venoms5
01-10-2008, 08:57 AM
THE IMPOSTER 1975 Act. **/Blood **/Movie **1/2
David Chiang (Ge Liang), Chen Kuan Tai (Lo Gin Yin), Wang Chung (Tseng Yun), Li Hsueh Hsin (Tseng Kan), Shih Chung Tien (Ko), Tung Lin (Huang Chun Shang),
Chen Ping (Su Su), Chan Shen, Ku Feng, Wei Pai, Chiang Chin, Wu Ma
Directed by Pao Hsueh Li
Tseng Kan, a guard in the security bureau is blamed for the brutal murder of an entire family as well as the theft of $30,000 dollars while on a job. His brother, Tseng Yun, is sent to locate a mysterious man named Ge Liang who happens to be a master of disguise. Under his various concealments, Ge Liang goes about trying to find out who was truly responsible for the terrible crime which happens to be linked in some fashion to the Captain of the police, Lo Gin Yin.
Director Pao gets sole reign here and delivers a strange brew of thriller and comical scenes laced with violent kung fu action to create an odd genre amalgamation that probably will disappoint those looking for hard core fight scenes. The fights are decent enough but they're fairly short and nothing spectacular but Pao uses enough bizarre elements to make the film intriguing enough for fans who seek something different from the usual kung fu extravaganzas prominent at the time.
Audience indifference may have been why the film performed poorly but then so did the Chiang directed THE CONDEMNED (1976). Possibly the HK audience of the time wasn't ready for seeing their popular actors portraying roles far different from the norm. Some of the photographic touches are very nice and lead me to believe that Pao (a former cinematographer) may have had a hand in that as well.
David Chiang (or John Chiang as he is now referred) gets to extend his acting range yet again in another variant on the kung fu picture. Here, light comical moments are mixed with the thriller and kung fu genres. Liang is a right smart character and he displays an almost cartoonish demeanor as he's often seemingly in multiple places at the same time as well as staying one step ahead of the bad guys through most of the film. An extremely sly, cunning and brazen character, his various get ups include a beggar on the street, an old, stingy loan shark, an oddly dressed kung fu fighter named the One-Eyed Dragon, a distinguished aristocrat and the assistant to the Commander of the military!
Although Chiang owns the film and gets top billing, the film is an acting showcase for Wang Chung for the duration of his screen time. He's never been as good as he is here at least in the films I've seen him in. He's good in his action roles, but here he comes off more human than usual. He's even brought to tears on a few occasions as he tries desperately to have his brother acquitted of the crimes he's been accused of. Wang Chung never quite caught on with audiences in HK but did go on to a decent directorial career throughout the 80s handling a number of crime thrillers including THE MOBFIX PATROL (1981), THE MURDERER PURSUES (1981) and THE INFORMER (1980).
Li Hsueh Hsin (MIGHTY PEKING MAN, THE KILLER) is also really good as Tseng Kan. It's a shame it took him close to 20 years to receive audience recognition. He played so many varied characters throughout his long career but never seemed to catch on with HK moviegoers until his performance in THE KILLER (1989). He plays a role drastically different from his Chang Cheh roles. He still plays a martial artist but a very emotional one especially after he's been framed.
A flashback scene reveals the events that led to Tseng Kan being incarcerated. It's a very violent scene in which even the little children are massacred. Tseng Yung is unconscious away from his brother and when the authorities arrive, it's Tseng Kan who is the only one alive. Of course, as usual in these movies, he is accused of the entire ordeal without anyone checking out the scene to find evidence to the contrary.
The scene in which Ge Liang craftily breaks the two brothers out of jail using the prostitute Su Su is humorous. He also finds the time to break out the fake Assistant Chen whom Ge Liang had earlier masqueraded as; all part of his elaborate plan to lure out the bad guys. Everything comes to a head when Captain Lo
double crosses all the villains just before Ge Liang shows up to have a fight with him.
Fans of Chen Kuan Tai will be disappointed to know that he doesn't fight until the end and he is no match for David Chiang's Ge Liang character. In fact, Captain Lo is a right sleazy official preferring to shoot men in the back or attack them from behind with a shovel. His duel with Ge Liang surprisingly doesn't end the way you'd think it would but even still, everything ends well for everybody. The final moments sees Ge Liang getting aboard his boat with his real girlfriend, Bei Hwa only to have Su Su give chase forcing him to jump into the sea to escape after having promised to marry her earlier in the film.
Speaking of Chen Ping, the exploitation queen of Shaw Brothers movies gets to strut her assets here getting naked on several occasions stripping completely and looking really good in the process in her role as the nymphomaniacal prostitute, Su Su. There's also a fair number of other familiar faces seen during the film as well as some cameos such as Ku Feng being caught in bed with a pretty hooker as Ge Liang (disguised as the One-Eyed Dragon) goes about inspecting men's legs to see if they have a stab wound which would prove the innocence of Tseng Kan. Wei Pai plays one of the henchmen and future pig butcher from FLAG OF IRON (1980), Chiang Chin appears briefly as a kung fu student.
An enjoyable but odd kung fu/thriller with light touches of comedy and enough sporadic martial arts sequences (courtesy of Huang Pei Chi) to qualify as a kung fu film, but none of them are wholly satisfying enough to please fans seeking that sort of thing but the performances and unusual storyline is enough to recommend to serious fans and completists alike.
David Chiang (Ge Liang), Chen Kuan Tai (Lo Gin Yin), Wang Chung (Tseng Yun), Li Hsueh Hsin (Tseng Kan), Shih Chung Tien (Ko), Tung Lin (Huang Chun Shang),
Chen Ping (Su Su), Chan Shen, Ku Feng, Wei Pai, Chiang Chin, Wu Ma
Directed by Pao Hsueh Li
Tseng Kan, a guard in the security bureau is blamed for the brutal murder of an entire family as well as the theft of $30,000 dollars while on a job. His brother, Tseng Yun, is sent to locate a mysterious man named Ge Liang who happens to be a master of disguise. Under his various concealments, Ge Liang goes about trying to find out who was truly responsible for the terrible crime which happens to be linked in some fashion to the Captain of the police, Lo Gin Yin.
Director Pao gets sole reign here and delivers a strange brew of thriller and comical scenes laced with violent kung fu action to create an odd genre amalgamation that probably will disappoint those looking for hard core fight scenes. The fights are decent enough but they're fairly short and nothing spectacular but Pao uses enough bizarre elements to make the film intriguing enough for fans who seek something different from the usual kung fu extravaganzas prominent at the time.
Audience indifference may have been why the film performed poorly but then so did the Chiang directed THE CONDEMNED (1976). Possibly the HK audience of the time wasn't ready for seeing their popular actors portraying roles far different from the norm. Some of the photographic touches are very nice and lead me to believe that Pao (a former cinematographer) may have had a hand in that as well.
David Chiang (or John Chiang as he is now referred) gets to extend his acting range yet again in another variant on the kung fu picture. Here, light comical moments are mixed with the thriller and kung fu genres. Liang is a right smart character and he displays an almost cartoonish demeanor as he's often seemingly in multiple places at the same time as well as staying one step ahead of the bad guys through most of the film. An extremely sly, cunning and brazen character, his various get ups include a beggar on the street, an old, stingy loan shark, an oddly dressed kung fu fighter named the One-Eyed Dragon, a distinguished aristocrat and the assistant to the Commander of the military!
Although Chiang owns the film and gets top billing, the film is an acting showcase for Wang Chung for the duration of his screen time. He's never been as good as he is here at least in the films I've seen him in. He's good in his action roles, but here he comes off more human than usual. He's even brought to tears on a few occasions as he tries desperately to have his brother acquitted of the crimes he's been accused of. Wang Chung never quite caught on with audiences in HK but did go on to a decent directorial career throughout the 80s handling a number of crime thrillers including THE MOBFIX PATROL (1981), THE MURDERER PURSUES (1981) and THE INFORMER (1980).
Li Hsueh Hsin (MIGHTY PEKING MAN, THE KILLER) is also really good as Tseng Kan. It's a shame it took him close to 20 years to receive audience recognition. He played so many varied characters throughout his long career but never seemed to catch on with HK moviegoers until his performance in THE KILLER (1989). He plays a role drastically different from his Chang Cheh roles. He still plays a martial artist but a very emotional one especially after he's been framed.
A flashback scene reveals the events that led to Tseng Kan being incarcerated. It's a very violent scene in which even the little children are massacred. Tseng Yung is unconscious away from his brother and when the authorities arrive, it's Tseng Kan who is the only one alive. Of course, as usual in these movies, he is accused of the entire ordeal without anyone checking out the scene to find evidence to the contrary.
The scene in which Ge Liang craftily breaks the two brothers out of jail using the prostitute Su Su is humorous. He also finds the time to break out the fake Assistant Chen whom Ge Liang had earlier masqueraded as; all part of his elaborate plan to lure out the bad guys. Everything comes to a head when Captain Lo
double crosses all the villains just before Ge Liang shows up to have a fight with him.
Fans of Chen Kuan Tai will be disappointed to know that he doesn't fight until the end and he is no match for David Chiang's Ge Liang character. In fact, Captain Lo is a right sleazy official preferring to shoot men in the back or attack them from behind with a shovel. His duel with Ge Liang surprisingly doesn't end the way you'd think it would but even still, everything ends well for everybody. The final moments sees Ge Liang getting aboard his boat with his real girlfriend, Bei Hwa only to have Su Su give chase forcing him to jump into the sea to escape after having promised to marry her earlier in the film.
Speaking of Chen Ping, the exploitation queen of Shaw Brothers movies gets to strut her assets here getting naked on several occasions stripping completely and looking really good in the process in her role as the nymphomaniacal prostitute, Su Su. There's also a fair number of other familiar faces seen during the film as well as some cameos such as Ku Feng being caught in bed with a pretty hooker as Ge Liang (disguised as the One-Eyed Dragon) goes about inspecting men's legs to see if they have a stab wound which would prove the innocence of Tseng Kan. Wei Pai plays one of the henchmen and future pig butcher from FLAG OF IRON (1980), Chiang Chin appears briefly as a kung fu student.
An enjoyable but odd kung fu/thriller with light touches of comedy and enough sporadic martial arts sequences (courtesy of Huang Pei Chi) to qualify as a kung fu film, but none of them are wholly satisfying enough to please fans seeking that sort of thing but the performances and unusual storyline is enough to recommend to serious fans and completists alike.