Zui quan nu diao shou

AGAINST THE DRUNKEN CAT PAWS is a cheap Taiwanese martial arts story about a famed blind female fighter who goes around the countryside taking care of business by bringing those of ill repute to justice. It's an odd little film that seems to have stylistic aspirations to emulate the likes of the wandering swordsman films that Shaw Brothers et al were putting out in the late '60s, yet as a cheap chop socky film it's hampered by a low budget and a lack of finesse in terms of narrative drive and plot elements.

Chia Ling is certainly good value as the female protagonist and her fighting skills are superior to those of many rival performers, both male and female. However, it's the unfocused plotting that lets this film down. The villains are never truly villainous enough to hate and the film gets bogged down in all-too-broad comedy scenes like those involving the ridiculous cross-dressing character so that it becomes a chore to sit through. The good news is that the fight choreography is well achieved although hampered by the obviously low budget, so it's not all bad, but truth be told it could have been much, much better.

The fantastic Judy Lee Chai Ling plays Brother Blind (?) who lost her sight after a character known as 'The Poison Dwarf' fired darts right into her eyeballs! And even though you would imagine this would render her completely sightless (and of course, going by the name, Brother Blind), she makes her way through the film as if nothing had ever happened, watching people and dodging obstacles with little concern. There is of course, a cute little kid-sidekick who sometimes grabs her cane to guide her - but its only at random times!

Writer and director Ting, who also penned the classic Come Drink With Me and decent World Of Drunken Master, brings to the screen a mash-up of the awesome Jackie Chan's Drunken Master and Snake In The Eagles Shadow, with a bevy of wild characters you would only expect to see in an adaptation of a Louis Cha novel...

While often scattered and uneven in its story, you can't help but find a soft-spot for this 1979 kung fu classic. This is mostly due to the wickedly fun and well choreographed fight scenes. Created by one of its co-stars - the great Kam Kong (Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin), the action design is also supported by Man Lee Pang (The Fearless Hyena) and Tsai Chong Chiu (Lucky Seven) and highlights the beautiful Judy Lee in some of her finest physical moments. As one of her last roles, she certainly makes it worthwhile and confirms why she was a Queen of the Jade Screen!

It was also great to see Kam Kong in a good guy role for a change. He's often cast as the bad guy in many kung fu classics, so it's refreshing to see him switch it up. The most of the cast impress, both in acting and action, but its the gang of assassins who really steal the show. A mix of dwarves, giants, and pantomime kung fu characters, all led by a 3 foot hight, cross-eyed old granny... It's insane!!

The end fight is pretty cool with plenty of great moves and battles, lasting a good 15 minutes or more and highlighting some fantastic, long, one-shots that really show the physical skill of the cast involved.

Overall: Not the greatest kung fu movie ever, but a lot of fun with some great fights!

'Against The Drunken Cat Paws' (1979) - Ting Shan-hsi.

This winningly eccentric Kung Fu gem has the purrfectly exhilarating blend of panther-like speed, gravity-defying agility, and feral femme-fighting power! As always, supreme martial arts goddess Chia Ling is a delight to behold in this consistently thrilling rock 'em and sock 'em Taiwanese chop socky epic! If it hasn't already, this zesty, deservedly popular 70s Kung Fu classic is long overdue a quality HD restoration. With loopy, larger-than-life characters, killer drunken 'Fu, and wholly entertaining comedic interludes, this admirably acrobatic, revenge-tastic, non-stop old school fight-fest is a propah banger!

I at one time owned this movie(And would like to own it again someday) and I never grew tired of watching it. I t was a very funny, very entertaining movie. I've seen the original and the U.S. version. both are very similar until you get to the end of the movie. The U.S. version cuts down the climatic and best fight scene to the point where it isn't even a fight scene. So that disappointed me most. That and the fact that throughout the movie. People constantly refer to Chin Lin as "him or brother" I thought she was blind, not the rest of the cast. They couldn't tell that "she isn't a he?" But other than that it was a good movie. My favorite character was "the inspector" this guy is hilarious and in my opinion "carried the movie with his humor and personality" Be sure to check it out...

By the time she made this film, Chia Ling (aka Judy Lee) was already a star, and din't need to prove anything. But she apparently didn't sit on her laurels. She not only mastered the drunken boxing style (and her performance of it here is one of the best on film), but she portrays the blinded alcoholic fighter with a crush on a man she believes will never love her, is realistic and sympathetic.

The rest of the film has some nice touches as well as some really wildly off-beat characters. It is seriously weakened by unnecessary plot twists. The American release print also suffers from an all-important fight sequence getting cut short for no reason that I can tell.

But it is Chia Ling's performance that makes this film, and it will eventually be by this performance that she will be best remembered.