Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Bruce Lee The Invincible (1978, HK)

Starring: Bruce Li (as Ho Chung Dao), Chen Sing, Chan Wai-Man, Nick Cheung. Directed by: Law Kei

This is a movie for the hardcore Bruce Li (aka Ho Chung Tao) fans! While by no means a superb kung fu movie, it's a very good, entertaining kung fu movie and something fun to watch when you're bored and stuck at home on the weekends.

In "Bruce Lee....", Chan Lee Kung (Chan, in a sinister role), a Shaolin student in China, betrays his school and vows to do penance by going into exile in Malaysia. Three years later, Chan has become the feared, ruthless leader of a criminal empire which has set up its base of operations in a small Malaysian village. Since Chan is well-trained in Shaolin kung fu and he has an army of men at his disposal, there's nothing the local authorities can do to stop him.

Meanwhile back in China, one of Shaolin's students named Shu San (Cheung) is going to Malaysia to visit his family and quietly scout around for any info about Chan to report back to Shaolin. When he arrives at his family's village, it doesn't take long for him to discover that this is also Chan's base of operations. To make matters even more complicated, both Chan and Shu San are both in love with Wai Sin, Shu San's cousin.

One day Chan and his men take Wai Sin by force after she rejects him and when Shu San comes to her rescue, they give him a very bad beating. Fortunately he managed to send a telegram back to Shaolin and help soon comes when Master Fok Yuen Gap (Chen) and his best student Yu Fong (Li) come to town to take down Chan.

Can they overcome Chan and his men and accomplish their mission? Watch and find out!

"Bruce Lee...." does have a few holes in its storyline and the kung fu gorilla scene might be a little on the cheesy side, but this is actually a very good kung fu movie. The vast bulk of the storyline is well-written and easy to figure out, the kung fu (which was choreographed by Nick Cheung) scenes are very good, and there is also a very interesting reenactment of the story of the Indian monk Da Mo, who discovered the Eighteen Lohan Fists and taught them to Shaolin monks in the 6th century AD.

For those of you who are curious, Bruce Li does a good job in his role with only a bare minimum of Bruce Lee mannerisms toward the end!

Also in this movie are cameos by Bolo Yeung as the master with long hair and Mars as the teacher wearing as mask.

If you're looking for some good kung fu escapism or are a fan of Bruce Li, look no further than this movie! It's sure to fit the bill for you!

Also known as: Nan yang tang ren jie (original Mandarin title-HK), Bruce Li the Invincible (original English title-HK), Bruce Lee the Invincible (English video title-HK), Bruce Li the Invincible Chinatown Connection (international English title), The Invincible (alternate HK English title), Wei zhen tian nan (Mandarin video title-HK), Die gelben Augen des Gorillas (West Germany), Sygrousi giganton tou karate (Greece), Game of the Dragon (unknown English title)

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Two Great Cavaliers (1978, Taiwan/HK)

Starring: Angela Mao, John Liu, Chen Sing. Directed by: Yeung Ching Chen

In the West, this movie is commonly known by three titles: "Two Great Cavaliers", "Blade of Fury", and "Deadly Duo", which is also the name of a Shaw Bros. movie.

No matter what name you may find this movie under, it's a kung fu movie that stars two of '70s kung fu cinema's greatest: Angela Mao and John Liu!

In this movie, Chen Sing plays Kuan Yu Chung, a fief in a Chinese province who has sworn his loyalty to the Manchu (Qing) Dynasty who are starting to establish their rule across China. Angela Mao plays Hsiao Mei, the leader of a group of anti-Qing rebels who are all members of the Fung Wan kung fu clan. The clan has been entrusted with the task of defeating Kuan and delivering a list of names of other anti-Qing rebels to the resistance leaders. Naturally, Kuan wants to crush the resistance in his province and he wants this list very badly.

In order to deliver the list and defeat Kuan and his men, the rebels are going to need the help of their best fighter Ou Yang Chun (Liu). Unfortunately for the rebels, Chun has met the woman of his dreams and decided to leave the Fung Wan clan, settle down, and make a quiet life for himself. If his brothers and sisters in Fung Wan want his help, they must get a little persuasive, especially where Chun's fiancee (who Hsiao Mei is extremely jealous of) is concerned......

The storyline of this movie can be a little confusing to understand as there are many characters who have their own swerving loyalties and motivations. However, we get to see Angela Mao and John Liu perform some of their greatest fighting scenes in "Two Great Cavaliers" and that alone is worth watching the movie in its entirety! Both perform some awesome legwork that makes Chuck Norris look like child's play throughout this movie! The end fight scene in particular is amazing and both are at their best in the final showdown.

Also in this movie are Leung Kar-Yan as brother-in-arms Sung Hua and Man Kong-Lung as the mysterious Pai Lung Hsing, who joins the rebels. Both have some very good fight scenes that are also worth watching. Chiang Kam also makes an appearance in this movie, but only as an extra baddie.

If you think you can keep track of all the characters and want to see some good Angela Mao and John Liu action, be sure to check this movie out! There's some awesome kung fu that's waiting for you to watch!

Also known as: Ci xiong shuang sha (original Mandarin title-Taiwan), Two Great Cavaliers (English title-HK), Blade of Fury (international English title), Deadly Duo (international English DVD title), The Two Great Cavaliers (international English title), Wang Yu - Härter als Granit (West Germany), Les 2 cavaliers de Shaolin (France)

Thursday, July 7, 2011

The Ninja Avenger (1982, Taiwan)

Starring: Elsa Yang Hui San, Yun Chang-yueh, Don Wong, Yasuaki Kurata, Yuka Mizuno. Directed by: Gam Ming (Tommy Lee)
This movie seems to be a forerunner to the femme fatale genre of movies that started with the 1989 French megahit "La Femme Nikita", and the storyline bears a striking resemblance to the storyline of the 2000 Wong Jing movie "Naked Killer".

In "The Ninja Avenger", Yang Hui San (a popular actress in Taiwan during the 1970s-80s who made appearances in many a kung fu/martial arts movie) plays Mo Ling, a Japanese woman who was saved from a gang of rapists in Tokyo by the female Triad boss Chao (Mizuno). Chao trains Mo in the ninjutsu arts and transforms her into a deadly assasin. Chao puts Mo Ling to use against her rivals with great effect.

But when Mo starts to fall for Chao's younger brother Wei Li, things get complicated. And when the police start tracking Mo down and Chao decides Mo is a major threat that needs to be eliminated, things get even more complicated.

Mo must elude Chao's hitmen and the police and do whatever she can to survive. As for Wei Li, he must do whatever he can to protect the woman he loves. But can they succeed against overwhelming odds and stay together?

"The Ninja Avenger" seems to have been filmed on a fairly low budget, but despite this it has some very good action scenes. We get to watch Mo Ling fly across the (presumably) Taipei skyline on a body kite and kill her target with a poisoned dart, scale up buildings, and more...just as you would expect from one of the "Nikita"-type movie or TV shows that have come out over the past 20+ years. Also, the fight scenes are very good and Yasuaki Kurata's fight scenes toward the end of the movie are good to watch as always, but it's too bad he didn't have more in this movie!

As is the case for many Asian movies up until recent times, the English-dubbed version muddles this movie a little. The characters are all given English names and much of the emotion is lost, particularly the romance between Mo Ling and Wei Li. If you can find an original Chinese version of this movie, consider yourself lucky!

"The Ninja Avenger" is a very good ninja/kung fu movie that was directed by Gam Ming (alias Tommy Lee), who is the action director for many kung fu classics such as "Shaolin Wooden Men", "Butcher Wing", and "Tiger vs. Dragon". It seems to be a bridge between the kung fu movies of the 1970s and the modern action movies that have come out in Hong Kong and Taiwan since the 1980s that incorporate martial arts into the storyline. If you're a fan of "Nikita"-style femme fatale movies or martial arts movies with a female lead, this movie is one you won't want to miss!

Also known as: Fei yan zou bi (original Mandarin title-Taiwan), Impossible Woman (original English title-Taiwan), The Ninja Avenger (English title-HK, international English title, poster title-Netherlands), Fly Sky Run Wall (literal English title), Ninja - Die Kampfmaschine (West Germany), Ninja Apocalypse (VHS title-USA). Also released in Hong Kong in 1983???

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Rivals of the Silver Fox (1979, HK/South Korea)

Starring: Casanova Wong, Phillip Ko, Chan Siu-Pang, Chin Chi Chu (as Gam Kei Chu). Directed by: Chan Siu-Pang

From the director of "Choy Lee Fat Kung Fu" Chan Siu-Pang (who also co-stars as the Invisible Thief) comes this Hong Kong-South Korean co-production.

In "Rivals...", a kung fu master is out to avenge the death of his wife at the hands of the evil kung fu master Ma Tien Chang, who wants some "secret medicinal documents" that were in the possession of her father. This master must raise his baby alone and take it with him as he searches for the evil master.

Unfortunately for our hero, taking on Ma is no easy task as he is holed up in the formidable Death Valley with an army of Shaolin bronzemen! Fortunately he has some help along the way in the form of the Invisible Thief (who he rescues from the thugs of a local lord he robbed), a woman (Wong) who helps him take care of his baby, another kung fu master who wants to take on Ma, and the priest Wu Kuo (Ko) who teaches him the kung fu skills he will need to take on the army of bronzemen.

This movie was obviously made on a shoestring budget and the storyline is just a little complicated, but it's much more complex and emotional than it seems. This can be an emotionally involving movie if you make the effort to understand our hero's motivations and all the pain he's feeling as he tries to avenge his wife, protect his baby, and ultimately, protect Casanova Wong's character, who he obviously has feelings for. Also, this is a very unusual movie where the storyline involves a baby and all the good guys, despite whatever motivations they may have, take care of and take up for each other. Of course the kung fu scenes are very good, but it's too bad Casanova didn't get as many fighting scenes in this movie!

Also, the Korean countryside used in this movie is gorgeous! It gives this movie a very tranquil atmosphere and blends into the storyline well.

This is a relatively unknown kung fu movie, but one worth checking out if you're into unusual storylines, or are a fan of Phillip Ko, Casanova Wong, or Chan Siu-Pang.

Also known as: 오대관문/Odae Gwan Mun (original Korean title), The Five Barriers (original English title-South Korea), 決戰銀狐/Jue zhan yin hu (original Mandarin title-HK), Mei hua tang lang (Taiwan)