ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, August 31, 1996 TAG: 9609040003
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 12 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: it came from the video store
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO
This week's septet of new action videos covers the field from the sublime to the ridiculous. First up, two winners from the East.
"The Bride With White Hair" is the most ambitious and expensive of recent Hong Kong imports. In fact, this magical tale of warring clans is such a large-scale, epic film that it loses something on the small screen.
Ye Hong (Leslie Cheung, who looks a lot like Johnny Depp) is the young warrior prince who falls in love with his enemy, Wolf Girl (Bridgette Lin Ching Hsia). Their story mixes operatic overstatement with soaring Shakespearean plot turns and real emotional depth. Director Ronny Yu works with a large cast on unbelievably evocative sets. The action scenes employ flying effects and highly stylized fights and swordplay. The stunt work owes more to dance than to conventional martial arts films. Fans of Hong Kong movies really have to see this one. It's a huge step forward.
"Executioners" is your basic feminist science-fiction magical martial arts action epic. Though it's technically a sequel to "The Heroic Trio," with stars Anita Mui, Maggie Cheung and Michelle Yeoh playing the same characters, it bears little resemblance to the first film in either plot or tone. Co-directors Johnny To and Ching Siu Tung never let logic get in the way of their bizarre story of a corrupt, water-starved, post-apocalyptic world that must be saved by the three superheroines. Key characters appear without introduction or explanation; grotesque sentimentality runs amok; and the plot defies any logical explication. But the overall energy level and mad imagination put American movies to shame. One caveat: "Executioners" goes so far beyond the conventions of Western filmmaking that it's probably not the best place for the uninitiated to discover Hong Kong cinema. But for fans - Wow!
By the way, "The Bride With White Hair" is listed as one of the 10 best Hong Kong action films by Stefan Hammond and Mike Wilkins in their book "Sex and Zen & A Bullet in the Head" (Fireside Books. $12. trade paper), an excellent but all-too-brief introduction to the field.
"Fugitive X" is an imaginative and imitative action flick, yet another variation on "The Most Dangerous Game" theme. Writer/producer/director/star David Heavener is an ex-cop with a tragic past (paralyzed wife, dead daughter) who is set upon by a bunch of rich guys with Armanis and Uzis. A grandly gory and funny opening sets the tone. The action is set on familiar low-rent L.A. locations. Between the rote chases and gun fights, the atmosphere has an eerie dreamlike quality, most obviously in the "Pulp Fiction" rip-off scene. This one earns points for energy; loses points for cliches.
Despite the title, "Live Wire: Human Timebomb" isn't nearly as much fun as the original, a loopy thriller about exploding Senators. Set in Florida and Cuba, the sort-of sequel is about an FBI agent (Bryan Genesse) who gets a "bio-chip" implanted in his head by long-haired bad guy Joe Lara. It's all really silly, fast paced and well staged with lots of stuff that goes BOOM! The generic score doesn't help.
Bodybuilder Rachel McLish makes a credible debut in a weak vehicle. "Raven Hawk" is a crackpot revenge flick that earns the dubious distinction of being named after two birds. Director Albert Pyun gets the most out of tinted Western landscapes. A cast of veteran B-players (including Ed Lauter, Mitch Pileggi and Mitchell Ryan) does about all anyone could with such an abysmal script full of pseudo-American Indian mystical hogwash. McLish might have what it takes to be an action star - she's certainly strong enough and attractive enough - but she's going to have to work with better material.
"Shopping" is a thoroughly watchable and stylish thriller about thoroughly unsympathetic characters, "A Clockwork Orange" with fast cars. In a desolate, nightmarish England, Billy (Jude Law) is a nihilistic thief. Jo (Sadie Frost) picks him up when he gets out of jail and helps him work his way back to the top of their young criminal clique. Writer-director Paul Anderson combines striking action scenes and grubby visuals to create a thin, zippy story. Give this guy a few breaks and he'll be working with much better projects.
"Skyscraper" is video's answer to such big-screen alternative classics as "Mommie Dearest" and "Showgirls." In terms of plot, the film is an attempt to remake "Die Hard" with the lumbering, buxom Anna Nicole Smith in the Bruce Willis role. Talk about a triumph of miscasting - she's too big (in every sense of the word, with her grotesque implants) and slow-moving to handle the simple physical action of running and jumping. In the moments that demand emotion, she reaches new heights of acting ineptitude. With their silly foreign accents, her male co-stars are just as funny as she is. To fully appreciate this one, invite your most irreverent pals over for an evening of unintentional comedy.
Next week: Mysteries!
Got a question about home video or film? Contact your favorite video columnist at P.O. Box 2491; Roanoke, Va. 24010-2491, or by E-mail at 75331.2603@compuserve.com.
The Essentials:
The Bride With White Hair *** 1/2 Tai Seng. 93 min. Unrated, contains violence, some sexual material.
Executioners *** Tai Seng. 95 min. Unrated, contains graphic violence, strong language.
Fugitive X ** 1/2 Silver Lake Entertainment. 92 min. Unrated. Contains violence, strong language, brief nudity, sexual content.
Live Wire: Human Timebomb * 1/2 New Line Home Video. 98 min. Rated R for violence, strong language, brief nudity.
Raven Hawk * Columbia TriStar. 88 min. Rated R for violence, strong language, brief nudity.
Shopping *** Concorde-New Horizons. 86 min. Rated R for strong language, violence.
Skyscraper * 1/2 PM Entertainment. 96 min. Rated R graphic violence, strong language, nudity, sexual material.
LENGTH: Long : 106 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. Bridgette in Ching Hsia stars in ``The Bride Withby CNBWhite Hair.'' color. 2. Bryan Genessee is the FBI's deadliest
fighting machine in ``Live Wire: Human Timebomb.''