The Stomp -- Wu Tang Collection VHS

Not to be confused with Stomp, the theatrical performance troupe, THE STOMP is actually a Taiwan-produced kung fu film from 1979, originally titled SECRET MESSAGE, but also known as NINJA MASSACRE. It stars Lung Chun Erh (aka Doris Chen), Chen Sing, and Pai Ying and tells a simple story of a woman clan leader, blinded in battle, who raises a rescued baby boy and teaches him "secret message kung fu" while warding off all sorts of rival clans seeking the unknown "secret message." The plot goes off on bizarre tangents involving a whole host of subsidiary characters, so it takes a while to figure out where it's actually going. However, the pace is fast, the scenes short, the fight action plentiful and the large, colorful cast quite impressive.This edition is a low-cost, poor-quality, English-dubbed Wu Tang Collection release that may turn off some potential buyers. (The new title, THE STOMP, has nothing whatsoever to do with anything in the film.) However, it would be a shame for longtime kung fu fans to dismiss this film because it's got so many unexpected pleasures in it. For one thing, its female star, Lung Chun Erh, a frequent kung fu heroine (SHAOLIN INVINCIBLES, EIGHT MASTERS), not only gets a rare opportunity to take a full-fledged fighting role, but also gets to train a boy fighter (who winds up pretty skillful by middle childhood). She also gets to stretch her acting wings a little, playing a blind woman about as convincingly as any other "blind" action hero in popular action films whose sword never misses its target. She's also made up and costumed to look very attractive throughout. (Her all-female Poison Clan followers are no slouches either, decked out as they are in tight blue shorts and gold boots!)Another rare pleasure for kung fu fans is that of seeing perennial villain Chen Sing (LEGENDARY STRIKE, THE MAGNIFICENT) in the part of a good guy, General Lung, who turns out to be the uncle of the orphaned boy and guardian of the boy's slightly older brother, who also fights a lot in the course of the film. Pai Ying, normally a hero (FATE OF LEE KHAN), plays a smooth, crafty villain here, a former lover of the blind woman who now tries to wheedle the secret message out of her. He's the one who fights the two boys and her in the extensive battle at the end.The action features numerous scenes of ninjas in color-coded costumes doing flying leaps and attacking the heroes (and heroine) against picturesque backgrounds, including forests, rocks, seacoasts and mountain streams. While the goings-on are awfully absurd at times, the dubbing poor and the tape quality below-average, it still offers enough unexpected satisfaction to make it recommended viewing for the fanatic kung fu buff.