Bullets 'n' Babes

Tiger’s Claw (1974: Ng Tan)
Kung Fu Genius (1979: Wilson Tong)

This is an interesting duo of Hong Kong independent films to watch back-to-back. First because they both star Cliff Lok but there are several things to compare against. The older one is a basher and the second one is a shapes film. When I watched Tiger’s Claw I was wondering if this is the same Cliff Lok I had seen in other films as the fighting is very sloppy and he comes off looking like he has the fighting ability of Jimmy Wang Yu (this is not a compliment.) * But when you watch the later film Kung Fu Genius you notice that his abilities are there and intact. Lok can be a little sloppy with form but he can do a lot (usually only doubled for difficult moves.)

It is also interesting to see Lok being used as almost a clone of someone more popular in both movies. In Tiger’s Claw he seems like a Jimmy Wang Yu character (except for the ending which I do not think Wang Yu would allow at that point in his career) and in Kung Fu Genius you can easily tell the Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung influence (which you would also see in several other Cliff Lok movies.) Both are good examples of their time period and how fast the martial art movies was to change in Hong Kong. You have a serious morality play of the first film with a too cocky protagonist and you have a very silly comedy kung fu film with a too cocky protagonist in the later.

Tiger’s Claw has the more straightforward storyline. But it is somewhat unique because it is not based on a revenge plot, but it has more of a wuxia plot in a kung fu film of a martial artist (Cliff Lok) looking to be number one in a fighting world (really one of his own creation though.) He mows people down until he hears of a great martial artist named Tiger (Sek Kin: Enter the Dragon) who is imprisoned. What does he do, yes he gets himself jailed so he can break him out. Now there is a twist to the film as well as some moral didacticism. The ending reminded me of Samurai Assassin (kudos to who have seen this) as it went along though that conclusion was by far more grim.

Kung Fu Genius is literally about a very skilled martial arts practitioner (Cliff Lok) who is a kung fu genius and sets up his own school and proceeds to make enemies with his personality and looks (just looking at Lok makes me want to hit someone.) The difference here is that the plot is much more jumbled, the kung fu much better and comedy is added. I liked this one more because of the massive amount of fighting with a variety of real and made-up styles (already very common to do with kung fu comedies.) Some of the highlights include an iron ring (Hsiao Ho) versus long staff and fan vs. fan with the director and fight choreographer Wilson Tong. So, of course, I like this film more.

In Kung Fu Genius when you have a sidekick/student like Cheng Kang-yeh you pretty much know what is going to happen to him in the film. Like Dean Shek he is typecast and audiences expect a not-so-good martial artist as comic relief who is going to come to some type of bad end. However his descent into madness has to be one of the great “that’s all it took” moments. This is not a steady decline like King Lear but more reminds of the suicide of the lover in Milk which was hilariously capricious though based on a real-life incident. But that leads to a later meeting of two mentally challenged martial artists which is the nadir of the film. Of course it does make one wonder how good of a teacher could Cliff Lok’s character actually be (this scenario seems to come up a lot) when your student is that untalented.

Note: I saw the full screen version of Tiger’s Claw on the Brooklyn Zu Vol. 1 9 pack of films. It is full-screen and if you compare it to the widescreen prints available on youtube you notice about half the film is missing. It’s that bad and I easily recommend it watching on youtube. This would be a bigger crime if the film was better and the choreography had more to it. The Kung Fu Genius copy on the The Great Impersonators set release is widescreen and looks great (I had bought this set for this movie and what on KFC member Morgoth had said about that film.)

* I am not the only one to state this. In The Ultimate Guide to Martial Arts Movies of the 1970s Dr. Reid states: “Though the fights are fast and furious, the kung fu looks sloppy, which is surprising for someone of Cliff Lok’s abilities.” Unfortunately the book does not have a capsule review for Kung Fu Genius which is by far the better film in terms of fighting choreography and should be of more interest to people here. Of course this is very reminiscent of bashers. You could mix a variety of people into the film, often with no martial art background, combine with a slapping type of fighting (not like Joe Calzaghe who would actually hurt someone with that style -- yes I was a big fan of his), put it in the Republic era of China and bam you have a movie.

Dr. Reid also notes a hilarious dubbing mistake in the film. I caught it as I kept wondering how that person could be his dad when it was only 10 years ago he was sent to prison. They later changed the time period to 20 years in the dubbing.

Tiger’s Claw widescreen Youtube link: notice the aka Shaolin Tiger’s Claw. You will see some more scenes on this that are not in the full screen version.

Roman Porno treasure hunt: Part 22

She Cat (Japan, 1983) [DVD] - 1/5
Another tiresome 1980s drama/thriller/roman porno that outstays its welcome. Like many films from the era, it pretends to be a serious movie by cutting down the exploitation and letting its utterly unexciting thriller storyline run for 90 minutes (that's 20 min more than the standard). Add a cool opening credits sequence and a couple of nice shots here and there and call it trendy cinema. Zzzzzz.

Midnight Fairy (Japan, 1973) [DVD] - 4/5
A desperate young man ditched by his girlfriend hooks up with a mentally challenged prostitute. Together they set out for a journey that includes kidnapping, raping and kissing goodbye for the rules of the society. This is a superb, overlooked arthouse Roman Porno by Noboru Tanaka. It's an interesting mix of realism, visual poetry, and poignancy. Tanaka lets his camera wander on the streets, beautifully capturing the early 1970s locations and atmosphere. He also creates fantastic, carefully staged images such as baby on a bar desk. It's pretty poignant too: Tanaka seems to suggest that in a civilized society the only innocent person is a retarded prostitute who is too dumb to lie, cheat, and use violence. The film never feels pretentious, though; rather the contrary. It's fun, playful and relatively fast paced.

saltysam wrote:Police Story 4.5/5 Seminal Jackie Chan movie,awesomely good in all respects. I like the japanese extended cut i watched here,i think the opening introduction is a good addition and i don't think there's any dispute the added moments outside the mall at the climax is superior to the freeze frame finish of the HK.The rough and ready HD transfer here has dirt and scratches,japanses sidetitles that really aren't an issue when viewing (to me at least) the laserdisc audio and excellent subs.i'd take this over the official release upscale any day of the week.

Police Story 2 3.5/5 Solid sequel doesn't hit the heights of the original but is a god movie in it's own right.Watched the extended version, theatrical is better but i don't mind this one either.

Police Story 3:Supercop 4/5 Cracking 3rd entry in the trilogy chucks Michelle Yeoh & Yuen Wah in the mix with excellent results.This HKR custom is excellent,utilising the HD print and, for the missing minutes using the upscale to complete the uncut HK version complete with the original audio.

I think PS2 is as good as the first. Police Story has more silly comedy where as the sequel benefits from better drama and realism.

luckystars wrote: I think PS2 is as good as the first. Police Story has more silly comedy where as the sequel benefits from better drama and realism.

Disagree. I like PS2 but it's not on a par with the original.
In regards to the 'silly' comedy the export cut of PS2 is an improvement.

Markgway wrote:

luckystars wrote: I think PS2 is as good as the first. Police Story has more silly comedy where as the sequel benefits from better drama and realism.

Disagree. I like PS2 but it's not on a par with the original.
In regards to the 'silly' comedy the export cut of PS2 is an improvement.

PS1 overrated
PS2 underrated


Both are classics tho

You're wrong, of course, but I forgive you.

Roman Porno treasure hunt: Part 23

Sins of Sister Lucia (Japan, 1978) [DVD] - 1/5
A badly behaving teen girl gets sent to a convent full of lusty sisters. Koyu Ohara's pop art magic is nowhere to be found in this by-the-numbers nunsploitation film. It's not the worst film ever made, but it just gets tiresome very fast. The only minor - and indeed very minor - point of interest is when two escaped prisoners show up and bring some raping with them. Oddly enough, Ohara's next movie was to be his best: the charming, energetic youth film Pink Hip Girl, which created an entire new subgenre within the Roman Porno.

Erotic Journey: Love Affair in Hong Kong (Japan, 1973) [DVD] - 3/5
A desperate husband follows his runaway wife to Hong Kong. He hooks up with a local Japanese man who, however, turns out to be a gangster specializing in human trafficking. This is an uneven, but interesting throwback to Nikkatsu's 1960s action days while still being a Roman Porno production. Director Masaru Konuma seems bored with the sex scene quota, even making fun of it at times. It seems evident he would have rather made a genuine action thriller. However, the film still packs plenty of style, exotic locations, and a badass ending. It's not an entirely satisfactory film, but it certainly has its moments, especially towards the end.

I really do not think Police Story 1 is overrated, though I agree number 2 is underrated. First outside of our little community very few people know of the film (either actually). I have introduced this film to many first the first time (both online and off; I have lent the DVD countless times and I got several to see it when I wrote a HK top 50 article.) The more specific question is: is the film overrated with Hong Kong action/martial art fans?

I'm sorry but did you say no one knows about the film?

luckystars wrote:I'm sorry but did you say no one knows about the film?

"outside of our little community very few people know of the film (either actually). " I stated a slight exaggeration, but I certainly did not say "no one knows about the film." You might be amazed on how little most people know about film in general. We are on a film site that is quite specific, but you can talk to film professors who have little or no knowledge of Hong Kong cinema in general and that includes Police Story. I bet if I picked a random amount of people in Modesto for example (say 100) I would safely bet that at most a few would know about the movie.

Its actually astonishing to think Police Story is 30 years old this year

Police Story 1&2 were pretty big hits on rental VHS back in the day here in the UK. My parents actually rented them and my uncle used to own the first, and these are not people who usually bother with foreign flms at all whether they're dubbed or not. Jackie's probably the most famous actor in the world (or was back in the 90s) and the Police Story films are a huge part of that, so I'd suggest that it's only really the younger generations (under 30s) who you could say with confidence are probably unlikely to have any recognition of the franchise. Like I say though, if there's one Jackie Chan film outside of his Hollywood work that a general bloke on the street will know about, it's Police Story.

luckystars wrote:
PS1 overrated
PS2 underrated


Both are classics tho

how do you overrate a film you consider a "classic"

grim_tales wrote:Its actually astonishing to think Police Story is 30 years old this year

probably due to my age but it's also hard to believe Enter The Dragon is 42 years old

saltysam wrote:

luckystars wrote:
PS1 overrated
PS2 underrated


Both are classics tho

how do you overrate a film you consider a "classic"

It's over rated when I see people giving it 10/10 scores. It's classic but no masterpiece

So 9/10 then? I'd give a "classic" film about 9/10 at least

Bruce, King of Kung Fu (1980: Daniel Lau Tan-ching, Bruce Le)

This was bad. Really bad. I did notice though this helps you to sleep late at night. What surprised me most was that I had actually seen this years ago and I have it on another DVD with the name The Legend of Bruce Lee from Goodtimes. It also has another release from Tai Seng called The Young Bruce Lee. I actually remember more about me purchasing that film than watching it (I bought another film on Amazon with the same title but received that one instead; I was not a winner in that transaction.)

I do wonder about the dub though. Seriously if you watch it (you really shouldn’t) try imagining someone else’s name used instead of Bruce. It actually works because you don’t really think of this as a Bruce Lee biography. What is funny is that it actually takes a backward approach to Bruce’s own realization with martial arts (though not as hilarious as stating that Bruce Lee was born in Seattle.) Here we have a character who brags about boxing, gets taught a lesson from Wing Chun, learns Wing Chun, gets taught a lesson from a blind man, later gets taught a lesson from a snake fist practitioner and well Bruce Le(e) gets beat up a lot in this film. Le’s one-note facial performance does not help either. Neither does the episodic direction where it literally feels like one scene after another is improvised and they joined together to have a film. There is certainly a lot of well-known character actors here like Sek Kin, Hon Gwok-choi, Fung Ging-man (I must be in every film), Bolo Yeung, Funk Hak-on etc… Most stick around for one scene and then disappear. Hon Gwok-choi (count how many films I die in since I’m a sidekick) pretty much disappears (most likely to work on something else) though it looks like he has a stunt double for his “dead” body.

The highlight of the film is Bruce Le’s handling of cobras where he teaches himself drunken snake-fist. None of the fight scenes are that interesting though. It ranges from competent to “why am I watching this.”

HKMDB has this as a 1980 release while IMDB has it as 1982. I could not find this on HKFA so I am thinking it did not have a HK release.

This is in the Great Impersonators set. It is partially widescreen, but the picture quality is bad.

Masterofoneinchpunch wrote:Bruce, King of Kung Fu (1980: Daniel Lau Tan-ching, Bruce Le)

This was bad. Really bad. I did notice though this helps you to sleep late at night. What surprised me most was that I had actually seen this years ago and I have it on another DVD with the name The Legend of Bruce Lee from Goodtimes. It also has another release from Tai Seng called The Young Bruce Lee. I actually remember more about me purchasing that film than watching it (I bought another film on Amazon with the same title but received that one instead; I was not a winner in that transaction.)

I do wonder about the dub though. Seriously if you watch it (you really shouldn’t) try imagining someone else’s name used instead of Bruce. It actually works because you don’t really think of this as a Bruce Lee biography. What is funny is that it actually takes a backward approach to Bruce’s own realization with martial arts (though not as hilarious as stating that Bruce Lee was born in Seattle.) Here we have a character who brags about boxing, gets taught a lesson from Wing Chun, learns Wing Chun, gets taught a lesson from a blind man, later gets taught a lesson from a snake fist practitioner and well Bruce Le(e) gets beat up a lot in this film. Le’s one-note facial performance does not help either. Neither does the episodic direction where it literally feels like one scene after another is improvised and they joined together to have a film. There is certainly a lot of well-known character actors here like Sek Kin, Hon Gwok-choi, Fung Ging-man (I must be in every film), Bolo Yeung, Funk Hak-on etc… Most stick around for one scene and then disappear. Hon Gwok-choi (count how many films I die in since I’m a sidekick) pretty much disappears (most likely to work on something else) though it looks like he has a stunt double for his “dead” body.

The highlight of the film is Bruce Le’s handling of cobras where he teaches himself drunken snake-fist. None of the fight scenes are that interesting though. It ranges from competent to “why am I watching this.”

HKMDB has this as a 1980 release while IMDB has it as 1982. I could not find this on HKFA so I am thinking it did not have a HK release.

This is in the Great Impersonators set. It is partially widescreen, but the picture quality is bad.

i think i have the Jamal custom of this,you've inspired me to dig it out and give a spin

saltysam wrote: ...i think i have the Jamal custom of this,you've inspired me to dig it out and give a spin

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!! Tell me what you think of it as well as how much better the Jamal custom is.

Masterofoneinchpunch wrote:Bruce, King of Kung Fu (1980: Daniel Lau Tan-ching, Bruce Le)

This was bad. Really bad. I did notice though this helps you to sleep late at night. What surprised me most was that I had actually seen this years ago and I have it on another DVD with the name The Legend of Bruce Lee from Goodtimes. It also has another release from Tai Seng called The Young Bruce Lee. I actually remember more about me purchasing that film than watching it (I bought another film on Amazon with the same title but received that one instead; I was not a winner in that transaction.)

I do wonder about the dub though. Seriously if you watch it (you really shouldn’t) try imagining someone else’s name used instead of Bruce. It actually works because you don’t really think of this as a Bruce Lee biography. What is funny is that it actually takes a backward approach to Bruce’s own realization with martial arts (though not as hilarious as stating that Bruce Lee was born in Seattle.) Here we have a character who brags about boxing, gets taught a lesson from Wing Chun, learns Wing Chun, gets taught a lesson from a blind man, later gets taught a lesson from a snake fist practitioner and well Bruce Le(e) gets beat up a lot in this film. Le’s one-note facial performance does not help either. Neither does the episodic direction where it literally feels like one scene after another is improvised and they joined together to have a film. There is certainly a lot of well-known character actors here like Sek Kin, Hon Gwok-choi, Fung Ging-man (I must be in every film), Bolo Yeung, Funk Hak-on etc… Most stick around for one scene and then disappear. Hon Gwok-choi (count how many films I die in since I’m a sidekick) pretty much disappears (most likely to work on something else) though it looks like he has a stunt double for his “dead” body.

The highlight of the film is Bruce Le’s handling of cobras where he teaches himself drunken snake-fist. None of the fight scenes are that interesting though. It ranges from competent to “why am I watching this.”

HKMDB has this as a 1980 release while IMDB has it as 1982. I could not find this on HKFA so I am thinking it did not have a HK release.

This is in the Great Impersonators set. It is partially widescreen, but the picture quality is bad.

Bruce,The King Of Kung Fu 1/5 Agree with pretty much everything from the above review,it's a bad,bad movie but strangely watchable and it's mindboggling how crap like this gets decent co-stars, even if only fleetingly.the custom i watched was letterboxed,zooming in with my player it's about 2:20:1 aspect ratio,quality is ok,about a second generation copy.

saltysam wrote: ... Bruce,The King Of Kung Fu 1/5 Agree with pretty much everything from the above review,it's a bad,bad movie but strangely watchable and it's mindboggling how crap like this gets decent co-stars, even if only fleetingly.the custom i watched was letterboxed,zooming in with my player it's about 2:20:1 aspect ratio,quality is ok,about a second generation copy.

Bruce Le: I'll give you 500 dollars for three hours work and no retakes.
Fung Ging-man: fine but make me the teacher of Wing Chun.

Treasure Of Bruce Lee 1/5 More Bruce Le trashiness,why do i torture myself so.here he's trying to protect a sacred kung fu manual from getting into the wrong hands.Chen Sing makes an appearance as does the ubiquitous Bolo.

Wonderful World End (Japan, 2015) [BD] - 3/5
A quiet 13 year old runaway goth-loli girl (Jun Aonami) falls in love with her idol, a 19 year old schoolgirl model / small time idol (Ai Hashimoto) who is running her own webcast from home. After a slight misunderstanding her boyfriend invites the young fan to their home to stay, which starts eating out their relationship. This film somewhat resembles another similarly themed - and also music driven - movie: The End of the World and the Cat's Disappearance. Wonderful World End, however, is a more intimate, quiet and realistic film, minus the ending which goes to Takashi Miike territory. Ai Hashimoto is pretty good in the lead as a girl who is mainly interested in her own looks, and the film makes some good points about youth, social media and idol culture, despite not being quite exceptional in any way. Director Daigo Matsui made himself an interesting name with the excellent schoolgirl drama Luv Ya Hun (to be released later in 2015). This one isn't as good, but it's still decent.

Roman Porno treasure hunt: Part 24

Scent of a Spell (Japan, 1985) [VoD] - 2.5/5
A lonely man falls in love with a woman who tried to kill herself. She says she's on the run from an abusive husband; however, it turn out she may not be as innocent as she lets people believe. This was a Roman Porno release, but a produced by Director's Company as a mainstream noir with a couple of steamy sex scenes. The screenplay is by Takashi Ishii, who is adapting another author's novel here. Consequently (?) the film a bit more dialogue-based and less visual than most of Ishii's scripts. Some of his trademark visuals - water, rain, and surreal images - and psychological themes can still be found but to a lesser extent than usual. Toshiharu Ikeda helms the mystery alright, but the film feels a bit underwhelming overall considering the talent involved. It doesn't exactly benefit from the 80s piano/jazz score either. Though not a bad film, there are more stylish and atmospheric films made from Ishii's scripts, including Ikeda's later classic Evil Dead Trap (1988).

Foreign Mistress Oman: Holland Slope In the Rain (Japan, 1972) [DVD] - 2/5
Many of Chusei Sone's early films were technically competent and featured some great ideas, but just weren't captivating enough to hold the attention till the end. This film falls into that category. However, it is still one of the most exotic films in the Roman Porno catalogue, not just because parts of it are set in Shanghai, but also because it's a period yakuza film starring a Caucasian actress (Sally May). The film's best segment sees her stepping into Junko Fuji and Reiko Ike's shoes as she becomes a wandering female yakuza. Unfortunately there is too much soft-core sex drama and meaningless side plots before that, and the ending is a bit underwhelming as well. This would have been more interesting as a genuine yakuza/action film.

Dragons Forever (1988: Sammo Hung): This was fun. It is a shame that this is not readily available here in the States as it is (so far) the last time that Yuen Biao, Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan would work together. The plot is so-so with Yuen actually outshining everyone here as a semi-psychotic paranoid friend of the three while Jackie plays the womanizer who will be redeemed by one love and Sammo as the lovelorn glue that holds the three together (he is also the director.) As you might expect it is the action sequences that outshine everything else in the film. They are awesome. For the second time you get to see Benny “The Jet” Urquidez (an undefeated kickboxer -- there is some controversy over one muay thai bout) spar off against Jackie Chan. One may wonder about Urquidez's eyeliner though. It does fit the 80s if he was a singing in a new wave band. Jackie liked it so much he considers it one of the best fight scenes Sammo has ever done. There are great stunts to be seen here too. Check out the straight kick in this battle.