Kung Fu Kids III (1987)

Kung Fu Kids III (1987)
Aka Young Dragons: Kung Fu Kids 3
Chinese Title: 苦兒流浪記
Translation: The Wanderer

 

Starring: Yan Tseng-Kuo, Tso Hsiao-Hu, Chen Chung-Jung, Tien Feng, Liu Yo-Pin, Yue Siu-Fan
Director: Lin Fu-Ti
Action Director: Lam Man-Cheung

 

In 1986, Kevin Chu Yen-Ping, the demented director of such fare as Fantasy Mission Force and Island of Fire, hit pay dirt with Kung Fu Kids, which ended up being a huge success worldwide (possibly one of the most popular Taiwanese films before Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon?). Naturally, a sequel came out in short order, and pitted the kids against Dick Wei, of all people. Both of those films were infantile comedies with smatterings of well-choreographed fight scenes, set in the modern day. The following year, a second sequel was made. Despite the poster, which suggests more of the same, this is a  surprisingly-somber melodrama set in the Republic Era of China.

Fatty (Chen Chung-Jung) lives with his father and stepmother, the latter of whom barely tolerates him. When she gives birth to her first child, Fatty leaves home in search for his mother, who disappeared when he was a baby. He shows up at a neighboring city and falls in with a kung fu pickpocket (Yan Tseng-Kuo), whose guardian trains street orphans to steal. Those two get into some hijinks and end up getting accepted into a Peking Opera Troupe, ran by an aging Tien Feng. Their rival there is Tiger (Tso Hsiao-Hu, also known as Jet Le), a highly-acrobatic kid on the troupe. Tiger and Pickpocket initially dislike each other, but slowly become friends.

The three friends get into numerous conflicts, sometimes with each other, sometimes with those closest to them, and sometimes with their own personal demons. At one point, Pickpocket’s master kidnaps the daughter of a rich guy and hopes to get rich off the ransom. In another scene, Tien Feng accuses Tiger of stealing, only to find out that Tiger has been saving money on the sly to pay off his indentured servitude with the troupe. Finally, the three flee the city during a bombing (the Japanese? A rival warlord?) and take to the countryside with a mute woman (Yue Siu-Fan), who eventually turns out to be Fatty’s mother.

If one were to guess from the opening twenty minutes, you’d think that this would be a typical Kung Fu Kids film simply transplanted to the 1920s (or thereabouts). There’s some wallet-stealing hijinks and stuff like that, but that quickly gives way to overwrought melodrama and some heavy themes for what should be a jokey kids film. Each of the three kids attempt suicide at some point, for example. The most poignant example is Tiger, where he’s brutally whipped by Tien Feng because of the aforementioned money fiasco, and then goes onstage and proceeds to perform somersaults in place for about two minutes straight before passing out. It’s obvious from the context that his intention was going to try to force himself to do that until his heart stopped.

There are also themes of kidnapping, exploiting children, and lots of child abuse on display. Pickpocket is frequently severely beaten by his master, who exploits all the children under his “care.” Tien Feng frequently hits Tiger, which, as we now know, was very common in the Peking Opera environment. When Tiger gets his caning, the camera doesn’t shy away from showing his bloodied back covered with deep lacerations. I think “kids movies” in the past twenty years or so have become increasingly childish, shying away from dealing with themes that might generate a dialog between parents and children about them. Whether or not Kung Fu Kids III is the place to bring up these subjects, I’m not sure. But I don’t think you could ever make a Three Ninjas movie back in the 90s that explored some of the more disturbing aspects of family life and adolescence.

Speaking of Three Ninjas, the fight choreography was provided by Lam Man-Cheung, best known for Black City; Death Games; and The Three Ninjas Knuckle Up. There aren’t many fights, though. Early on, lead actors Yan Tseng-Kuo and Tso Hsiao-Hu have a fight on stilts that’s reminiscent of Ninja in the Dragon’s Den, which is rather impressive given the age of the participants. A little later, the same actors have a Peking Opera competition performing acrobatics and some short-lived fisticuffs. After that, the martial arts on display is limited to a couple of Peking Opera shows. There is no main villain, or climatic fight, in this movie, though. I honestly thought that Pickpocket’s guardian would become the main villain, but his subplot is resolved at around the hour mark…with only a punch or two thrown. DISAPPOINTING!!!

Yeah, there isn’t much reason to watch this film unless you’re a Kung Fu Kids completist or something of the sort. It’s not a bad movie, and it honestly tries to be more than an action film with children, but the Kung Fu Kids banner was not the right place to do a coming of age film set in period.