The King Boxer, My Young Auntie, & Hana & Alice

The King Boxer had me convinced in about five minutes that I was being had. And I was. See, I thought this was King Boxer, aka Five Fingers of Death, the classic Hong Kong martials arts film. Instead, I got a crappy VCD version of The King Boxer, a mediocre at best martial arts film made a year earlier and about the only thing to recommend it is the music, which Sbug was enjoying even as I was saying that this was an elaborate joke on me. And that it's a weird metaphor for World War II, with the Japanese guy going around being evil and the Chinese and Thais needing to band together to kill the Japanese dude who has help from Chinese collaborators. I'd go into more detail, but I was pissed. Damnit.

My Young Auntie, on the other hand, made up for that entirely. Quite, totally, awesome in every sense of the word. There were six main fight scenes, and each were outstanding in their own way. The first, starting with Kara Hui (as the titular auntie) kicking ass beginning while sitting on a pedicab, while the second was funnier with the Auntie fighting her grand nephew. The third, however, was where the film kicked into overdrive. The auntie was from the boonies, and goes into the city to shop. And ends up in a gorgeous white cheongsam and high heels, neither of which she is used to. And proceeds to kick the ass of some mean men. While having problems with the heels, and the dress having problems staying down. It's just a funny and well-done fight. To get back at the auntie, the grand nephew gets her to dress up in a 18th century dress and a blond wig to go to a masquerade where they end up having to sword fight some ponces with everyone in ridiculous costumes, most of which isn't that much better than well-executed slapstick, but the Kara Hui bits with her fighting with a Chinese sword against a guy in a mask with an épée were excellent. The next fight is the last one that Kara Hui participates in, which pissed me off, since she is gorgeous and graceful (with her studies as a dancer), but she and her grand nephew try to break into a house, and end up having to fight a guy who is basically impervious to weapons. Very, very well done. The last one is a little disappointing, but that's mainly because the previous one was so great. Sure, there was a lot of slapstick, most of it wasn't very funny, but the fight scenes... wow.

Hana & Alice is a film directed by Shunji Iwai, who also did All about Lily Chou-Chou, another film that is a little long and episodic. This one, however stars Japanese actress Anne Suzuki, who first came to prominence in the US in Snow Falling on Cedars, and then in Initial D, but the only Japanese film I've actually seen with her in it (before this one), is Steamboy, a good looking but hollow anime, but I think I saw that in the dubbed version, so not even her voice. This one is about two Japanese schoolgirls (and isn't pornographic) who fall for the hot guy who bumps his head and loses his memory, thereby allowing one of the girls to convince him they are dating. But of course this just causes a lot of strain between the two girls.