Women of KF cinema tributes

[mickey]

Greetings,

I completely fault the director for that trash. I could only watch 1:47 of that. The choreography appeared rushed, not giving the actress enough time to really get the moves down. Did I say actress? She may not be one at all.

mickey

[Jimbo]

mickey:

I would agree that the little girl in black in Karate Girl does not appear to be an actress, but Rina Takeda (the girl in the school uniform) is definitely an actress. She starred in the quiet, non-MA-related drama The Tale of Iya (2013) in a 100% dramatic role.

It's clear to me that the little girl in black has trained MA stunt work, and probably acrobatics/gymnastics. But not acting.

[wolfen]

I read some of what the husband had to say, and it's obvious that, contrary to what he claims, he is definitely not over Moon Lee. If he were, he would have moved on. He's clearly still spiteful, even referring to the boy she had an affair with as 'not good-looking'. Seriously, how is that a factor? Would it have made him happier if she'd cheated on him with Magic Mike? And if the photos say anything, in the looks department, he isn't one to talk about others' appearance. Of course she did something very wrong. But he says he's moved on but obviously has not.

Of course, I wasn't there and it's really none of my business. I don't take anyone's side in this matter. But to me, her ex-husband seems to be the stereotyped 'rich Chinese man' who married a HK actress. Probably more for his money than anything else. And he probably married her for her looks and maybe because she was an actress. From the outside looking in, sounds pretty superficial to me.

Persecution! OMG In husband's latest posts he wants Moon Lee to stop maintaining her travel Blog on Sina.com, stop 'pretending' she is happy and stop having many fans that follow her. He threatened to persecute her endlessly with the "sins of her past" until she stops writing on her Blog.
Now that is persecution.

Of course she did something very wrong.

That's taking sides and a subjective value judgment. My judgment is no. She was just expressing her inner self in an opportunistic environment. . I'll bet the husband failed to negotiate this type of behaviour beforehand.
As Woody Allen said.. ' Sex without love is a meaningless experience, but as far as meaningless experiences go its pretty **** good' and actually their relationship was not without love. Rich men with beautiful young women far from being superficial is how the world works outside the domain of SJW activists.. You could probably say it's a cornerstone in the history of China. No SJW's back in the Ming Dynasty.
...
The husband is a cuck not because she banged the young guy or others but because he didn't understand his wife's nature was and why she was with him. He should have known what she was going to do even before she did. He could have either negotiated with her beforehand or had her watched by a bodyguard (preferably a gay guy or eunuch ) or PI's and nipped any affairs which he should have expected in the bud. He could have easily threatened or paid off the young guy and gotten rid of him without even Moon knowing.
He enjoyed her sex, her company, affection and shared in the limelight of her fame and glamour. You've got to pay your bills for the worth given you, and not complain about the price. When you've got a nympho younger beautiful wife, you got to keep an eye on her and keep her away from opportunity and temptation. He doesn't look like Brad Pitt so he must have been kidding himself as to why she married him.
..
I'm on her side, In the kungfu entertainment industry, you are only as good as your last kick and one bad move can cripple you leaving you in the poorhouse.. marrying a rich guy trading in on your beauty and fame is a good and traditional retirement package.
Moon offered him that she would not make any claims on his estate if only he would make some statements to keep the scandal quiet. He refused! He didn't even negotiate it. Instead he smeared both her and himself in public. He's American-Chinese so maybe that accounts for his un-Asian like attitude of not keeping things quiet and not saving face.

China's mistress culture

In China, sex and power are a pair. State-run Xinhua News recently found that 95% of all corrupt officials in China also kept mistresses. And Tom Doctoroff, an economist, estimates that second wives probably account for one-third of China's entire consumption of luxury goods.

[Jimbo]

Hsia Kuang-Li was probably the most underrated of the female KF/action stars. There are probably several reasons for this. For one, she was in fewer films than many of her contemporaries as well as later female action stars. Secondly, most of the films she was in were Taiwan independents (one notable exception being 1983's Zu: Warriors of the Magic Mountain). Thirdly, and probably most importantly, she was mostly cast as supporting characters. Fourth, she was better in period KF films than in modern-day action films. She started out in films in the late '70s, as the golden era of KF films was beginning to wind down and the modern action film was about to take off big-time. Her modern action roles were even smaller. She did continue acting in Taiwan TV series, and also appeared in variety shows and commercials throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s.

Probably best known in the West for co-starring in The Invincible Kung Fu Legs (a.k.a., The Leg Fighters), her best role was arguably in The Woman Avenger (a.k.a., Fatal Claws, Deadly Kicks), which appeared to be inspired by the 1971 Euro-Western Hannie Caulder. She never before or after played such a strong leading role in a movie. It would have been interesting to see what she could have done in the period Shaw Brothers films.

Hsia Kuang-Li was a graduate of Taiwan's Lu Kuang (Peking/Beijing Opera) Academy, and also had a background in dance.

[Jimbo]

[Jimbo]

Joyce Godenzi (Gao Lihong) was a former beauty queen who very successfully transitioned into action films. Any MA background she had was limited to being trained for films, but she was very convincing as a screen fighter. In fact, along with the right choreography, her fighting looked better onscreen than many real-life fighters and MAists who have appeared or starred in films. This is not an uncommon occurrence, as choreography, cinematography...not to mention the ability of the individual to pick things up, follow directions, and project a degree of charisma...are far more important onscreen than actual fighting ability. Quite often, real-life fighters can lack these qualities, or they just do not translate well into movies.

Joyce Godenzi is the wife of Sammo Hung.

[Jimbo]

Liu Hao-Yi (a.k.a., Hilda Liu) was actually my shi-jie ("elder teacher-sister"/senior classmate) at the first northern style school (Long Fist and Mantis) I trained at during my first few years in Taiwan.

A large painted image of Liu Hao-Yi and her co-star Alexander Lo Rei advertising the movie Shaolin Chastity Kung Fu can be seen briefly in the Madonna movie Desperately Seeking Susan.

This clip is taken from the movie Cute Foster Sister (a.k.a., Horse Boxing Killer).

[Jimbo]

Yeung Jing-Jing (alternate spelling: Yang Ching-Ching) was generally cast in supporting roles or bit parts, and AFAIK never actually 'starred' as the leading (or co-leading) character in a movie.

She was much better in period KF and wuxia films than in her later 'modern-day' action films. She specialized in sword (jian) and saber (dao) play. In this clip from The Treasure Hunters, she plays the mute sister of the lead villain, played by Wang Lung-Wei.

[Jimbo]

No doubt that Cynthia Rothrock was the most successful female westerner (or westerner, period) ever in HK action films. She was certainly the most prolific, as far as starring roles there, of which there were several. This was pretty much unheard of until she entered the scene. She showed that she could hang with the 'big boys' in the bruising, hard-core world of HK action filmmaking of the mid-'80s to early '90s, which says a lot. Unfortunately, her later American and Canadian movies (the movies themselves) were generally pretty abysmal. Which shows that the director, choreographer, cinematographer and fellow performers have a LOT to do with how well a MA performer comes across onscreen, regardless of how talented he/she may be.

[Jimbo]

Etsuko Shihomi was a member of Sonny Chiba's Japan Action Club, and during her heyday, was often considered Japan's answer to Angela Mao Ying. Her acting career began in the early to mid-'70s, until she retired from films in the mid-'80s.

[Jimbo]

Shang-Kuan Ling Feng (a.k.a., Polly Shang-Kuan)

Her film career began with the classic Dragon Inn (a.k.a., Dragon Gate Inn, 1967). She eventually earned black belts in three arts: Tae Kwon Do, karate and judo. Unlike some of the other early female stars, she did not have a Peking (Beijing) Opera background, yet she became an excellent performer in fight sequences when she was allowed to let loose and display her empty-handed MA talents. She often played mischievous tomboy characters.

[Jimbo]

Cheng Pei-Pei began her career at Shaw Brothers Studios in the early 1960s. She had a considerable background in dance. Although she isn't the first female to play fighting roles in Chinese and Asian cinema, she was the first to become a superstar. She definitely paved the way for those who followed in her footsteps.

Cheng Pei-Pei initially retired from films in the early 1970s and moved to Los Angeles to teach dance. During this time, Bruce Lee became the big thing in HK, along with KF fighting films (as opposed to the wuxia films she had starred in). After Chuck Norris's screen fight with BL, Cheng Pei-Pei sought him out and studied some Tang Soo Do under him at the school he ran in L.A. at the time. In 1974, Cheng Pei-Pei returned to HK to join the trend of films emphasizing empty-hand fighting. This time around, however, her return films were not as well-received.

She returned to film work yet again in the early 1980s, starting with the low-budget Taiwanese actioner Lady Piranha (a.k.a., Lunatic Frog Women; a.k.a., Virgin Commandos).

Her most famous work in the West is of course Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, but prior to that she had many classic hits, such as Come Drink With Me, The Lady Hermit, Brothers Five, The Shadow Whip, to name but a few.

[GeneChing]

But I got this...

No doubt that Cynthia Rothrock was the most successful female westerner (or westerner, period) ever in HK action films.

Cover Master for the FEB+MAR 1996 issue.

Cheng Pei-Pei began her career at Shaw Brothers Studios in the early 1960s. She had a considerable background in dance. Although she isn't the first female to play fighting roles in Chinese and Asian cinema, she was the first to become a superstar.

Cheng Pei Pei: Hong Kong's First Queen of Kung Fu Film by Craig Reid

[Jimbo]

Thanks, Gene.

This clip is from My Lucky Stars:

[Jimbo]

Wong Mei-Mei (Mandarin: Huang Mei-Mei), appeared in many Shaw Brothers films, and some independents. Generally known for her swordplay and kicking skills, she clearly had a dance background. She was usually cast in good to decent movies.

She appeared in:
Monkey Kung Fu (a.k.a., Stroke of Death)
Five Superfighters
The Master Strikes
Lovers' Blades
Rendezvous with Death
Ambitious Kung Fu Girl
The Kid from Kwangtung
The Boxer from the Temple
And others...

However, her career started late in the 'golden era' of KF cinema, and she wasn't always given the opportunity to play characters as strong as some of the other women of KF cinema. She always played supporting characters.

Here in a small role, she teams up with Cynthia Rothrock against Richard Norton: