The Lady is Boss by Lau Kar Leung (1983)
18 July 2008An absolute classic, the form that Jackie Chan would soon take in his modernizing Kung Fu into current times, done just 2 years before Police Story, Lau Kar Leung shows what a master he is. It is a role i would love to see Jackie take, to be a character in his films, as well as fight choreographer, and maybe save the big fight for himself, but to have other people as the focus of the film throughout, and him as the old master. Lau does it so well. I first saw the final fight of this film thanks to my friend Jeff Briggs on Laserdisc, and was just blown away. Sure the film is silly at times, and the 1980’s disco clothing could not be more dated (but then every gang in a Jackie Chan film still looks like this today), but it is silly fun, and a great tale of cultural classes, not just the traditional vs. the new, but China Vs. it’s emigrants who think they know but don’t, and of course the tradition has to save the day in the end. And the re-teaming of Lau Kar Leung with Kara Hui after the amazing My Young Auntie works perfectly here. A must see, and the region 3 Celestial Disc looks amazing.
Wong Hsia Yuan (Lau Kar Leung) is the teacher at the Wah Chiang Association in Hong Kong with 5 students, including Lee Hon Mak (Gordon Liu Chia Hui), who is ready to fight the police, when they decide to wreck the school to create a freeway, but they get word from their master oversees Chan Chen that it is OK, to start a new school, and we will come to oversee the opening ceremony. They get a new school, and are waiting for their master to arrive at the airport, but instead his daughter Chan Mei Ling (Kara Hui Ying Hung) shows up and throws everything upside down!
REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS…
Mei Ling doesn’t like the school has only 5 students, and wants more, and doesn’t like the old ways, wanting to update for modern times, and she gets the students to go with her on various schemes to promote the school, which land them in jail.
Then she gets them all dressed up and they go to a disco, and they end up fight/dancing, and making recruits of all the party members. When Hsia Yuan returns to the school he is outraged, and leaves, and one of the students follow, but the others with Mei Ling start teaching the students in new fun ways, listening to music, and making it easy, but then some of the girls don’t show up for practice.
They were at work for triad member Tang Shiang, and showed up late, and fought with clients groping them, so Tang Shiang had them beat up. Mei Ling goes to see what happened, and she gets beaten and taken.
Hsia Yuan returns and learns what happened, and goes to deal with it, and realizing they are Triads, he makes a deal and gets Mei Ling set free, and he will pay reparations.
Mei Ling isn’t going for it though, and gets some BMX bikers and they make trouble for Tang Shiang. And they keep making trouble, and call for his boss to come. Hsia Yuan brings his students, and they attack, and find it is Mei Ling, but when Tang Shiang shows up, Mei Ling goes out the back and is kidnapped.
Hsia Yuan takes his students and makes trouble until he finds out where the boss is and Mei Ling, at a sports center. So they go to the gym, and have a huge brawl, including a trampoline, where they prove they are the best, and let the gang limp away.
It is then time for Mei Ling to leave, and she all the students are now dressed in traditional Chinese garb, but Hsia Yuan shows up in a tuxedo, blowing everyone’s minds.
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An instant classic!
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