb shelters because they were actually all together, it was sad indictment on her life.

Ozu put color to good use in his first film to use it. While much of the settings were beige and gray, most of the men dressed in gray suits as well, he displayed bright pops of color in red, green, and blue. The women, with the exception of Kiyoko, often wore bright colored kimonos. His teapot (red) had a couple of closeups and trains also figured into the story as they usually did. I have never grown tired of his meditative compositions and framing of shots. The colors he chose were as soothing as they were in black and white. The only drawback to his style, for me, was as ever, the face nearly straight onto the camera framing which was jarring during dialogues because the characters were looking at me and not the character they were conversing with, bouncing back and forth like a ping pong.

Papa Hirayama came across like a 1950's man, one who was used to getting his way in everything at home. What was different was that the women in his life called him on it. Yukiko complained in the same way about her overbearing single mother and Fumiko refused to go home because her father wanted everything his way. The old tradition of a parent determining who their child would marry was giving way to the young people wanting to marry for love. And while Wataru could appreciate that for everyone else's daughter, he had trouble letting go of control of his own. Fortunately for him, the women in his life banded together to show him his own hypocrisy. He also learned when a woman said "it's fine" that he should not assume he had won the argument. Wataru was right though, it takes a lot of work to turn brass into gold in a relationship.

9/9/23

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