Director: Yuen
Biao
Year: 1992
Rating: 8.0
This Yuen Biao production is the perfect companion piece to The Iceman Cometh. They are similar both in themes and style. Yuen Biao again plays the innocent abroad in modern HK. This time though rather than coming from the Ming Dynasty, he is an unworldly Buddhist monk from Tibet. The film is a charming and fun mix of action, comedy and the supernatural. It is definitely one of Yuen’s finest solo efforts. The Babu Gold Bottle has come to light after having disappeared for many years. It is a sacred relic with great powers to the Buddhists and Yuen Biao is sent to HK to pick it up. As his guide, he gets the assistance of the very comely Michelle Reis.
Unfortunately, Yuen Wah (who wants to become the “leader of the world of Esoteric Buddhism”!) beats Yuen Biao to the sacred relic, but it is worthless to him unless he also has the bottle top that Yuen has in his possession. This leads to one of my all-time favorite scenes when Yuen Wah’s evil, but oh so sexy sister Nina Li attempts to retrieve it from Yuen. First she uses those seductive wiles that women know so well and when that doesn’t work she turns to the crack of the whip. Finally, of course the inevitable showdown between the two Yuens comes to be. It is a terrific mix of kung fu, magic and swordmanship. The film is in some ways more a comedy than an action film. It is full of amusing moments, but the three main action pieces – in the streets of Lhasa, with Nina Li and then with Yuen Wah are all well done with Yuen Biao showing his amazing athletic abilities.
As a plus, much of this film was shot in Tibet and the pictures are astonishing. Bey Logan mentions in his book HK Action Cinema that Yuen was given permission to film only if there was no reference to the political problems there. What a breathtaking place.
