A rider easily fights off five fighters and Lo Lieh is not pleased with his men. "We have to kill him or they'll send more!" The spears man enters an inn. A rude customer fights with Angela Mao. A mysterious stranger kills the spears man by playing a flute then steals papers. Another man comes and searches the body. Cut to a different scene where two new guys fight standing on a bridge of swords. The guy in white wins and gets a seal from the other. Then he enters some sort of magical dungeon. Five acrobatic kids attack then act as if nothing happened. He arrives at the inn and after a fight his is killed by flute music just like the other guy. A bunch of people, maybe the villains, talk. In a flag filled field a new hero (Barry Chan) fights four men then a kung fu chick (Chia Ling). He passes the test to serve the emperor. He gets his orders and rides to the same inn. While gambling, Angela starts a fight with him. He teases her as he fights until the others make them stop. At night he is lured outside by Angela. She is really his contact to bring down the rebels. Returning to his room the hero finds a dumpy guy under his bed who claims to be there to protect him. Meanwhile the bad guys suspect a spy among them. The kid shows his kung fu. The hero is tricked and trapped in a cage. Angela rescues him. Some big boss is due to arrive. The casino closes and Angela is suspected of being a spy. Next there is a bizarre night fight with corpse herders. There's another fight but what happened to the hero? He's fighting at the graveyard. Then he fights Lo Lieh in a field of umbrellas. For some reason he turns on Angela and the kid. Apparently he has been planning it all along and he is the one with the deadly flute. There is no clear lead in this story, it's more a variety show of kung fu stars with Barry Chan scoring the most screen time and I doubt the ending makes any sense. Nevertheless it was fun from start to finish and I rate it above average.
2 Reviews
Martial arts hokum featuring Angela Mao
Leofwine_draca9 December 2016
Warning: Spoilers
SWIFT SHAOLIN BOXER is a slightly madcap vehicle for ferocious female fighter Angela Mao; not one of her most assured or confident films, but nonetheless one that entertains thanks to the slapdash and outre elements of the plot. The story sees Mao teaming up with Barry Chan to go after master villain Lo Lieh in a wide-ranging plot that takes in plenty of bizarre spectacle.
Diverse elements of the film include: kung fu fighting monk kids with the ability to defy gravity; an assassin who kills via flute music; secret papers that must be stolen at all costs; fields full of flags and parasols; a night fight in a ghoulish graveyard; spies and spying; captures and rescues; an outlandish interlude in which a corpse herder and his corpses become involved in a pitched battle; plus a big fight climax with a twist or two. It's all quite low budget and unbelievable, but at least it's never boring. Mao is fine as always although Chan bags the most screen time, and Lieh is, as always, the best thing about the production.
Diverse elements of the film include: kung fu fighting monk kids with the ability to defy gravity; an assassin who kills via flute music; secret papers that must be stolen at all costs; fields full of flags and parasols; a night fight in a ghoulish graveyard; spies and spying; captures and rescues; an outlandish interlude in which a corpse herder and his corpses become involved in a pitched battle; plus a big fight climax with a twist or two. It's all quite low budget and unbelievable, but at least it's never boring. Mao is fine as always although Chan bags the most screen time, and Lieh is, as always, the best thing about the production.
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