IT CAME FROM ASIAN CINEMA: HEROIC TRIO (1993)

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HEROIC TRIO (1993)

Hong Kong superhero flick opens with a rash of baby snatchings being perpetrated by an apparently invisible kidnapper. Even crime fighting superheroine Wonder Woman (Anita Mui) is having trouble cracking the case. She finds herself reluctantly joining forces with bounty hunter Thief Catcher (Maggie Cheung) when the mercenary is hired to rescue one of the abducted little ones. They discover the invisible fiend is actually a woman named Ching (Michelle Yeoh) who is working for an evil sorcerer (Yen Shi-Kwan) and his brutish henchman Kau (Anthony Wong). They turn the conflicted Ching against her master and the trio unite to take on the powerful villain and free the infants he plans to use for his sinister purposes.

Uneven but ultimately fun flick is produced by legendary Hong Kong filmmaker Ching Siu-Tung and directed by Johnny To from a script by Sandy Shaw. It’s colorful and has some fun over-the-top action sequences combining martial arts and superhero type action. The characters are straight out of a comic book and the cast gets the material just fine. It can be a bit heavy-handed with the soap opera level melodramatics and the sometimes dark and serious tone can conflict with some of the lighter comic book moments and more humorously toned sequences. Hence being tonally a bit uneven. The acrobatic action and amusing camaraderie between the characters, especially Wonder Woman and the bratty and arrogant Thief Catcher, more than makes up for it, as does the climactic fight with the supernaturally charged Evil Master. The effects are delightfully cheesy by today’s standards and done mostly in camera, and the sets are amusingly on a TV show level. Its heart is in the right place and overall wins you over with watching these three beautiful and talented actresses give it their all kicking bad guy butt.

Anita Mui is well-cast as Tung, a policeman’s wife who has a double secret life as superheroine Wonder Woman…no relation or similarity to the DC heroine. She plays it straight but also has some fun with the part. Maggie Cheung has a blast as the arrogant Chat aka bounty hunter Thief Catcher. She is a bit more over-the-top and has more of the comedic moments and that suits this versatile actress just fine. Recent Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh is also solid as the conflicted Ching/Invisible Woman. Her part is dramatically the heaviest as she is starting to regret some of the questionable things she’s done in Evil Master’s service. Rounding out the cast is Damian Lau as Tung’s unsuspecting police chief husband, Anthony Wong having fun as the brutal henchman Kau and Yen Shi-Kwan delivering a creepy and powerful villain in the aptly named Evil Master.

Overall, it’s not perfect but it can be fun. There are some colorful characters, fast paced fights and action and it does achieve a comic book tone. Being a little too melodramatic at times and going from dark to camp back and forth does make it tonally uneven, but it’s three leads help overcome its flaws to a good degree. Film is a good example of the type of movie the Hong Kong cinema cranked out in that era. The Heroic Trio reunited for a sequel Executioners later that same year.

-MonsterZero NJ

Rated 3 (out of 4) butt-kicking superheroines.
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MONSTERZERO NJ’S SATURDAY NIGHT DOUBLE FEATURE: A CHINESE GHOST STORY I & II

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This edition of MZNJ’s Saturday Night Double Feature is a revamped repost of one of my first installments of this column…almost ten years ago. It is also a bit of a Movie Memories, too as I saw both these films at the Film Forum in NYC during the Hong Kong Film Festival in September of 1991. During the festival run I spent many a night racing into the city after leaving my job at Tower Records to see quite a few of these amazing films from the late 80s Hong Kong Cinema revival! These two are amongst my all-time favorite films and it was amazing seeing them with an audience at this legendary theater!

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chinese ghost story I

A CHINESE GHOST STORY (1987)

This Hong Kong classic is an enchanting supernatural romance/action/fantasy! It’s a fairy tale-like story that takes place in ancient China of meek tax collector, Ning Tsei-Shen (the late Leslie Cheung), who encounters and falls in love with a beautiful ghost, Nieh Hsiao-Tsing (the gorgeous Joey Wang). But this enchanting specter who has stolen his heart has been betrothed to the devil himself by her master, the soul sucking Tree Demon (Lau Siu-Ming). The mild-mannered Ning Tsei-Shen teams up with a powerful Taoist monk (the scene stealing Wu Ma) and vows to save his supernatural love from her eternally damning fate.

A Chinese Ghost Story is simply a great movie, directed by legendary Hong Kong director Ching Siu-Tung and produced by the equally legendary Tsui Hark, that delivers everything from sumptuous cinematography, charming romance, thrilling martial arts action, spooky scares and some very effective old-school SPFX. The film has the wonderful ability to charm us, entertain us, give us the chills and make us laugh out loud. The cast is perfect with leads Cheung and Wang making an enchanting couple with some wonderful on-screen chemistry. Wu Ma’s Yin Chek Ha is an endearing and cantankerous mix of Bruce Lee, Gandalf and Yoda, while Lau Siu-Ming is creepy and formidable as the weirdly androgynous Tree Demon. A simply wonderful and wildly entertaining film!

-MonsterZero NJ

Rated 4 (out of 4) supernatural sirens!

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chinese ghost story II

A CHINESE GHOST STORY II (1990)

Chinese Ghost Story II is a cinematic rarity, a sequel that’s an equal. Tax collector Ning Tsei-Shen (Leslie Cheung) returns and is once again drawn into a battle with evil supernatural forces over a woman. This time, she’s flesh and blood rebel fighter, Windy (Joey Wang) who is the spitting image of his ghostly love from the previous installment. As Ning is also mistaken for the rebel leader, Chu, he is more than happy to perpetuate this error in order to get close to the beautiful Windy. But the rebels are up against a demon in disguise and once again Ling is forced to battle an assortment of supernatural foes.

Chinese Ghost Story 2 is a bit bigger with more action, but the human element is not lost thanks to another fine performance by Leslie Cheung as tax collector Ning and Wang as his paramour, Windy. There are some delightful new characters such as cocky Taoist monk, Autumn (Jacky Cheung), Windy’s spunky sister, Moon (Michelle Reis) and heroic swordsman, Fu (Waise Lee). There is also a surprise cameo from a character from part 1 that I won’t spoil, but the audience at The Hong Kong Film Festival at the Film Forum in NYC erupted in thunderous cheers when they appeared. While less of a romance and more of a supernatural adventure this time, CGS2 nonetheless has some great action, some nice chills and some hysterically funny scenes—one involving two characters, a giant demon and a freezing spell might be among my favorite slapstick comedy scenes ever! There are also some charming old fashion FX that might be cheesy elsewhere but bring a smile to one’s face here. Again Ching Siu-tung skillfully directs and beautifully shoots this great follow-up and Tsui Hark again produces. Another Hong Kong classic.

-MonsterZero NJ

Rated 4 (out of 4) supernatural sirens!

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chinese ghost story III

There is a Chinese Ghost Story III (1991) also directed by Ching Siu-Tung, and while it is entertaining, it takes place 100 years later and is in today’s terms a “requel”, so it doesn’t quite fit in with the first film and its direct sequel…unless you want to include it for a complete trilogy viewing. Joey Wang stars again, but as another Ghost named Lotus, and Lau Siu-Ming returns as the tree demon now awakened from its 100-year slumber. Tony Leung Chiu-Wai is the love interest this time around, as shy Buddhist monk Shi Fang who is trying desperately to resist Lotus’s temptations. I saw this in NYC, too but at a later time and a different theater. A good movie, but not equal to the previous chapters in this franchise. The chemistry between Joey Wang and Leslie Cheung was sorely missed.

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On a more somber sidenote… it will be twenty years this April since series star, actor/singer Leslie Cheung, sadly and tragically took his own life. He is considered a pioneer LGBT performer for openly coming out about his bisexuality at a time when Hong Kong cinema was still very conservative. *

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RIP Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing

September 1956-April 2003

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-MonsterZero NJ

*Source: Wikipedia

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MONSTERZERO NJ’S SATURDAY NIGHT DOUBLE FEATURE: A CHINESE GHOST STORY I & II

MZNJ_SNDF

now playing

 double feature_CGS1_CGS2

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chinese ghost story I

A CHINESE GHOST STORY (1987)

One of my all-time favorite films since first seeing it at The Film Forum in NYC at The Hong Kong Film Festival in September of 1991. This Hong Kong classic is an enchanting supernatural romance/action/ fantasy, a fairy tale-like story of a meek tax collector, Ning Tsei-Shen (the late Leslie Cheung) in ancient China, who encounters and falls in love with a beautiful ghost, Nieh Hsiao-Tsing (the gorgeous Joey Wang). But this enchanting specter who has stolen his heart is betrothed to the devil himself by her master, the soul sucking Tree Demon (Lau Siu-Ming). The mild-mannered Ning Tsei-Shen teams up with a powerful Taoist monk (the scene stealing Wu Ma) and vows to save his supernatural love from her eternally damning fate.

A Chinese Ghost Story is simply a great movie directed by legendary Hong Kong director Ching Siu-Tung and produced by the equally legendary Tsui Hark, that delivers everything from sumptuous cinematography, charming romance, thrilling martial arts action, spooky scares and some very effective old-school SPFX. The film has the wonderful ability to charm us, entertain us, give us the chills and make us laugh out loud. The cast is perfect with leads Cheung and Wang making an enchanting couple, Wu Ma a cantankerous mix of Bruce Lee, Gandalf and Yoda and Lau Siu-Ming is creepy and formidable as the weirdly androgynous Tree Demon. A simply wonderful and wildly entertaining film!

-MonsterZero NJ

Rated 4 (out of 4) supernatural sirens!

chinese ghost story rating

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chinese ghost story II

A CHINESE GHOST STORY II (1990)

Chinese Ghost Story 2 is a cinematic rarity, a sequel that’s an equal. Tax collector Ning Tsei-Shen (Leslie Cheung) returns and is once again drawn into a battle with evil supernatural forces over a woman. This time, she’s a flesh and blood woman, Windy (Joey Wang) who is the spitting image of his ghostly love from the previous installment. As Ning is mistaken for a rebel leader, he is more than happy to perpetuate this error in order to get close to the beautiful rebel, Windy. But the rebels are up against a demon in disguise and once again Ling is forced to battle an assortment of supernatural foes.

Chinese Ghost Story 2 is a bit bigger with more action, but the human element is not lost thanks to another fine performance by Leslie Cheung as he tax collector and Wang as his paramour, Windy. There are some delightful new characters such as cocky Taoist monk, Autumn (Jacky Cheung), Windy’s spunky sister, Moon (Michelle Reis) and heroic swordsman, Fu (Waise Lee). There is also a surprise cameo from a character from part 1 that I won’t spoil, but the audience at The Hong Kong Film Festival at the Film Forum in NYC erupted in thunderous cheers when they appear. While less of a romance and more of a supernatural adventure this time, CGS2 nonetheless has some great action, some nice chills, some hysterically funny scenes—one involving two characters, a giant demon and a freezing spell might be among my favorite slapstick comedy scenes ever—and some charming old fashion FX that might be cheesy elsewhere but bring a smile to one’s face here. Again Ching Siu-tung skillfully directs and beautifully shoots this great follow-up and Tsui Hark again produces. Another Hong Kong classic.

-MonsterZero NJ

Rated 4 (out of 4) supernatural sirens!

chinese ghost story rating

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chinese ghost story III

There is a Chinese Ghost Story 3 (1991) also directed by Ching Siu-Tung and while it is entertaining, it takes place 100 years later and is almost a reboot, so it doesn’t quite fit in with the first film and its direct sequel…unless you want to include it for a complete trilogy viewing. Joey Wang stars again, this time as a Ghost named Lotus and Lau Siu-Ming returns as the tree demon.

-MonsterZero NJ

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