Tiger Claws II (1996)

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Tiger Claws II (1996)

Merhi’s vanity project continues, taking the far eastern spiritualism of the first film to confused extremes. Relevant cast and crew reassemble and relocate to San Francisco on the hunt of tiger claw expert Chong (Bolo), who has been sprung from prison as part of an arms deal between his martial brother (played by Ong Soo Han) and some assorted heavies. NY cop Tarek (Merhi) appears to have had a personality lobotomy since the first film, but the spunky Linda (Rothrock) still thinks highly of him, for reasons completely unfathomable. So they buddy up again and enroll in a contrived kung …

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Tiger Claws (1992)

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Tiger Claws (1992)

Canadian jewellery entrepreneur Jalal Merhi surrounds himself with real martial artists for his first feature film, self-financed and designed to showcase his own somewhat dubious talents. Linda (Rothrock) and Tarek (Merhi) are kung fu cops investigating a spate of killings with links to New York’s Chinatown district (even though we are clearly in Canada), where a string of insolent so-called masters are left with bloodied claw-like marks on their face and body. Tarek may be the department’s wild card but he knows the tiger style when he sees it. The trail leads to the pantomime evilness of Bolo Yeung, a …

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Executioners (1993)

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Executioners (1993)

This sequel to The Heroic Trio was filmed back-to-back with the first film, recycling its sets, cast and crew, with the three powerful leads displaying more of their emotional sides as well as kicking space-age butt. Set several years after the first film, a nuclear explosion has separated our close-knit trio and brought chaos to society. A deformed villain sporting a Wonder Woman mask is controlling the city’s water supply, rousing tensions between a weak government and a hot-headed military force. The trio are quick to reunite, and pretty soon the Thief Catcher (Cheung), Ching (Yeoh) and Wonder Woman (Mui) – brought out …

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The Heroic Trio (1993)

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The Heroic Trio (1993)

Surreal sci-fi fantasy starring three of Hong Kong’s finest female stars who play it straight despite the film’s more bizarre moments. Male babies are being kidnapped and the police aren’t up to scratch. Enter masked superhero, Wonder Woman (Mui) – a leather-clad avenger with special powers leading a double life as the doting housewife of the naïve chief of police (Damian Lau). The kidnapping culprit is the strange yet beautiful San (Yeoh) whose invisibility skills trouble not only the authorities but even the great Wonder Woman. In a paranoid attempt to safeguard China’s future, San’s powerful superhuman boss (a centuries-old underworld eunuch, …

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Magnificent Warriors (1987)

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Magnificent Warriors (1987)

A remote Mongolian village is overrun by the Japanese during World War II and a collection of Chinese mercenaries, dignitaries, special agents and thieves are on-hand to drive them out. What starts as a typically brash comic tale with splices of kung fu action soon escalates into an all-out war between the heavily armed Japanese and the Chinese, all over-played and jingoistic. Director David Chung intervenes with some striking visuals, helped in no small part by a notably large budget, while choreographers Stephen Tung et al fuse delicate wushu weaponry with heavy-handed fisticuffs in all-too-brief excursions offering more of a light snack …

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Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars (1985)

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Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars (1985)

In this sequel to My Lucky Stars, Sammo and his pervy mates try aimlessly to grope Sibelle Hu (well, she is rather lovely). When Rosamund Kwan becomes the target of a trio of nasty hitmen, she takes refuge at the group’s abode where they try to grope her too. The mild slapstick of its predecessor reaches overblown farce with this movie, much of it consisting of set piece routines hammed to death which make it all very tiresome viewing to say the least. Kung fu fights are thrown in haphazardly and in keeping with Sammo’s sterling 80s output they are all …

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Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

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Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

The traditional wuxia film has never looked so good. A lavish masterpiece from auteur director Ang Lee whose redefining of the genre – combining western techniques with vivid far eastern aesthetics – is the most successful Chinese film of recent times. Critically acclaimed and boasting art house credentials, Crouching Tiger is a refreshing and spellbinding watch. Striking photography, courtesy of Peter Pao, help to create a magical 17th century Chinese backdrop. Yuen Woo-ping’s choreography delivers a strong backbone of stylish combat defying the laws of gravity at every conceivable opportunity. There are flashes of King Hu swashbuckling as our combatants leap …

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No Retreat, No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers (1990)

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No Retreat, No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers (1990)

Ng See-yuen’s third instalment is atrociously wooden but it’s a B-movie with character. The hard-hitting fight scenes are its saving grace, with impressive athletic performances from its gweilo cast who prove themselves to be more than adequate at handling the pace of Hong Kong action. The revenge story has nothing to do with the previous films, as the Alexander brothers (Loren Avedon and Keith Vitali) vow to track down the killers of their retired CIA father. Their quest takes them to Florida and more specifically Franco (Hunter), bleach-haired ringleader of a top brand of international terrorists. Expect macho buddy nonsense …

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No Retreat, No Surrender 2: Raging Thunder (1988)

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No Retreat, No Surrender 2: Raging Thunder (1988)

A sequel in name alone, this movie holds no resemblance to the previous film other than Seasonal Films’ impressive crew. This is a cheap yet spirited film full of hulking big action, and its about as subtle as a slap in the face. In a nutshell, then: young martial arts enthusiast Loren Avedon teams up with Max Thayer and marauding fighter Cynthia Rothrock to blow things up in Death Mountain, Cambodia; a Soviet stronghold fronted by musclebound brute, Matthias Hues, who has kidnapped Loren’s girlfriend, Patra Wanthivanond, the daughter of a top government official. Unintentional hilarity ensues. Corey Yuen’s action is wonderful, …

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No Retreat, No Surrender (1986)

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No Retreat, No Surrender (1986)

A simple premise – bullied karate enthusiast seeks martial guidance from celebrity stiff – but the result is pleasing enough. McKinney plays Jason, a troubled youth new to Seattle, hassled by the bigger kids, befriended by a disco dancing stereotype and his martial arts training is on the slide. His prayers are answered when Kim Tai-chong appears as the spirit of Bruce Lee, Jason’s idol who teaches him the rudiments of Jeet Kune Do. The pseudo Lee trains him well enough to combat the main baddie of the piece: a snarling Van Damme in one of his earliest action roles, …

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