REVIEW: ‘Born Invincible’ (1978)

Classic kung fu doesn’t get much better than BORN INVINCIBLE, unless you want some semblance of a plot to go with it. Joseph Kuo directs a strong cast of screen favorites under the screen fighting guidance of Yuen Wo-ping, which guarantees acrobatic and fighting excellence, but little purpose.

I’m a realist. I know better than to expect great things from the plot of your typical kung fu movie, especially when it’s old school action from independent filmmakers. But Joseph Kuo is one of the filmmakers who at the least, usually puts enough plot and character development in to make those short pauses between action sequences pass smoothly. And in his better moments, the plot actually enhances the action as in THE BLAZING TEMPLE (1976).

The plot of BORN INVINCIBLE is almost non-existent and is there only to provide one thing, a reason for the good guys to fight the bad guys and it makes no attempt to mask it. But there is really nothing else to complain about if you’re primarily looking for non-stop action with no intentional comedy.

Carter Wong is introduced as the character referenced in the title, a man trained from age three in the art of Tai Chi. But this isn’t your David Carradine infomercial Tai Chi. We’re talking about the ultimate (and highly romanticized) internal style capable of making Wong impervious to any conventional blunt attacks or bladed weapons. Or I should say, almost impervious to attack. There is this little problem of weak points. In traditional martial arts, the body is made of up many places preferred as attack points, such as the throat or groin. But Wong’s training has reduced his number of weak points to one and it can be moved around at will.

The simple plot initiates immediately when a retired swordsman and his daughter are attacked by Hei Tai Killers, aka the great Corey Yuen and Yuen Wo-ping’s brother Yuen Shun-yi. Students of Lei Ping martial arts school are practicing nearby and reluctantly choose to intercede, knowing full well of their master’s decree that no student shall fight except in self defense. A good fight between the killers and two students transforms into a jaw-dropping duel of weapons and acrobatics, when a senior student played by Alan Chui steps in with his sword. The killers counter with spears previously stashed on their backs. The killers eventually leave in defeat, but this brings the wrath of their masters down on Lei Ping school and its master, played by Lung Fei in a relatively rare good guy role.

One of Yuen Wo-ping’s less talked about strengths as an action director is his ability to frame action, not just create it. Half of a good fight is knowing how to film it and BORN INVINCIBLE provides countless examples of his mastery in this area, although I’m not certain what involvement DP Wo Kuo-hsiao had in filming the fight scenes, if any. Close-ups, handheld panning and wide shots are all filmed and cut together with great skill. The result is fight scenes where you get the benefit of seeing all the action, while also witnessing much of the dramatic flavor that tight editing in modern action films favor. Not to over-emphasis a point, but budding and experienced action filmmakers ought to watch this film with a discerning eye.

Yuen magnificently shoots Wong and Lo Lieh, as the evil Chin Ying Chiefs busting open the gates of Lei Ping school and effectively forcing Lung Fei to fight. The confrontation predictably goes poorly for Lei Ping and the students make a vow to kill the Chiefs at all costs.

That’s basically it. The rest of the film has the students, initially led by the great Jack Lung, going through training, engaging the two Hei Tai killers again, trying to hide from the Chiefs, and eventually engaging them one by one. The key to their success is discovering the Chiefs’ weaknesses. Lo has a weapon that latches onto and breaks any sword, so Jack comes up with a plan to counter it. But the real trouble is beating the white-haired Carter Wong, whose Tai Chi skills are virtually unstoppable.

BORN INVINCIBLE may have some truly outstanding action, but it favors near-fantasy elements such as Wong’s iron skin and his ability to draw perfect Chinese luck symbols into the ground while fighting. This is great news if you enjoy a little artistic creativity mixed in with your old school kung fu action. The constant doubling of stars by the Yuen Clan to perform lots of aerial flips and cartwheels is well done and adds to the fun.

Wong deserves special mention for doing a spectacular job of physically representing internal power, most often represented by breathing exercises. Admittedly, there are some silly sound effects to go along with his performance, but he always looks as powerful as you expect his character to be. His forced breathing reminded me of his colorful performance in BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA, where John Carpenter also had the good sense to allow his same strength to show through the goofy effects.

This film’s biggest flaws are basically lacking any depth of story and failing to keep charismatic protagonists in the second half. The best heroes are killed off early, leaving second-stringers to pick up the slack and this makes the final fight less compelling. But still, stick around for the end. Joseph Kuo and company pulls out a final short, but wicked death scene worthy of any Chang Cheh film to cap a very solid kung fu classic.