Operation Scorpio (1992)

Operation Scorpio (1992)
Aka: The Scorpion King
Chinese Title: 蠍子戰士
Translation: Scorpion Warrior

 

Starring: Chin Kar-Lok, Lau Kar-Leung, May Lo Mei-Mei, Kim Won-Jin, Wu Fung, Victor Hon Kwan, David Lo Dai-Wai, Frankie Chan Chi-Leung, Yuen Shun-Yi
Director: David Lai Dai-Wai
Action Directors: Yuen Tak, Corey Yuen Kwai, Lau Kar-Leung

 

In my Dragon Inn (1992) review, I mentioned the rules of wuxia pian for the early 90s. Mainly that they had to be based on a wuxia novel and/or a remake of a Shaw Brothers movie. When it came to kung fu movies, the criteria was a little broader, albeit simultaneously more limiting: the movie had to be about a Chinese folk hero. Thus, the 90s saw numerous films made about Wong Fei-Hung, Fong Sai-Yuk and Hong Xiguan. Even a few lesser-known heroes, like “Iron Bridge” Saam, Beggar So, and Zhang Sanfeng (the fabled founder of Taiqi Quan) had their stories told.

The most notable exception to any of these rules was the 1991 production[1] Operation Scorpio. Unlike Once Upon a Time in China and that film’s clones, there is no message of Chinese nationalism and evil foreigners here. Nor are there any Chinese girls in Western garb. And the villains aren’t those dastardly opium dealers, either. Instead, we get something of an update of the late 70s-early 80s Seasonal formula, with Korean bootmaster Kim Won-Jin standing in for Legendary Superkicker Hwang Jang Lee, and Chin Kar-Lok standing in for Jackie Chan. That last bit only makes sense, as Chin occasionally did stand in for Jackie when it came to executing some of the more advance aerial kicks in his movies.

Chin plays Fei Yuk-Shu, a student with natural drawing abilities who’d prefer to idle his time away drawing superhero comics than study. For the record, the film is set in 1920, predating Superman by 18 years and Batman, the Human Torch, and Sub-Mariner by 19. His dad (Wu Fung, of Skinny Tiger, Fatty Dragon and City Cops) is sacrificing a lot just so his son can get a good education and honor the memory of Yuk-Shu’s deceased mother. It thus irks him to no end that Yuk-Shu is always getting into fights with the school’s jocks, who, in his defense, are a bunch of buttholes.

One evening, Yuk-Shu is out and about for some reason when he comes across a servant girl, Jade (Lady Supercop’s May Lo, who often found herself playing characters named “May” in her movies). Jade works for a crime boss named Mr. Wang (Victor Hon Kwan, of City on Fire and Prison on Fire), who’s heavily invested in the human trafficking business. Wang is blessed with a super-kicking son, Sonny (Kim Won-Jin, of No Problem 2 and China Strike Force), who acts as his bodyguard. Wang also has the police in his pocket, in the form of Inspector Hua (Yuen Shun-Yee, of Dreadnought and Shaolin Drunkard). Yuk-Shu is snooping around the house for whatever reason when he overhears Mr. Wang offering to hand Jade over to Inspector Hua for his personal enjoyment.

Yuk-Shu tells Jade what’s happening and helps her to escape. Although he is ultimately able to escape—thanks to the assistance to a Western-style fitness club of bodybuilders—Wang and his men don’t give up so easily. An altercation on the street results in Yuk-Shu being expelled from school and Wang’s men attack his dad, injuring his leg with bamboo poles. Unable to return home, Yuk-Shu, his dad, and Jade take refuge in a restaurant ran by Master Lo (Lau Kar-Leung, of My Young Auntie and Mad Monkey Kung Fu). Lo offers to teach Yuk-Shu a vocation: making noodles in giant woks. Although Yuk-Shu initially balks at it, he does start picking up some pointers. But he also finds himself sneaking out of the house to practice weightlifting at the club with Bull, the instructor (Full Contact’s Frankie Chan Chi-Leung). Of course, Yuk-Shu will eventually discover that Master Lo is a kung fu master himself and that his noodle-making routine was just a clever ruse for teaching him kung fu. That might come in handy when Yuk-Shu crosses path with the Wang family again.

As you read the synopsis above, did you not get flashbacks to any one of a number of kung fu comedies from the late 70s? A good-hearted protagonist who doesn’t know kung fu? Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow. The hero’s family being dragged into the conflict? You can see that in Snake Fist Fighter and The Fearless Hyena. Kung fu through cooking? There’s a bit of that in The Incredible Kung Fu Master and The Mystery of Chess Boxing. The hero learning at least two styles in order to defeat the villain? Try Daggers 8; Buddha Assassinator; Snake in the Monkey’s Shadow; and numerous others will give you that. The hero creating a style of his own? Once more, that’s Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow and Goose Boxer right there. The only thing that really sets this apart from those movies is the slightly-more modern subplot involving Yuk-Shu’s artistry and some more complex wirework from action director Yuen Tak.

Filmed in 1991, Operation Scorpio came out at a time when Chin Kar-Lok was making an earnest effort to come out on his own as a legitimate action star. Although he’d been working with Sammo Hung since the early 80s, it was usually as a stuntman and fight choreographer. His first real opportunity to show off his skills came in 1988 when he played Anthony Chan’s assistant in Mr. Vampire IV. Golden Harvest invested in him for the big-budget action blowout Bury Me High (1991) and this, but both movies flopped at the local box office. This year also saw Chin Kar-Kok starring alongside his brother, Chin Siu-Ho, in the quasi-porno film Hero Dream. Chin kept on making martial arts movies up through 2000, which saw him fighting Billy Chow in King Boxer, produced by Yuen Woo-Ping’s studio. By that point, it was clear that Chin was going to be neither the next Jet Li nor the next Jackie Chan—despite having doubled him on numerous occasions—and Chin focused his energy on action direction. To this day, Chin has racked up numerous Best Action Choreography nominations, albeit no trophies, for his contributions to Hong Kong action cinema.

As it is, Operation Scorpio is not the best showcase for Chin’s acrobatic skills. While he does show off some of his flexibility at the climax with his made-up “Eel Style,” he spends most of the movie as the shlub who simply doesn’t know how to fight well. That’s unfortunate, as Chin was blessed with a kicking talent that resembles Jet Li on his best, non-wired days and, like many actors from that time, was trained in Peking Opera, different Southern styles (Wing Chun, Hung Gar), and probably tae kwon do, too. Chin gave a much better showcase for his abilities that same year in Martial Arts Master Wong Fei Hung, probably the first movie outside of Jet Li’s Once Upon a Time in China to feature that character.

Stealing the show from Chin Kar-Lok is newcomer Kim Won-Jin, who plays Sonny. Sonny practices a “Scorpion Style” of kicking. Unlike Sun Chien’s Scorpion style in The Five Deadly Venoms, Kim took things several steps further and created his own style. This includes a stance where Kim crouches down on all four, and then lifts his leg over his back, making it resemble a scorpion’s tail. The man is insanely flexible and pulls off some impressive kicks, from spin kicks to jumping spin kicks. Moreover, sometimes he performs a jumping spin kick, only to fall backward and kick out with his other foot to hit his opponent on the way down. That requires some excellent timing. Some of Kim’s movements are enhanced by wires, as was the style of the time. Most aficionados, however, will note the man’s raw talent that shines past the special effects.

Although Yuen Tak is credited as the main action director at the HKMDB, the English-language credits of the international dub also state that Lau Kar-Leung and a “Yuen Fu” were fight choreographers, too. I’m guessing that “Yuen Fu” refers to Corey Yuen Kuei, who worked extensively with Yuen Tak during the 1990s. Tak shows up as one of the villain’s main henchmen, fighting our heroes in the last two set pieces. There is some Superman-esque wirework in the opening fight sequence that is very similar to Saviour of the Soul, which Tak had worked on the year before. Lau Kar-Leung most likely choreographed his own fights, which is him doing his usual hung gar shtick with a heavy emphasis on martial philosophy. This includes Master Lo’s ability to defend himself against Sonny’s kicks by observing the movement of his shoulders. Lau also does a bit more kicking, using the infamous Mo Ying Geuk, or No-Shadow Kick. Unlike that year’s Once Upon a Time in China 2, where the No-Shadow Kick is portrayed as a flying side kick carried out by wires, the kick here is closer to the real thing (also portrayed in Master of Kung Fu and The Magnificent Kick): a very powerful (and fast, obviously) front kick.

Martial arts fans should watch this on the basis of Kim Won-Jin’s physical performance and Lau Kar-Leung’s application of martial philosophy, which he’d been doing since the late 70s. That’s worth the rental (or purchase) price alone. However, given that Tsui Hark and company were giving audiences spectacle, great acting, epic production values, and Jet Li at the time, some may find Operation Scorpio lacking in those regards.

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[1] - The ending credits of the international English dub show a 1991 date, although according to the HKMDB, the film wasn’t actually released until November of 1992.