March has arrived. Here are a few action-packed movies.

The Heroic Trio and Executioners (both 1993), directed by Johnnie To (the second film also has Ching Siu-Tung as co-director). These two films combine wuxia with American-style comic book zaniness. This is my third viewing of The Heroic Trio, but my first of its sequel. The former holds up all right, although I confess my enthusiasm has waned just a bit. The trio are Chat (Maggie Cheung), Ching (Michelle Yeoh), and Tung (Anita Mui); they are also known as Thief Catcher, The Invisible Woman, and Wonder Woman respectively. Invisible, you ask. Well Ching’s ill-fated partner has developed an invisibility cloak. The plot has to do with a sinsister underground warlord, Evil Master (Shi-Kwan Yen) stealing babies because he is looking for the next Emperor of China. He believes China must have an Emperor, one he can control. He has a crazed henchman named Kau (Anthony Wong – this actor appeared in 18 movies in 1993 alone!) who eats his own severed finger. Speaking of eating body parts, I can also report that the film has a group of cannibal children who dine vigorously on various body parts. Chat blows them all up. So we have much flying through the air, either on invisible wires, or on visible wires or on flying barrels or on a motorcycle. As for the trio, stand aside Charlie’s Angels. These three work independently of men. We find them reunited in Executioners which takes place some years after the action in The Heroic Trio and after a nuclear event has pretty much destroyed everything. The plot here turns on a search for clean water, and we learn that the villain, another over-the-top comic book character Mr. Kim (Anthony Wong) wants to destroy the existing government and seize world domination. Once again, we have flying about and bombs and much mixing of action, humour, and sudden sadness when a good character (perhaps a child) dies. These films offer a dazzling foray into cultural history. We even have a nod to The Terminator (1984) at the end of The Heroic Trio. 

 

Master Z: the Ip Man Legacy (2018), directed by Woo-Ping Yuen. This is an entry in the Ip Man franchise, but it puts the brakes on the excesses of the other films in the series, and gives us a spare film (for such types of film!) that focuses on Cheung Tin-chi (Jin Zhang) after his defeat by Ip Man. Cheung has decided to give up martial arts and open a grocery store. He is living a quiet life with his young son, until one day he comes to the rescue of two young women, Julia (Liu Yan) and Nana (Chrissie Chau), and in doing so he attracts the ire of the lout Tso Sai Kit (Kevin Cheng). Life turns dangerous. Add to this mix, Kit’s sister, Tso Ngan Kwan (Michelle Yeoh), a gangster trying to go straight, Davidson (Dave Bautista), a hulking restauranteur who enjoys barbecuing steaks, and the laconic Sdai (Tony Jaa), and you have the ingredients for an agreeable exercise in mayhem in the martial arts mode. Woo-Ping keeps the action furious, intricate, and balletic. The sequence on the neon signs is eye-popping and reminds me of something similar in the Thai film, Chocolate (2008). The sets here remind me of those in Kung Fu Hustle (2004). Perhaps the niftiest scene here is the one in which Cheung and Tso Ngan deftly and fluidly slide a glass of whisky back and forth across a table. As these films go, this one is a winner.

 

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), directed by Destin Daniel Cretton. Here is another contribution to the Marvel Universe on film. The conventions threaten to wear thin, but here the threat is averted by some dazzling special effects and a cast of appealing characters including Awkwafina as Katy, Tony Leung as Xu Wenwu, Michelle Yeoh as Ying Nan, Meng’er Zhang as Xialing, and Ben Kinsley as Trevor Slattery. The eponymous character is played by Simu Liu, who is best known for his part in Kim’s Convenience. Here he manages the fight sequences convincingly.  Of course, we have the requisite flying about, and fighting, and explosions, but all of this is delivered with a sense of humour. The wuxia fight scenes are, for the most part, done well, with the help of computers. The final overly long fight sequence devolves into something of a “destroy all monsters” set piece, with huge flying dragons duking it out in a magical land. The plot reminded us of Jet Li’s Twin Warriors (aka Tai-Chi Master, 1993), and there are several visual echoes of that film in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Once we arrive at the mid-credits sequence, the film reminds us of the larger Marvel Universe with the appearance of Captain Marvel (Brie Larson), and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo). Finally, I should mention that this film has its endearing creature in the faceless, winged, furry wombat-like creature, Morris (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker). It also has quite effective creatures that remind us of Chinese dancers with their lion-like trailing costumes. In short, the film does not stint on spectacle. The final end-credits sequence is nicely feminist. There are, however, many credits to scroll past before we have this scene. Patience, dear viewer.

The Flying Swordsman (2022 – aka The Hidden Fox), directed by Lei Qiao. This wuxia outing is fine to look at, but difficult to follow. The narrative here not only has too any moving parts, but it also unfolds with returns to past action at various times and to various times. In short, what we have is convoluted. Having noted this, I return to the visuals. There is much to admire in the camera work, special effects, costumes, colour, and wuxia action. There is a lot of action. The story has something to do with the search by eight villains for a hidden fortress and treasure hidden there, the plot for vengeance by one of the group whose father, a master sword-maker, had been murdered by these guys years ago – 10 years methinks. Throw in another character, a female, also set on revenge, and you have the group who fly about swirling their swords and slashing things here and there, hither and yon. Then we have the secret power that each of these villains has, each power different from the powers of the others. For example, one of the villains carries a small container with what are supposed to be leeches, but look like centipedes. These insects can bring the villain back from death. Wow. Another villain, a woman in red, can accomplish amazing things with thread. Anyway, as wuxia films go, this one is middling. 

Come Drink With Me (1966), directed by King Hu. As we would expect from Hu, this film is colourful and graceful in its action sequences. Golden Swallow (Cheng Pei Pei) moves like a dancer (indeed Cheng Pei Pei was trained as a dancer) as she takes on large groups of bad guys. As in The Fate of Lee Khan (1973), much of the action takes place in an inn. The plot has Golden Swallow arriving at the inn to meet the leaders of a band of rebels in order to negotiate the release of her brother whom the rebels have taken prisoner. Unlike some of these films, this one has a simple straight forward plot. After some furious fighting, Golden Swallow is hit with a poison dart and rescued by a beggar/drunkard named Drunken Cat (Yueh Hua), who is often accompanied by a group of children. These children, along with Drunken Cat, are prone to bursting into song; I mentioned dance earlier, and the film has touches of a musical. Anyway, Golden Swallow and Drunken Cat forge an uneasy relationship and then work to defeat the rebels and rescue Golden Swallow’s brother. What distinguished Hu’s martial arts films is not the fight sequences, but rather the characters and the colours and the locations and the fluidity of everything from camera movement to the movement of bodies. Apparently, this film influenced Ang Lee when he made Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000). There may not be a dragon here, but there is a “Smiling Tiger”! As wuxia films go, this one is impressive and sets the standard for films that follow.

 

The Fate of Lee Khan (1973), directed by King Hu. Perhaps not as impressive as Hu’s Touch of Zen (1971), this film nevertheless manages to entertain with its female protagonists, its flying fight scenes (most especially at the end), its fluid camera work, its sets and outdoor locations, and its bright colours. Set in the 14^th century, the action mostly takes place in a country Inn run by Wan Jen-mi (Li Hua Li). Wan has four perky females serving customers, and these servers draw customers away from a rival nearby inn. The plot has rebels arriving at the inn to wait for the titular Lee Khan, a warlord who has a map of the rebels’ battle plans. The rebels want to retrieve this map. The first half of the film teases us with various characters who may or may not be rebels. The second half deals with the conflict between the rebels and Lee Khan and his entourage. The martial arts action is not particularly well staged, but the characters run the usual gamut from silly to serious. All in all, this is a pleasant example of the genre.