THE LADY CONSTABLES (1978)

 

PHENOMENALITY: *uncanny*
MYTHICITY: *fair*
FRYEAN MYTHOS: *comedy*
CAMPBELLIAN FUNCTION: *sociological*

Here's a true rarity: a 1970s kung-fu comedy that doesn't pile on silly grossout humor. Mind you, it's only mildly funny. But it also doesn't confuse the viewer with lots of cxtraneous characters, making its lightweight story easy to follow. CONSTABLES is both directed and written by Chang Hsin-yi, and it's impressive that, though he'd scripted over twenty HK/Taiwanese flicks by 1978, this film, a teamup of two popular kung fu divas. was only his second director credit. Chang only directed ten films, but continued to script into the 1990s, including such oddball fare as KUNG FU WONDER CHILD, which evinces the very faults avoided by CONSTABLES.

Set in some vague medieval era, the title refers to police officials given broad governmental power to go wherever they pleased to seek out criminals, which is the main reason I label the film's function "sociological." The titular lady cops are Tang Ling (Chia Ling) and Tien Ying Hung (Angela Mao), and as the film commences they're both devoted to chasing down a gang of jewel thieves who ripped off "the Five Shining Pearls." Tien wants to bring in the gangsters because they committed the crime in her town, while Tang has a more personal reason: the crooks killed a relative of hers. One might think that the one with the personal involvement would be the more emotional, but no. Chia's character is the cool logician, while Mao's is the one who's a little more excitable. 

The ladies challenge each other's right to the "collar" and so they often follow separate trails. (One online review claimed that in real life the actresses weren't entirely pleased at their team-up, each considering that she was the reigning Lady of Kung Fu in Asian cinema.) Their gamboling pursuit of the gang-members is further complicated by a third party, Hung Yi (Wang Kuan-Hsiung). This character's presence contributes the most reiterated comedy routine, in that for most of the story he remains silent, communicating only through written documents. A playful little tune sounds every time he whips out one of these visual aids, which are even sillier given that he claims that he's not a mute; he just doesn't like to talk. The two constables peg him as a famous bodyguard to some unnamed prince, and so they tolerate his presence as he follows them around. Similarly, the ladies rack enough of a body count fighting the low-ranking crooks that they're also followed around by a coffin-maker, because he thinks he can drum up more business in their presence.

The fights from all three principals are plentiful, though none of them stand out. Both women use uncanny weapons. Tang's is a small baton with a retractable blade, while Tien can somehow project unfolding cloth sashes from her sleeves to bind and confuse opponents. When they finally confront the gang's chief Star Tiger (Chang Yi), the villain utilizes both a bladed umbrella and spiked deadfalls that, rather than being swung on a rope, are somehow launched like missiles at the heroes. Possibly the funniest scene is one in which the two policewomen take turns torturing (in a funny way, of course) the same criminal for information.

This is another middle-level film for Angela Mao, with a fair number of fights but only so-so choreography. And though Chia never became as internationally known as Mao, CONSTABLES is not one of her best fight-wise either. Curiously, Chia dresses down so that a couple of shady customers mistake her for a man, and Chia scandalizes a female by claiming "he" wants to sleep with the woman. Possibly Director Chang wrote this into the script so that the two actresses wouldn't be competing over their costumes, with the result that Mao is indubitably the sexier of the duo.