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View Full Version : 14 Amazons - praises/comments/and a gripe


teako170
01-28-2007, 09:24 PM
Finally got around to watching this stellar cast of Shaw ladies doing what they do best - kick butt :)

Ivy Ling Po was great as the leader of the pack and she pulled it off so well, I didn't even care that this was normally the role a male actor would play. She handled the character as good as any male would have.

Lily Ho's character could have been a nuisance but again, she handled it very well. My only problem is why did the subs keep referring her as a "he?" I can understand a typo but they emphasized that she was a boy/son several times and I don't get it. Its not like she was masquerading as a boy and others were confused about her sexuality (i.e.: Fu Sheng/ Tien Niu in Brave Archer).

Li Ching... what can I say? I looked for her in every scene. What a sumptuous set of lips and one of my favorite Shaw ladies. And she was kicking some major bootie in this film. My kind of woman!

Bolo, oh poor Bolo. I've said it before and I'll say it again but can Bolo get some respect? Let him win a fight already. Every time I see this poor guy, he might get the upper hand early but then ends up getting pummeled by the end of the film.

I do have to give this movie respect for one of the craziest stunts I've seen - in any film. That human bridge thing was quite surreal. Me? I would've just walked around that gorge until I found a new bridge (the wooden kind).

My only (major) gripe is the awkward editing of this film. The other week I watched the French film "Breathless." That film used jarring edits throughout the film but that's what the director had intended as it was part of this avant-garde, new-wave cinema that popped up in the late 50s/early 60s. In 14 Amazons, it just looked sloppy.

Overall, I highly enjoyed this film and it'll definitely get put on the list of films to rewatch.

Markgway
01-28-2007, 11:18 PM
My only problem is why did the subs keep referring her as a "he?" I can understand a typo but they emphasized that she was a boy/son several times and I don't get it. Its not like she was masquerading as a boy and others were confused about her sexuality (i.e.: Fu Sheng/ Tien Niu in Brave Archer).

Er, she WAS playing a teenage boy. A ridiculous bit of Peter Pan miscasting IMO. Apart from that it was a great film.

Linn1
01-29-2007, 04:02 AM
My only (major) gripe is the awkward editing of this film.

it came from all the cuts in the print the HK disc used. There was quite a bit cut from this release in HK. The French release added more in according to a review of the DVD, but there was some blood left out that was in the international cut of the film. As for bit about she/he, I had no problem with it myself. It's a very common Chinese tradition of females playing males in productions.

Markgway
01-29-2007, 05:12 AM
Yeah, but it made me uncomfortable thinking a male character was cute. :p

Seriously, Lily isn't masculine in the slightest. They could've cast any young Shaw male actor in the role and it would've worked.

Linn1
01-29-2007, 05:58 AM
the point was to shoehorn another female into a role in the film. Also it would have been strange if Lily was missing from the film at that time.

Markgway
01-29-2007, 06:39 AM
I don't see your logic, since there are other men in the film. If it had been an all-female production fair enough. But the fact that Lily's character is the only male left in the family should have have meant he stood out, but it doesn't work, as Lily as she looks could have played any of the sisters. I guess it was a gimmick that seemed like a good idea at the time. Shame we're stuck with it.

Linn1
01-29-2007, 07:00 AM
the point of the entire production was that it was a showcase for the Shaw females. There's other men in the film yes, but the point was to feature the female actresses of the time. If Lily had not been in it, that would be leaving out one of their major stars.

Markgway
01-29-2007, 02:15 PM
I think you're missing my point...

I'm not saying Lily shouldn't have been in it... she could have played any of the sisters.

To have her play a teenage boy just so she could have a big role is a bit much...

Linn1
01-29-2007, 02:54 PM
no I agree. I just think the mindset from the Shaws was put her in there no matter what. And if you give her a strange role, which she won a best-actress award for, all the better.

Ivy Ling Po
02-04-2007, 01:16 AM
Hope when Image releases this film, it will be uncut.
Otherwise is the extra footage significant enough to warrant purchasing the French DVD?

killer meteor
02-04-2007, 10:14 AM
Talking of Ivy Ling Po, would anyone reccomend Too Late For Love?

Ivy Ling Po
02-04-2007, 11:50 AM
Killer Meteor

Ivy Ling Po won a Golden Horse award for Too Late For Love. She was trying to diversify rather than keep on playing male scholars. If you like good storytelling or tearjerkers, this is the movie for you.

killer meteor
02-04-2007, 01:05 PM
Sounds good. I'll give it a go

Linn1
02-04-2007, 03:02 PM
Hope when Image releases this film, it will be uncut.

Image doesn't have the rights to this film.

Ivy Ling Po
02-04-2007, 04:57 PM
Hi Linn

What extra scenes does the French release have?

Ching li
02-04-2007, 05:50 PM
I know this movie was to showcase all of the shaw bros actresses, if that was the case why wasn't ching li or even lily li for that matter wasn't casted in this movie?

Argento476
08-19-2007, 06:48 PM
was going to buy this. Since its cut, I'm backing off.

drunkenmantis13
08-19-2007, 10:24 PM
Watched it for the first time also a few weeks ago. I found it much better than i expected. Quite moving and epic in all senses, plus loads of nice action/acting! Just a top Shaw production.
I watched the French version. I used to have the IVL which i didn't watch but i think the runtime was the same excluding PAL/NTSC...

Linn1
08-20-2007, 03:30 AM
the French disc did NOT use the uncut print that played there. It was the same cut version used by IVL for their release.