Ng See-yun | Through the Shattered Lens

Also known as Ninja War Lord, 1973’s Rage of Wind takes place during the Japanese occupation of China during the Second World War.

A Chinese fishing village is controlled by the ruthless Taka (Yasuaki Kurata), who terrorizes the town with his Hawaiian-shirt wearing henchmen and who deals with dissent by hanging people in the town square and then refusing to allow their loved ones to take down the bodies. When boxer Chan Kwong (Chan Sing) returns to the village after pursuing a successful fighting career in the United States, the village rejoices. Finally, there is someone who can stand up to Taka! And the villages needs help because Taka has just instituted a new fishing tax!

Oh, Taka, you fool! Don’t you realize that raising taxes never solves anything? I realize that this film is taking place at a time when Milton Friedman was still working for the government and also long before the Laffer Curve was drawn on that napkin but still, raising taxes is always the last refuge of the unimaginative. When the people in the village express their displeasure at having to pay more in taxes, Taka decides to seize their boats. Hey, Taka, you dumbass commie — how are they going to make the money to pay your taxes if they don’t have their boats!? Fortunately, Chan Kwong isn’t going to let the taxman get away with this.

(It’s interesting that this film features a Chinese hero fighting on the side of free enterprise.)

Here’s a few things that I liked about Rage of Wind.

First of all, it didn’t waste anytime getting to the good stuff. The film’s first fight broke out within the first five minutes of its running time and, from that moment on, people were either fighting or preparing to fight. This film didn’t feature any slow spots. The fights were exciting to watch and, even more importantly, they distracted the viewer from asking too many questions about the plot. At times, it felt like everyone in the film would have been well-served to just stop fighting and negotiate but that wouldn’t have been as much fun to watch.

Second, Taka wore a cape. His henchmen may have dressed like tourists in Hawaii but Take wore a red cape! And what’s even more impressive is that Taka totally pulled off the look. Seriously, if someone can wear a cape and not look like an idiot, that’s when you know that person is a total badass.

Third, both the bad guys and the good guys got their own annoying sidekick. The bad sidekick was constantly popping up and laughing. The good sidekick had no teeth. Both sidekicks died, which is an example of this film giving the viewers what they want.

Fourth, the musical score was made up of stolen riffs from Pink Floyd and the Theme From Shaft. (I didn’t recognize the Pink Floyd riffs but everyone that I was watching the film with was like, “How did they get Pink Floyd!?”) Apparently, the film “borrowed” the music without paying. I love the shamelessness of old school Hong Kong cinema.

Fifth, the final fight between Taka and Chan Kwong is absolutely brutal! Seriously, when you’re watching a film about people who are incapable of settling their conflicts through talking, this is exactly the type of fight you want to see.

Finally, once again, all of the conflict could have been avoided if they hadn’t tried to tax everyone to death! I love films that are anti-taxation. Watching a double feature of Rage of Wind and Harry’s War might become my new Tax Day tradition!

In 1958, a Hong Kong teenager named Bruce Lee (played by Ho Chung-tao, credited under the name Bruce Li) is upset that his mother is forcing him to go to college in America. His martial arts instructor assures Bruce that he is meant for great things and encourages him to bring his philosophy of life to all of the people of the world.

In America, Bruce finds fame as a martial arts instructor and he pursues a career as an actor. However, everywhere he goes, he’s told that no major American studio would ever be willing to invest money in an “unknown Chinese actor.” Bruce finds brief fame with a supporting role on The Green Hornet but his Hollywood prospects sputters when he announces that he refuses to play any demeaning stereotypes. Taking control of his own career, Bruce returns to Hong Kong and produces his own films. He becomes an international superstar before dying under mysterious circumstances at the age of 32.

Following the death of the real-life Bruce Lee, there were hundreds of martial arts films released that featured look-alike actors who were credited with names like Bruce Ly, Bruce Lei, Bruce Lai, and Bruce Le. These films often featured Lee either fighting the Tongs or some other sort of international conspiracy. Many of them also speculated about the cause of his death or flat out presented Lee as having faked his death in order to escape from his enemies. (Typically, these films would feature at least some footage of Lee’s funeral and the real Bruce Lee lying in his coffin.) So many of these films were released that they eventually were grouped under their own genre, Bruceploitation.

Of the faux Bruces who appeared in Bruceploitation films, Ho Chung-tao was the most successful. Credited as Bruce Li, he not only bore a strong physical resemblance to Bruce Lee but he was also one of the few Bruce imitators to have any on-screen charisma as well. Bruce Li may not have been Bruce Lee but, of the imitators, he was the best. (He was also one of the most frequently frustrated, retiring from acting at the age of 40 because he was sick of only being allowed to play Bruce Lee.)

Bruce Lee, The Man, The Myth is a generally straight-forward biopic. It covers all of the big events of Lee’s life and, unlike a lot of other Bruceploitation films, it mostly sticks to the facts. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t a lot of fights to be found in this film. Lee is constantly getting into fights but, for the most part, they’re just with people who want to challenge the great Bruce Lee and see if he’s really as impressive as everyone says that he is. Other than a strange but fun scene where Bruce is approached by the daughter of a mafia boss, this film does not portray Lee as being a crime fighter or a secret agent. Like many Bruceploitation film, this movie hints that Lee faked his own death but, in the version I saw, a narrator dismisses the reports of Lee’s survival as just being rumors. (The narrator also says that if Bruce is still alive, he’ll emerge from hiding in 1983. Draw your own conclusions.)

Bruce Lee, The Man, The Myth is an entertaining biopic. When it comes to a Bruceploitation flick, all that most people really ask for is that the Bruce imitator be convincing and that the fights be exciting. On both counts, Bruce Lee, The Man, The Myth delivers.