Ba hai hong ying

A Hong Kong action movie being renamed? This must be a first! If you're interested in getting a copy, I found it as a Black Belt Theatre release on DVD. It's now entitled, "Tomb Raiders." However, there is no tomb and there are no raiders. Who cares! Anytime you put Michiko Nishiwaki, Yukari Oshima, Moon Lee and Cynthia Khan together in the same movie, it's worth seeing. There is a second title on this DVD, "Godfather's Daughter" starring Yukari. The title changed only slightly from the original "Godfather's Daughter, Mafia Blues."

Police Officer, Chin, arrives in Hong Kong from the mainland in search of Hsiong, an old flame who had left China several years before and is now attempting to pass off a forgery of an old Chinese painting which is much coveted by some Japanese collectors.

With a dream ensemble here with Moon Lee, Cynthia Khan, Yukari Oshima, Michiko Nishiwaki, you would have expected a fast-paced concoction of badass action with the babes laying down the law with their brutal skills, however you don't quite get this. What you get is a bit of drama, comedic moments and some more drama. It's slow in places, and a tad confusing but it's not too bad. It's mildly entertaining especially when Moon Lee and Cynthia Khan is in shot. There's some good fights, though, and it ends with a brutal showdown.

This movie essentially begins with an ancient painting from the Sung Dynasty which was taken during World War 2 by the occupying Japanese forces. As the war progressed the Japanese army began experimenting with biological weapons and used Chinese citizens to test them on. However, with the war now turning against them--and the possibility of being executed for war crimes--the Japanese military decided to hide certain top secret files inside of this valuable Sung painting with the idea of eventually bringing it back to Japan. Unfortunately for them, the painting was stolen not long afterward--along with the horrific information contained inside. Needless to say, the Chinese government, unaware of the secret files inside, wants the painting because of its historic value. The Japanese government, on the other hand, wants the painting in order to avoid embarrassment concerning their atrocities. As a result, when the painting turns up on the black market, a number of people want this painting at all cost. This brings us to the present with a Chinese policewoman named "Chin" (Cynthia Khan) in the process of busting a secret transaction involving a Chinese Triad from Hong Kong. When a gun fight breaks out between the police and the Triad, Chin is saved at the last minute by one of the criminals--who just happens to be her former boyfriend, "Hsiong" (Waise Lee). Figuring that he might be implicated in the murder of several policemen, Hsiong flees the mainland and makes his way back to Hong Kong. That said, even though it has been seven years since she had last seen him, Chin decides to travel to Hong Kong to find him. What Chin doesn't realize is that Hsiong has changed quite a bit and since he has possession of the painting a lot of other people are also looking for him as well. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that I found this movie to be somewhat unusual in that it incorporates both action and comedy but then changes rather dramatically toward the end. Yet, even though I didn't particularly care for this sudden change, I must admit that the film itself was fairly entertaining all the same. Additionally, having four lovely actresses like Moon Lee (as "Feng"), Michiko Nishiwaki ("Sen"), Yukari Oshima ("Oshima") and the aforementioned Cynthia Khan certainly didn't hurt either. All things considered then, I rate this movie as slightly above average.

But if your idea of entertainment is watching Cynthia Khan kick the stuffing out of people, this will be 90 minutes well spent.

My rating reflects the good and bad here, in that as fighting/action movie goes, this one is pretty decent. The fight choreography is well and brutally executed by the titular quartet of acrobatic fighting divas. There is the usual mix of car chases (and wrecks), explosions, gunfire, actual fire and property destruction, all appropriately calculated to excite and terrify. And the story pulls multiple and diverse antagonists into an intrigue plot built around a search for a McGuffin painting. 6/10 so far.

The four principals acquit themselves adequately as well. Cynthia Khan was never much of an actress, nor was Yukari Oshima. But who cares? Both were great athletes and look great in their fight and stunt scenes here. Moon Lee played her usual pixie/brat role (one she eventually got so tired of that she left the business) with her usual squirrelish energy. Michiko Nishiwaki, was, as always a strong screen presence in limited screen time. Being underused seemed to define her career, which was a shame. Waise Lee is the glue that holds it all together in a complex and ambivalent role as an artist with conflicting loyalties. Overall, good work by a cast very familiar with this sort of exercise.

The English dub drags the rating down significantly, however. The Cantonese dialogue could not possibly be as bad as is represented here, nor could the original vocal performances have been as cringe inducing. I had to shut the dvd off a few times, as the dialogue was that distracting. And the plot seemed a bit overstuffed, with unnecessary and gratuitous punch-ups thrown in to pad the action in a way that caused the movie to meander. The commonest rating by viewers above is a 5/10, and that is around where my sentiments fall. A good showcase for fans of the girls-with-guns genre but a bit sloppy in execution and badly dubbed.

The title "Avenging Quartet" is a case of false advertising: in truth, Cynthia Khan and Moon Lee dominate about 90% of the running time, Michiko Nishiwaki pops up only periodically, and Yukari Oshima's part is basically an extended cameo. All the women look stunning (IMO the show is stolen by the adorable Moon and the sexy Michiko - there is a sharp contrast between these two types of women), but the story is slow, confusing and uninteresting, and the action is sparse until the explosive climactic "battle royale" inside a burning building. The movie has its moments (including a brief confrontation between Yukari and Michiko before they team up), but in between those moments it can be hard to sit through. And as the previous reviewer noted, the Ground Zero version of this movie, retitled "Tomb Raiders", is of very poor visual quality and should be avoided. (**)