Secret Executioners

This is a poor, early cut and paste effort from Godfrey Ho, who hadn't quite figured out the formula right at this point. To be honest, about 95% of this film isn't his, as he's just filmed some bricklayers or passers by in some truly awful/hilarious kung fu battle. There's one guy with ginger hair who looks as if he hasn't even heard the word 'kung fu' before and another guy who inexplicably spews milk from his mouth every time he's hit. Sadly, this only amounts to about five minutes of screen time.

The rest involves some confusing plot about two gangs and two brothers, one of which was buddies with a leader of one of the gangs, and it's the usual martial arse type stuff, with gangs fighting each other, cops on their tail, double crossings and a missing woman. The dubbing almost saves it but I found it quite tedious for a Godfrey Ho film. It's no Majestic Thunderbolt. This is the weakest of all the Godfrey Ho film I've seen, and I've seen plenty (which is why I have the IQ of a walnut).

Our good old pal Godfrey Ho directs this decidedly confusing effort for Filmark International which stars Korean kicking maestro, Hwang Jang Lee. Needless to say, with Ho in the directors chair it subsequently will come as little surprise to discover that he's been up to his old cut & paste tricks again as demonstrated here by some newly edited in footage featuring a chubby, ginger haired/moustached, headband wearing slob who displays what must surely rank as the most dreadful Preying Mantis kung fu ever committed to film!

The baffling 'plot' (to use the term very loosely!) from what I could discern, centres around various gang related tribulations plus a long running feud between a scruffy looking detective who spends the entire film shivering as though suffering from Heroin withdrawal symptoms(!) and Hwang who plays his old friend who has clearly landed on the wrong side of the tracks as it were and is now head of a gang called the Yellow Tigers. Throw into this mix a sub plot involving the lucrative ownership of a night club, a woman searching for her missing sister and of course the newly edited in footage which details the hired goons fighting on behalf of the gangs and you have a truly head scratching affair on your hands to put it mildly!

It has to be said that despite this joyously muddled plot, the film is sadly bit of a chore to sit through although there are thankfully however a few good scenes which pop up every now and then seemingly in order to prevent one from fully dozing off. For one there are plenty of fights on offer…..oh yes…..in fact they seem to break out every few minutes……for no discernible reason whatsoever! Two especially stand out; In one, Hwang and our hero go at it in a building and succeed in virtually demolishing the entire inner structure(!) also the finale is a pleasantly chaotic mass battle which ends in style with Hwang and our hero battling multiple foes down the length of an underground tunnel. As is very usually the case in these flicks, the newly edited in scenes are of especial hilarity; This proves no exception in fact and they contain some truly priceless dialogue alongside the God awful fight choreography. Also of note include such amazing scenes as one poor geezer who starts puking during a fight(!) and another scene in which another unfortuitous chap has his head shoved down a urine filled toilet(!!!) Classy stuff there! The best bit of all for me however was a truly WTF gem of dialogue which transpires between our hero and Hwang who is attempting to bribe him. Our hero decides to decline the offer on moral grounds musing that if he were to it would ultimately result in many innocent people going out of business. To illustrate his point, he then goes to the trouble of citing two specific cases in point namely and I quote, 'The old woman who made 100,000 dollars selling lunch boxes and the student who made 100,000 selling eggs to prostitutes'(!!!!!!) WTF?!?!?!!!!! Give a gold star to the script writer for that one!