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Greased Lightning!
99 Cycling Swords is an almost average Taiwanese kung fu film from this era. I say almost average because the plot was particularly obscure even for a 1970's kung fu flick.What this film doesn't give us is 99 of anything. What it does give is a plot that might give you a headache as it goes round and round and round as the main characters try to discover the real identity of the traitorous Chu Er Ming who has been killing off the Four Dragons. There are plenty of mistaken identities, subterfuge, cross-dressing, and double crosses.
Polly Shang-Kuan Ling-Feng ( I know, it's a mouthful of a name) once again cross-dresses to appear as a man while investigating this killer always dressed in white. She runs afoul of Yueh Hua because she always dresses in white, too, and he suspects her/him of being Chu Er Ming. Yueh Hua actually gives a relaxed performance in this role. He can often appear overly uptight. In a small supporting role, Lo Lieh appears as a disciple of her uncle who is looking for her in her female form. Hu Chin plays the comely barmaid who may or may not be colluding with the Big Bad.
The fights seem never-ending from the first scene to the last. Lung Tien Hsiang as the Man in White did a fine job of kicking while fighting, a standout in a rather drab fight choreography overall. The director overused the backward filming and trick filming. I've never seen so much dinnerware kung fu! There were some creative uses of weapons, but much of the fighting came across as kung fu posing. Polly seemed quite slow.
The ending which involved magnets, compasses, green lights, and supposedly 10 of the same bad guy was rather confusing but that may have had to do with the poor dubbing. Then again, maybe not. There were few highlights in this film. I still haven't acquired an appreciation for Polly's acting yet, she tends to ham it up. I'll keep trying as I work through her catalog of films. Lo Lieh, as always, brings a solid presence, even in a small role.
If you enjoy old Taiwanese kung fu films or are a fan of Polly's, this is one to try. If not, you'd be best skipping over it.
12/7/22
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