| # A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z |
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| Lewd Lizard (1979) Directed by: Wai Wang & Wang Hsiung |
David (co-director Wai Wang) comes back from abroad only to find his wife to be has married another man in order to clear a debt. Subsequently mugged and taken to the mentally unstable side, David decides to strike back against ALL women by training lizards to crawl inside women's vaginas (a sequence showing David and female accomplice stealing women's panties comes before this key plot ingredient so we know we're heading somewhere sleazy). The kill is both pleasurable and painful for the women...viva exploitation! At heart an intense melodrama, of course Wai Wang's baby has its sights firmly locked at the sleaze and boy does Lewd Lizard deliver fine, shameless stuff. 70s fashion is unavoidable but the audio assault is something else. Obvious cues probably heard in various porn movies are thrown at us without any subtlety, sound design during the lizard attacks is akin to chewing or munching and of course the lust/pain of the females David attacks is shot in glorious slow motion. Not really well attended narrative and giant overacting are negative asides but not enough to overpower the outrageousness Wai Wang and Wang Hsiung manages to convey on-screen via very small means. |
| License To Steal (1990) Directed by: Billy Chan |
A family of thieves (one of the daughters is Hung, played by Joyce Godenzi) gets to experience betrayal as one of the daughters, Ngan (Agnes Aurelio - She Shoots Straight), wishes to break free for her own financial gain so during Hung's last heist, she is left behind by Ngan and gets sentenced to prison. When out, an inspector (Richard Ng), his follower (Ngai Sing) and a modern day swordsman wannabee (Yuen Biao) enters the frey. Hung plots her payback by also co-operating with the police. The joy of Billy Chan's breezy action-comedy is seeing such distinctly different characters interacting with each other. It's nothing new to see Hong Kong cinema throw everything in there but it's especially enjoyable having the banter of Richard Ng and Yuen Biao (Ng is his uncle in the film) mixed in with Joyce Godenzi's plot and really, the insane talent is all thrown in there for comedic and awesome physical purposes. Yuen Biao is especially enjoyable as a bit of a nut out of touch with the times, Ngai Sing a talented rookie cop gets to cut loose against the likes of Billy Chow and on it goes. It has the stamp of easy entertainment but also Sammo Hung's producing stamp and Billy Chan's fine focus as director. |
| Life After Life (1981) Directed by: Peter Yung |
Fairly eerie horror film, produced by Cinema City and shot in synch sound. Director Peter Yung collaborates very well with cinematographer Arthur Wong in giving us a low-key but quite chilling tale as we follow George Lam (being less of an empty void in his acting ways for once) trying to put together the fragmented pieces of his violent demise in a past life. Chinese puppets probably never did look scary, until now that is. Also starring Patrick Tse, Lung Tin Sang and Flora Cheung. Arthur Wong was nominated against his own work in the slasher-comedy He Lives By Night and ended up taking home the Hong Kong Film Award for that very film. Buy the VCD at: |
| Life And Death (1972) Directed by: Ng Tin-Chi |
Also known as The Bloody Fight, this old school martial arts actioner surely sold a ticket or two thanks to a better alternate title. However neither version can hide the fact that this Chinese martial arts vs. Japanese martial arts story is re-cycled stuff that also goes down roads of extreme tedium. Flashing a little high flying creativity in the fight scenes at times (as well as gore and overall mostly during the finale), otherwise the choreography is lacking imagination in the most dreadful of ways. Especially since quite a number of the leads (men and women) merely know posing but little of how to sell a fight. They get very little supported by the filmmakers though. Alan Tang stars opposite Pai Ying while Chen Kuan-Tai and Eddy Ko appear as henchmen. Buy the DVD at: |
| Life Is A Moment Story (1987) Directed by: Teresa Woo |
In 2037 where individuals are known only by numbers, high technology being at its most prominent when many lights are flickering and where people wear plastic or silver suits, we find Pat Ha's 6262 in one when getting caught in a government experiment that takes her back in time to 1987...in her car. Indeed Back To The Future vibes minus comedy manifests themselves, Teresa Woo stages a novelty vehicle as Hong Kong cinema rarely ventured into science fiction, designed this way (very in tune with the 1980s vision of the future). Going back and meeting her parents as young kids, the expected paradoxes for Pat Ha's character takes place as well as enlightenment about your path of destiny starting generations earlier. There's also a love story with Alex Fong that is obviously going to collide tragically with the inevitable. While Woo directs Ha as suitably cold, she works opposed an unseasoned Alex Fong who's not melting the icy surface the movie has and attempt at warmth comes via sappy melodrama instead. When you don't feel as much as the character on-screen apparently does, a movie has a problem. Life Is A Moment Story is fun to watch for its excursions into seldom treaded territory for Hong Kong cinema but boy wouldn't it had been fun if they kept the flick in 2037 all along! Roy Chiao and Ha Ping also appear. Buy the VCD at: |
| Lifeline Express (1984) Directed by: Kirk Wong |
KENNETH'S REVIEW: Entertaining horror-comedy from the early, quite exciting career of Kirk Wong's. Kent Cheng is Fatso who prays to Buddha for the well-being of his brother Tiger (Teddy Robin Kwan) who's on an operating table but giving away years of his life wasn't the best idea. Fortune tellers spell out the final destiny of Fatso and he now attempts to perform rituals to salvage his life before his next birthday. It doesn't help that his non-believer brother is focused on getting girls for him and Fatso... Although starting out with a serious prologue concerning disasters (archival footage of war and racing accidents etc etc) that lacks subtitles, we're soon in somewhat safe hands. Am saying that because contrasts in mood and content seems to suggest darker things but we're not entirely sure where Kirk is taking us. As it turns out, you're very willing to be taken on a light and creepy ride, often with those moods colliding. As Fatso attempts a life-saving ritual that concerns making sure bumping into particular signs on the Hong Kong street, a certain amount of low-brow cleverness takes place on occasion as for instance here Fatso is said to look out for two chicks (i.e. chickens) fighting over a cock. Well, he bounces into two prostitutes (chicken being a slang for that profession). Wong's methods are farce or slapstick-like in nature indeed but having Kent Cheng's predicament being both light and dark seems perfectly natural for this film. Latter parts really amps the creepy factor as now the afterlife intrudes on Fatso's life and only Eddy Ko's Professor (and some pyramid magic) is left to possibly save Fatso. Mixing in more wonderful dialogue in even the darker parts of the film (Fatso's parents have invited Bruce Lee and Peter Sellers to his afterlife birthday), Lifeline Express greatly entertains for all the right reasons. Fine balancing act. |
| A Life Of Ninja (1983) Directed by: Lee Tso-Nam |
Distributed in English by Tomas Tang's Filmark (although in an unaltered state, aside from the English dub), Lee Tso-Nam seems to be aiming for a fine depiction of ninjitsu but soon he reveals that being fine about arts is not proper art in this case. No, the art of ninjitsu OF COURSE contains female mud wrestling and on a path A Life Of Ninja has set us on via this inclusion. Before he gets us to the rather mundane and way too seriously told plot about a ninja expert played by Chen Kuan-Tai being hired as a bodyguard by a company boss who is targeted by the Eiga clan (led by Yusuaki Kurata), Lee from the suitably smoky hideout for the Eiga clan demonstrates further. One such demonstration revolves around the fact that ninjas operate in the dark but the film curiously cuts to a shot with them operating in daylight and the various art of lady ninja tactics, including flashing, must not be left unmentioned. Lee's frame of mind is definitely correct and his combo of thrash and sleaze easily outweighs the otherwise straight faced narrative. It simply becomes a pleasure to follow his directorial energy whenever putting his mind in the right place and the intended audience will be able detect genuine fun and direct genuine respect towards the filmmaker. Also with Elsa Yeung who went on to appear in Lee Tso-Nam's kooky Challenge Of The Lady Ninja, again with Chen Kuan-Tai. Buy the DVD at: |
| Life Show (2002) Directed by: Huo Jianqi |
Lai Shuang Yang (Tao Hong) runs a small restaurant stand in Jiqin street each night as well as being dedicated towards her own family matters. Outspoken to some that her heart is not at ease with this pattern, meeting frequent Jiqin street visitor Zhuo Xiong Zhou (Tao Zeru) seems to mark an upwards turns but all around Lai Shuang Yang, society changes are about to crumble the life of the little, strong-willed woman... Directed by Huo Jianqi (Postmen In The Mountains), he wisely chooses a female portrayal of less clichéd proportions and carries her into the realm of strong instead. The problem is that Life Show for longer periods of time feels fragmented in its portrayal of characters around Lai. Skipping even basic setups for some, it's definitely hard to attach emotionally to conflicts and Huo's low-key style actually makes the film even more distant. It's encouraging then that Huo has Tao Hong's character to lead the film because it's in the latter focus on her emotional state where the film finally triumphs. Subtle, open and hidden depth is all over Hou's frame and he proves Life Show can be minimal just like Postmen In The Mountains was. By the end you even appreciate some of the annoyances pointed out earlier so structurally, maybe his choices in fact are spot on throughout. Co-starring Pan Yueming from the Huo Jianqi's previous film A Love Of Blueness. The Shanghai International Film Festival awarded Life Show with Best Film, Best Actress and Best Cinematography statuettes. Buy the DVD at: |
| The Little Drunken Masters (1995) Directed by: Siu Wing |
The kids of the Shaolin monastery flee from King Fifth (Hung Yan-Yan) who's after one of them known as Little Buddha. Settling in a town under the supervision of Carman Lee's character, cue comedic shenanigans. Far too violent as a kids movie and too unfunny for both adults AND kids, The Little Drunken Masters shows promise, isn't the most shoddy looking kung-fu movie of the 90s but the elements it attempts to feature, fall mostly flat. I say mostly because the wire choreography, creativity and energy gets a boost come ending time. Still, the movie doesn't know what audience to aim for here either. evident as we see Hung Yan-Yan exit in a manner Lucio Fulci fans will recognize. Willie Chi from Burning Paradise co-stars. Buy the VCD at: |
| Little Hero (1978) Directed by: Chan Hung-Man |
KENNETH'S REVIEW: Taiwan reefer madness if you will, orchestrated with the pitch perfect knowledge of how to create energetic, laughable thrash. Laughable being the highest compliment to this thoroughly fun Polly Kuan vehicle directed by the editor of her breakthrough movie, Dragon Inn. A basic period plot at heart arises little interest but instead, Chan Hung-Man know where to push for success. To boot, they manage to maintain pace and energy as they wade through the many highlight creations. Watch the men of the Devil's Gang try and take on Polly's male character, whether it's the midget brothers in their rolling boulders, tiger assassins, elephant assassins, lion assassins and even octopuses working in the same capacity! It's a wonderful smorgasbord where added sounds in post to the various animal attackers are as dumb as they are entertaining. When capping it off with Polly and fellow cast members (including her annoying students) looking extremely embarrassed when fighting the octopus prop that could've come directly from Ed Wood's Bride of The Monster, the filmmakers may have their poorest looking effect but their best ideas, especially when they start shooting baby octopuses at Polly! Men behind masks and Lo Lieh in the cast list signals a surprise towards the end but as with the other actual kung-fu action, Little Hero does less well when being ordinary. |
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