FIVE ELEMENTS NINJAS (1982)
So many Shaw Brothers films and so little time to watch them all. But where to start with all of these for those who aren't sure? There are lot of obvious choices and I would say the likes of The 36th Chamber of Shaolin or Five Deadly Venoms good starting points. Come Drink With Me is also a great option. But personally it doesn't get much better than this kung fu fighters versus ninja clan epic. The best films from the studio all include colourful sets, outlandish costumes and a whole lot of crazy gadgets and weapons. Gallons of red paint to complete the experience is always a plus. Which is why it's always fun to revisit this multicoloured wire work extravaganza.
The premise is all too familiar, at least initially, as two rival kung fu masters test the skills of their best fighters to see who is the greatest. However there are hints of what is to come during this opening bout as the credits are interspersed with images of ancient scrolls. It's all very historic and serious. Or at least these visuals would have you believe, before all the ninja madness begins. In the climactic face-off the apparent villain Hong (Chan Shen) introduces a Japanese warrior who is defeated after an initial victory. As cliché dictates the man commits ritual suicide, but not before poisoning rival master Zeng (Kwan Fung) and declaring that his allies will take revenge for him.
His friends are of course the eponymous stealth assassins, who come in five different varieties. Why these ninjas are sneaking around ancient Hong Kong is unclear. There are hints at their plan to take Chief Hong's position but it's not important in this kind of movie. What is important is that the five elements are weird and wonderful. It's not just the standard ones like Air and Fire (although Fire, Earth and Water are all included) but Eastern themed elements that include Wood and Gold. With his health failing Zeng fears an attack and sends out some of his students to see what exactly is in store for them. But his best men are held back to guard their home, and the first act sees them face a major defeat.
What his men find is ninjas not dressed in black and hiding in cover of darkness, but enemies dressed in some of the most ridiculous costumes around. Gold ninjas using metallic shields and Wood ninjas dressed as trees. Fire ninjas in bright red using smoke flares and water ninjas in lurid blue while swimming along on rafts. All prior expectations go out of the window in this first act as one set piece leads to the next. This is stealth and subterfuge at its most bonkers as each group uses comic book weapons and devices. Annotations on screen suggest these are all historic artefacts used in real battles, but I have a hard time believing all of them.
That being said the middle section of the story does start to deal with the ninja clan's more deceptive tactics. After a lot of deaths the film begins to focus on Zeng's two best warriors, the stoic Sheng (Lo Mang) and the charismatic Hao (Cheng Tien Chi) as they set up perimeter defences. However ninja master Mudou (Michael Chan) has a plan in mind and sends female spy Senji (Chen Pei-Hsi) to infiltrate the school. There's a lot of cheesy moments as the two brothers squabble over whether to treat this newcomer with kindness or contempt, but it's an effective tension building element as she secretly draws up maps and tries to seduce them. The eventual ninja attack finally feels like a proper use of stealth tactics as they move silently through the shadows.
The plot does stall a little when things go awry and Hao must escape the school. In a flashback that arrives out of nowhere he just happens to remember an old friend who taught him the very skills he needs. Conveniently this isn't his dying master but another old teacher who lives nearby. He even has a fresh batch of students on hand to take the fight back to Mudou. But structurally this is a lot of fun (even if all the tropes are very familiar) as Hao learns all the extra abilities he needs to defeat the Five Elements. He can't be dazzled by enemies using gold plated bling if he can fight blind-folded! It's creative and endlessly entertaining so all these clichés and contrivances can be forgiven.
In terms of the studio's output and Cheng Cheh's work as a director this is certainly the essential choice. In terms of movies that have the word 'ninja' in the title it's potentially the only one that could be considered a must see. Or at least the one to watch first. The combat is satisfyingly well staged and the dramatic twists are enough to keep things interesting, even if they don't offer much serious character depth. It's a film in which Earth ninjas bursting from the ground must be defeated with stilts after all. It's not a character driven film but Cheng Tien Chi lends plenty of screen presence to the proceedings which is enough. It's a film about dazzling colours, dismembered limbs and dance-like choreography. What else do discerning action junkies need?
4/5
BONUS REVIEW
MASKED AVENGERS (1981)
There are more gold costumes and more sudden deaths in Chang Cheh's mixture of murder mystery and action. There are also mechanical Buddha statues, acid bath traps and blood drinking cult members. Perhaps it's not the same sort of kung-fu-horror hybrid found in the likes of Human Lanterns but there are still enough sinister and atmospheric ingredients. The title feels a bit strange, but I guess calling this Masked Bandits or Gold Faced Murderers doesn't have the same ring to it. Including words like Avengers and Avenging does make it sound like a product of the studio in this period after all, even if there's no real vengeance in the story or its structure.
What the film does have though is plenty of trident action and eerie violence as a group of martial artists try to uncover a murderous band of thieves. Is it Kao Yao (Philip Kwok)? Surely he just works at the tavern. Is he hiding his kung fu mastery or is he just the cook? What about hero our Chi San Yuen's (Chiang Sheng) friends, surely they can all be trusted? And the pillars of the local community are are certainly too respectable to be involved in all this... Every so often someone new dies and the clues slowly appear, but there's more to the mystery than it first seems. The mask wearing villains don't know the identity of their own allies, which is an interesting wrinkle.
At times the pacing is a bit meandering as the suspects come and go, and as characters move to and from being villains and heroes. However while the middle section of the story tends to drag, the finale in the cult headquarters is outrageous enough to make it worth seeing. It would be too easy for the bad guys to just hide at an abandoned temple after all. Instead their real lair is a mechanised hideout with elevators and deadly spiked doors. This is an evil group doing this all for fun after all, it's entertaining enough that it doesn't need to make sense. It takes a while to get there and it's not the most compelling second act, but it's still a fun mixture of genres. The bearded masks are cute and the action is solid, and maybe that's enough.
3/5
