An orphaned young man (Yuen Yat-choh) is thought to be the missing prince kidnapped years ago. An evil sorcerer attempts to force him to return, but the orphan seeks protection and training from a quarreling pair of aging sorcerers.

The Miracle Fighters is the first in a series of nonsense comedy kung fu films directed by Yuen Wo-ping that features the talents of his brothers on screen as well as off. While Wo-ping’s own films have always leaned towards the humorous and irreverent, these films took absurdity to new heights. The best of these include Shaolin Drunkard (1983) and Drunken Tai Chi (1984) with Donnie Yen in his first starring role. The Miracle Fighters is like an early experiment in this style of filmmaking that results in an uneven and ill-paced fantasy film where lumbering gags overpower the kung fu action.

While all hugely talented in action choreography and stunts, few of the Yuen Clan members ever took starring roles. The one exception is Yuen Yat-choh, an unremarkable looking fellow with boyish features and physical skills equal to any of his brothers. The Miracle Fighters was Yat-choh’s first starring role and although this was not his best film, nor did it show him to be particularly charismatic, his performance was good enough to warrant several more starring roles in Yuen Clan films.

Yat-choh plays Shu Gun, your typical troublesome youth living with an aged kung fu master with a tragic past. His master is Kao Ah-hsiung (Eddy Ko), who we learn was once the royal kung fu instructor to the Emperor until he was found to have broken a law whereby Manchus may not wed Han people. His wife is executed and Kao fights back against the guards and the royal Sorcerer Bat (Yuen Shun-yi) who unleashes an odd creature trapped in an urn. Kao eventually kidnaps the young prince in order to make his escape. The child accidentally suffocates in his grip and Kao wanders off to hide in despair. Years later, Kao is spotted by pasty-faced soldiers under the command of the sorcerer who is still looking for the prince. Kao ends up dead and Shu Gun, an orphan who was raised by Shu Gun, is mistakenly thought to be the prince. In order to escape Sorcerer Bat, Shu Gun finds refuge with an aging brother and sister (Leung Kar-yan and Yuen Cheung-yan), both sorcerers themselves. Comic hijinks ensue as these two quarreling siblings give Shu Gun a few magic lessons. Unable to defeat the pair together, Sorcerer Bat comes up with a devious plan to defeat them one by one. Shu Gun eventually faces Sorcerer Bat in an elaborate and deadly competition to determine who is the best sorcerer in the country.

You may have guessed by now that depicting kung fu is not the prime concern of Wo-ping and crew this time around. This is more of a fantasy film that employs a lot of interesting live-action visual effects, wires, and camera tricks. Sorcery in Chinese folklore accounts for a whole sub-genre of film completely separate from the magical skills of swordsmen operating in the mythical realm of jiang hu. Sammo Hung set the modern standard for depictions of Chinese sorcery in 1981 with the superior Encounter of a Spooky Kind.

The Miracle Fighters is clearly attempting to tap into the success of Sammo’s film, but ultimately falls short. Too much time is spent on the tiresome quarreling of a prematurely aged Leung Kar-yan and Yuen Cheung-yan in drag. Both actors play the characters well enough, but the whole friendly rivalry among masters thing has been done better and funnier in other films, such as The Prodigal Son (1982). For once, Yu-ping and company seem to be following trends rather than establishing them and this results in a rather bland experience.

To be fair, the infamous Yuen creativity accounts for at least a few magical moments. The child-like fighter trapped in an urn is one such example. This character fights with a paper sword that cuts like any real one. The use of paper in magic is extended to other scenes that are well-executed. Also, one must remember that we still have some of the best choreographers in the world all working together. Some of the fights show it. There just are not enough of them. Luckily, the Yuen Clan choose to go out strong in a strange, but fascinating finale as hundreds of sorcerers begin a competition. The best scene is when contestants must cross a pit of deadly snakes that is covered only by flimsy paper bridges. Steven Spielberg’s mild handling of snakes in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) is child’s play next to the reptilian mayhem that unfolds under Wo-ping’s direction. Each of the contestants uses a different magical approach to solve this problem. The strangest solution is when one contestant takes a giant axe to his legs and sends them walking across ahead of his body which appears to float in mid-air.

The Yuen Clan definitely have a morbid sense of humor that comes out on several other occasions. There is even a caricature – not a picture mind you, but a caricature of Wo-ping’s father Simon Yuen (Drunken Master) that magically comes to life to drink wine. This was their way of paying homage on screen to their recently departed, real-life father. Go figure.

Even if you like the bawdy humor and nonsense of Wo-ping’s more zany films that tend to irritate hardcore martial arts film fans, The Miracle Fighters is still a challenge. Overall, its the sluggish pacing, limited kung fu, and a plot that just drains away that proves to be the biggest disappointments. Therefore this film should be regarded as a rough wind up to better examples of the same nonsense.

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