Righting Wrongs: Media Asia Distribution
Rating: USA: Unrated

AKA
Above the Law

I usually open my reviews with a little preamble—a paragraph talking about something to do with film in general or certain people involved in the movie I’m about to review—you know, a lead in. I’m not really sure how to lead in to today’s review of Corey Yuen’s 1986 martial arts film Righting Wrongs, so I’m just gonna jump right in.

Yuen Biao (Dragons Forever) plays a Hong Kong prosecutor named Hsia. From the opening sequence—where we see Hsia track down several assassins who’ve just killed a friend of his, culminating with him shooting the gas tank of an overturned car and killing the helpless bad guys as they try and claw their way to safety—we know that this guy’s not your average by-the-book lawyer.

When his star witnesses are killed by a hitman hired by the defendants, Hsia takes the law into his own hands—with a local judge’s blessing, no less—and bumps off one of the two triad bosses. He sets out to finish off the second bad guy—but he’s beaten to the punch by a high-ranking local cop Wang (Melvin Wong). Unfortunately for Hsia, he’s found at the scene with the dead body by female inspector Shih Li-yi (Cynthia Rothrock). Shih’s convinced that Hsia is the killer, and starts trying to build a case against him. Meanwhile, Wang’s gone off the deep end and is killing everyone who might be able to tie him to the murder. Everything culminates in a nearly 20 minute long climax where Hsia, Shih, and Wang work out their differences kung-fu style—just don’t expect your standard Hollywood happy ending.

The fact that the film doesn’t play out in the standard Hollywood fashion is perhaps the most impressive thing about Righting Wrongs--that and some very cool action scenes.

There’s a bleak tone running through this film, and even the poorly conceived script (and a second act filled with corny comedy bits) can’t lessen the effect. While the story is filled with cliché characters (the vigilante, the hard nosed cop, a one dimensional bad guy, etc.), the resolution for each character is hardly what one would expect to see. Lots of people die in this movie—people who would normally live in your average film—and that gives Corey Yuen’s movie an air of desperation and keeps viewers constantly off balance since no one’s safe. It’s refreshing to see an action film that doesn’t play by the rules and follow the formula.

The story itself (and the script) are perhaps the weakest link overall. Most of the story bits are simple pieces designed to get us from one action set-piece to the next, and as mentioned earlier, the comedic tone of the second act doesn’t really work. However, like all good action films, Righting Wrongs keeps the quiet moments to a minimum—understanding that a weak story can be more than compensated for with some jaw-dropping action sequences…something this film delivers in spades.

Corey Yuen has become one of Hong Kong’s most revered action directors. This is early Yuen, and hence it’s not as polished as some of his later work. However, one can see the flashes of brilliance that will come to mark his other projects already present here. The fight scenes are fast, frenetic, and awe-inspiring in their execution and complexity. Yuen gets the most of out of his two leads—the lightning fast and acrobatic Yuen Biao and tiny powerhouse Cynthia Rothrock.

Biao (who’s part of the ‘three kung-fu-teers’ with Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung) is amazing in several sequences. In one, he’s chased through a parking garage by thugs in cars. Eventually, he rolls down the hood of one car, and gets caught just beneath the grille as two vehicles smash together.

In the climactic sequence, he battles Melvin Wong in an airport garage, then Wong hops in a plane. Yuen chases him down the runway, grabs onto a rope, and hangs suspended hundreds of feet above the ground. It’s a scene reminiscent of the one with Jackie Chan hanging from a helicopter, only this one was shot a few years earlier.

Rothrock shines here as well. Cynthia would later ‘graduate’ to American martial arts films, but none of them have lived up to her Hong Kong work. In an early scene, we watch her beat up four guys in a mahjongg parlor, using a chair and some lightning quick moves to immobilize all four thugs with one pair of handcuffs.

Later, she gets to tussle with Biao in a scene where both actors shine. The scene itself even features a bit of Chan-style humor as the corpse of the dead triad boss becomes a prop used during the breathtaking battle.

Rothrock also gets what is arguably the film’s best fight sequence, a showdown with Karen Shepherd (odd to see two white women duking it out in a Hong Kong action flick). Fists and feet fly with reckless abandon, both women make some incredible leaps (although on Rothrock’s leap from a high rail, you can clearly see the stuntman), and Shepherd even brings her metallic fashion belt into the action before being subdued by Rothrock.

Needless to say, if you love martial arts mayhem, you’ll be pleased with this film.

I saw Righting Wrongs on DVD. The release is decent—typical Hong Kong DVD, really. The film is presented in a widescreen aspect ratio, with white English subtitles at the bottom of the screen. The subtitles are readable (they stay on the black and aren’t superimposed on the scene) and relatively free of grammatical errors and poor spelling (they’re not perfect, but they’re better than most). The image quality is a bit soft overall, with some washed out colors, but again, this is generally the norm for HK DVD releases. The sound isn’t great—some of the music sounds very loud, almost to the point of distortion, but it doesn’t make the film unwatchable.

You don’t get much in the way of extras—a few trailers for other films and some star bios are about it. Still, you do get a nice version of a very good action film that most people haven’t ever seen.

In the end, Righting Wrongs is a film hampered by a weak script. Yet, it overcomes this by implementing some excellent action sequences that are so good they draw your attention away from the story’s shortcomings. Cynthia Rothrock and Yuen Biao light up the screen with some amazing moves and entertaining fight sequences guaranteed to please even the most discerning martial arts film fans. Corey Yuen demonstrates that he understands what makes these kinds of films work—balls out action sequences that push the limits. He offers up several of these sequences—one comes along about every fifteen minutes or so, and as such, he never gives us much time to dwell on just how bad the story and script really are.

Because of the story shortcomings, I can’t give Righting Wrongs a full five star rating. However, based on the amazing performances, incredible action sequences, and assured direction from Yuen, I’m giving it four and a solid recommendation. If you like high octane action films, then this one is well worth a look.


Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening