Clan of Amazons
(Xiu hua da dao, 1978)

Chu Yuan

Hong Kong

88 min, color, Mandarin (English subtitles)

Review © 2005 Branislav L. Slantchev

One of Chu Yuan's best adaptations of a Ku Lung book, Clan of Amazons is outstanding in several respects. First, unlike the usual vapid "rule the martial arts world" motivation to do evil, this one has the much more prosaic, and so much more believable, resentment coming out of that most human emotion, envy. Second, the complicated plot actually makes sense, at least most of the time, and is not nearly as confusing despite the occasional long rant that moves it along. Third, Ching Li has some fighting scenes! Yes, I know that she "fights" in other films as well, but the scenes are usually shot from a distance so that it's not painfully obvious that it is a stunt double doing all the work. Although there's plenty of that here as well, we do get several close-ups and the intensity of her good looks is quite stunning.

Impromptu embroidery lesson	When you see me, you forget about others; when you see them, you forget about me

I would be remiss if I did not also add the so-called "amazons," in reality seven pretty ladies (yep, that's in addition to Ching Li, bringing up the beauty count to a respectable eight) who make up the ridiculously named "Red Shoes Society." Although my favorite Liu Hui-Ling only has a bit role, the gorgeous Shih Szu thankfully graces the proceedings with plenty of screen time. Chu Yuan has always relied on good looks (and that includes his male leads, obviously), and he manages to put that to great effect in this film. From Lau Wing's boyish charm with a hint of arrogance and artlessness to Ling Yun's dark and brooding handsomeness with a hint of menace, the guys acquit themselves admirably, a no mean task in the bevy of distracting ladies.

Gratuitous shot of Li Ching	Fight like an Egyptian

The story has to do with a masked highwayman who "embroiders the blind," that is, who blinds the rich and famous while robbing them of treasures and retainers. The signature of this unknown bandit is a fine piece of embroidery that he contrives to leave behind during one of his assaults that results in the blinding of one Jiang Chongwei (Norman Chu). The local law enforcement is helpless, and so the captain Jin Juiling (Ling Yun) asks the renowned swordsman Lu Xiaofeng (Lau Wing) to help with the investigation. Lu recruits his lover Xuebing (Ching Li) and attempts to track down the killer using the one clue they have, the red silk with the embroidered flower.

Manly gazing at a jewel-box	Indecent proposal

They soon find out that the embroidery was made by a woman (apparently it's the quality of stitching that cannot be imitated by any male representative of the species), and then, somewhat confusingly, that the material was used for making shoes. So off they go in search of red shoes, not the most fun thing to do unless one happens to have a fetish for that sort of thing. But something is remiss because very soon Lu and Xuebing run into efforts to thwart their investigation. So they turn to the boss of a local crime syndicate who is, inexplicably, Lu's friend too.

Lau Wing, ornithologist	Gratuitous shot of Liu Hui-Ling

Since they have determined that the red shoes lead to the appropriately titled society (conveniently, it's also a sorority), the two want to gain access to that secretive organization. Why a secretive organization would sport shoes that make its members easy to identify remains a mystery. At any rate, after some dodgy investigative footwork and fancy fighting, Lu loses track of Xuebing but at least finds himself at an expensive brothel. The courtesan Ouyang (Dik Boh Laai) is so skilled that visitors pay thousands of dollars just to catch a glimpse of her. Lu, of course, is going to do much more than that because he has information that she wears red shoes.

A bunch of over-dressed amazons	Gratuitous shot of Dik Boh Laai

She does, although it takes some doing to uncover that fact, and when she ostensibly drugs Lu and leaves for her society's headquarters, Lu follows her. Of course, our intrepid swordsman is easily distracted so he manages to lose her palanquin in a deserted street (not his fault, really, the entire group, palanquin and all, turns out to have dived in a pond!) but at least has the wits to recall that girl who had just bumped into him from before. So he follows her instead and, lo and behold, she's another one from that society. When all is said and done, Lu finally meets the seven fabled beauties and their leader Gongsun (Chan Maan Loh).

Obligatory shot of Liu Hui-Ling and Shih Szu	Active poetry contest

I absolutely love the feats of wits and strength sequence that ensues. Gongsun makes a deal with Lu that if he prevails in two of the three tests they devise for him, they will surrender and go with him in peace. The first test can be called "active poetry," and it involves composing a poem and then enacting its content on the spot. After Ouyang does some elaborate composition and walking on grass, all our hero can come up with is some doggerel about doing it with all seven of them (but when challenged to own up to his words, he deflects their meaning by claiming impotence).

Distressed at find out Lu's impotent	Famous goofy chair-balancing stance

The second feat involves breaking the women's special stance in no more than a hundred moves. After using up 98 of the allowed moves without success, Lu does what any man would do in a society where modesty is enforced strictly by tradition: he rips off the women's robes causing them to drop everything in an attempt to cover themselves. It's hilarious, of course, because they are not exactly naked. However, by convention in these films, losing the robe and remaining in one's under-dress is equivalent to finding oneself naked in a middle of a mall. (In a previous sequence Xuebing and Lu undress a bunch of assailants to determine if they are men. They are, but when Xuebing accidentally rips the pants off one of them instead of his shirt, she is compelled to modestly cover her eyes... in the middle of a fight to the death!) Man, the guys writing this stuff must really know a thing or two about women.

Ladies, your laundry is minty-fresh	Spot the shy naked women in the back!

At any rate, after much boasting about his Achilles-like swift-footedness, Lu wins the third round but when he's about to arrest the ladies, Gongsun leads him to a nice moonlit knoll in the forest where she confides that she suspects one of her girls is an agent provocateur. Lu agrees, so they decide to set an elaborate trap to catch both the real perpetrator and the wayward sorority girl. When the dust settles, it turns out that the villain is one of Lu's friends who has long resented the fame and fortune of the illustrious (and prone to boasting) swordsman. That guy is not exactly evil, and during a heart-felt moment he actually asks the question that has bothered many philosophers, why didn't god make me good? When during the fight with Lu he tragically kills his own lover by accident, he goes berserk and it takes four master swordsmen to defeat him in the end.

Elaborate trap involves peeing oneself	Darkly intense Ling Yun

With an engrossing mix of a crime thriller, very competent martial arts sequences, and the human touch lacking in most other wuxia that rely on evildoers driven by their lust for power, Clan of Amazons must be rated highly even within the perennially entertaining oeuvre of the prolific Chu Yuan. With its attractive leads, strong female role-models, and a relatively straightforward plot, it may even be safe to exhibit it to wives or girlfriends. Not that they will become insta-converts to the genre, but at least they will understand a bit better why you are spending all this money and time watching incomprehensible flicks with interchangeable characters when you could be pondering the latest artfully incomprehensible mess from Europe.

Lu never ceases his (non-idle) boasts	Lu at the edge of a berserk sword

The Celestial DVD is very nice (again, no digital manipulation of screen caps except for cropping, resizing, and sharpening). The 2.35:1 anamorphic picture has fairly good blacks and vivid colors all around. I did not spot any scratches or compression artifacts either. The Mandarin soundtrack is also quite dynamic as long as one keeps in mind when the film was made. Most of the action is filmed on the Shaw Brothers' sumptuous sets, and so the lighting is as moody as needs be. The English subtitles are serviceable, although they sport strange turns of phrase a bit too often not to be noticed. Not much in the way of extras: trailers, talent files, and a photo gallery is all you get. A recommended film in an excellent DVD presentation, this one is a must-have.

December 4, 2005