Angel of Fury

This is an early Rothrock feature that got chopped down and bit and released by Imperial to capitalize on her rising popularity in the US in the early 90s. One thing you can't complain about is the film being slowly paced. It is literally action scene after action scene with a few quick dialogue scenes thrown in for good measure. Rothrock, looking mighty fine, gets into tons of scuffles with the locals while trying to protect three cases carrying computers. While this isn't at the level of her Hong Kong work, the fights are fun and people do take some bumps. Fans of the cult films THE STABILIZER and THE INTRUDER (aka RAMBU) will notice star Peter O'Brian as the lead villain here.

Yes this movie had a lot of action, it is almost non-stop. But there are problems with the movie itself, too many plot twists being one of them. It is also poorly lit especially at the beginning, and it is so grainy sometimes it's hard to tell what is going on, it is a poor video tape transfer, you are probably better off watching it on VHS if you still have those. As I said ti does have a lot of action, plenty of martial arts fights and even guns, but no gun fu. I think this is one of Cynthia Rothrocks earlier efforts. It certainly provides entertainment, and is not intellectually challenging, just confusing.

Cynthia plays Nancy Bolan, the head of security for a tech company, who is charged with delivering a special computer to the company's Indonesian offices. No soon has she arrived than she is attacked, and the computer stolen. But that's okay, because it turns out there are actually three computers, two of them decoys, and they have a large explosive payload which goes off if someone tries to access them without the deactivation code. They are being sought by 'Bolt' (O'Brian), a terrorist ...

The low budget is quite visible, there's plenty of characters with moustaches that it can be confusing and the script looks like it was written in a hour, however it's fast-paced with a fair share of action - namely Cynthia Rothrock doing what she does best. She shows some charm, too. You got a nasty villain in tow. It can be a bit violent. But it's passable entertainment, especially when seeing Cynthia dispatching the thugs with ease.

ANGEL OF FURY is a typically hilarious Indonesian action gem which really does have to be seen to be believed - and which is another example of so-bad-it's-good entertainment. It's not quite up there on the level of THE INTRUDER but it does have that film's Peter O'Brian, this time as the musclebound bad guy and torturer. Shoehorned into the mayhem is a short-haired Cynthia Rothrock, who shows up to kick backside in the film's numerous, entirely OTT action set-pieces. Oh, and the most bizarre thing in a film filled with weirdness is that Christopher Mitchum wrote the screenplay. Does it make sense? Not a bit of it!

The nature of the imagery in the opening credits kind of makes me think the producers wanted stock footage of a computer being manufactured, but couldn't afford the asking price, so they manipulated a bootlegged copy to disguise their trick. Larry Wolff's emphatically dramatic score, accompanying those credits and present throughout the feature, is certainly enjoyable, but feels a bit pointedly overcooked along the way. After an opening scene of grotesque violence, the action then kicks up with stunning bombast and immediacy. The action scenes, fight choreography, and stunts genuinely look fantastic, but they undeniably contain flourishes and highfalutin bluster to render them as grandiose and jazzed up as possible. For better or for worse - and I insist it's the former - 'Angel of fury,' also known as 'Triple cross,' is classic Cynthia Rothrock.

With a runtime of only about 75 minutes the movie maintains a brisk pace, though it's a somewhat bumpy ride. Nearly from the very start we get plot development, already sketchy, that is made more so by glaring, tired sexism and the addition of a thin, questionable romantic element. The narrative mostly seems intent on making any excuse to whip up a scene of action, and in the process merely shoehorns real story beats where they fit to one degree of success or another. Scene writing, in the most broad of strokes, is sufficient, though always a little brusque in the very least. Authenticity in the story and in the scene writing is sometimes sacrificed in the name of allowing the protagonist to persevere, and the feature to reach its conclusion. It also seems like the narrative deviates from its core at some points, for no particular reason except perhaps to pad out the length. Characters and dialogue mostly just serve their purposes, with a measure of wit or personality occasionally sprinkled in. Along with that authenticity, though, it's unclear every now and again just how much intelligence the characters possess, or therefore the narrative at large. There's a lot going on in Christopher Mitchum's screenplay - apparently his only credit as a writer - and it's kind of a mixed bag.

In fairness, one can trace a thick, solid line from 'Angel of fury' to more recent pictures of a similar slant. The only intent is a hot-headed, fast-paced action-thriller that sustains a spirit of "Go! Go! Go!" from start to finish, and while this rendition may lack the same production values and utmost care in its craft, the parallels are noteworthy. Yes, some finer points in the plot are left untouched - What is "the company?" What does the MacGuffin do? What is "Bolt, the terrorist who strikes like lightning" working towards? - but even that active disregard feels recognizable, and such matters are unimportant for what this wants to be. Even being so constrained by the approach the movie takes, I think the cast are all actually quite fine, turning in hard-boiled performances with scattered range and nuance as the story demands. More important than the acting is the suitability of the actors in the action sequences, and once again, this absolutely fits the bill. If anything 'Angel of fury' trades in a modicum of the expected martial arts flurry in exchange for tad more gunfights and explosions, marking it as slightly different from many of Rothrock's other starring vehicles in the 80s and 90s. For any levity that presents, it's also not nearly as ham-handed or tongue-in-cheek; this is still decidedly over the top, but with darker and more violent undertones that paint it as a more visceral type of entertainment.

I like the contributions of crew behind the scenes; costume design, hair and makeup, set design and decoration, and all other such rounding details look swell. Ackyl Anwari's direction is suitably capable, as is Amin Kertaraharja's editing. At length, I think the only aspects that truly need to be assessed here are the action and the plot. It is to my true delight that I say 'Angel of fury' is strikingly, uncompromisingly direct, frank, and snappy to the point that the threadbare narrative actually seems to be Just Right, and its impassioned drive for action, action, action is exactly what is called for.

Is this movie well-rounded? No, it absolutely is not. It doesn't want to be, and it doesn't need to be. Arguably more so than any of her other titles, this is "Cynthia Rothrock: Action Hero," and any viewer who isn't on board for that forthright, unsubtle, unapologetic tenor will be rather put out. It's a picture with only one purpose - but, though imperfect, it meets that purpose very well, as far as I'm concerned. Warts and all, personally I think 'Angel of fury' is a wonderfully enjoyable piece of consciously overblown cinematic fare. I had a lot of fun watching, and I can only offer my enthusiastic recommendation!