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Aftermath of a Fire
(1966)
Director: Ling Yun
Cast:
Connie Chan, Josephine Siao, Lee Kui-on
Publisher:
Pearl City; Format: VCD
English subtitles:
No
I love to watch the mohup movies
co-starring Chan Po-chu and Siao Fong-fong. My favorite is Banner
of the Twin Phoenixes (which unfortunately is not available on
video and may actually be lost, since even the Hong Kong Film Archive
does not have a print). Aftermath of a Fire is my second favorite.
What makes it so good is the chemistry between the players and the intricate
plot. Watching this old-time movie, you will see its influence on later
films. Remember the pagoda scene in Bruce Lee’s The
Game of Death (1978)—now where do you think he got that from?
Aftermath of a Fire starts off with two
masters, Nam Lung and Buk Hawk, challenging each other to see
who is “number one” in the martial-arts world. The test is to
hold one’s breath as long as possible—the first one to move loses.
Meanwhile, Chai Ming of the Kay Leen sect (played by Sek Kin) sets
the place on fire, burning them to death. I never found out why he
did that, but it’s not really important. It’s like watching a Columbo
movie: you know who the murderer is—now, how do you prove it. Fifteen
years later, disciples Yeen Yuan Nam (Chan Po-chu) and Kay May (Lee
Kui-on, who played Chan’s heart-throb in The Six-Fingered Lord
of the Lute) are searching for clues to who killed their masters.
At the scene of the crime, Yeen discovers a coin and meets the sassy
Yung Bing (Siao Fong-fong), who engages him in a sparring match before
running away. Somehow because of the coin, Yeen suspects that the Kay
Leen sect are responsible for setting the fire. When he confronts them,
he unintentionally kills one of their disciples in self-defense. Then
Kay May suddenly arrives with a torn piece of cloth left behind by the
arsonist and tells him that Yung Bing’s masters may have set the fire.
Shamed by his deadly mistake, Yeen vows to return to Kay Leen and kill himself
in front of the sect, but first he requests three years to find the murderer.
Yeen and Kay May run into Yung Bing again when
they investigate whether her masters Tien Lung (“Heaven Deaf”)
and Day Ah (“Earth Mute”) were involved in the arson. The torn piece of
cloth does not match her sifus’ robes, so they prepare to leave.
But as the carved stone outside their cave says, “you may enter
but you will leave dead.” Yung Bing attacks Kay May, and both of them
are seriously injured in the ensuing duel. While Yeen tries to find
help for Kay May, a guy named Mok (played by Ng Chin Fung) passes by
and offers his assistance. Mok takes Yeen to see Sou Kay Hak (played
by Ko Lo-chuen), a collector of the world’s best treasures, among which
are some beads with healing powers. Mok bargains with Sou and trades
his sword for two of the beads. They bring the beads back to Kay May
and use one of them to heal her. Then Yeen takes the second bead to Yung
and helps her recover. By now, the two are clearly falling in love. Meanwhile,
Chai Ming is constantly bothering Yeen and making his life miserable
by reminding him of his promise. When Yung asks Yeen what is bothering
him, he tells her that he only has three years to find the murderer or
else he must kill himself. Yung says that meeting him was the happiest
moment in her life and that if he dies she will too.
With the blessing of her sifus, she accompanies
Yeen in his quest to find the murderer and protects him every step
of the way. Meanwhile, Chai Ming’s daughter Chai Gong Ying finds
out that her father is the one who set the fire. Disguised as a man
and calling herself Wun Gong Kay, she decides to help Yeen and Yung
in the hope that she can find redemption for her father. The last scene
of Part 1 finds them at the house of Yang Ching (played by Yung Yuk-yi)
and her all-female disciples. It turns out this woman once had the hots
for Yeen’s masters and was ditched by both of them. So now she wants
revenge against any of their disciples. Yung is poisoned by Yang Ching,
but luckily Wun Gong Kay tells them that there is an antidote. Unfortunately,
they have to enter the deadly pagoda to find it. Part 1 ends here—just
like a Batman and Robin episode—asking whether our heroes can get out alive...
Of course, with the help of Wun, they do survive
the pagoda and find the antidote. But Yeen and Yung still must
deal with the fierce and powerful Yang Ching. Despite a valiant effort,
they are no match for her. Just as they resign themselves to being killed,
Sou Kay Hak comes to the rescue. Meanwhile, Chai Ming is still up
to no good. With the help of his new ally Lui Chung (played by Tong Dik),
he captures Kay May, Mok, and Yung’s sifus, along with their precious
green and white staffs. Then he pays a visit to Yeen and tells him that
time is running out. Yung becomes angry and tries to attack, but Yeen
holds her back. They argue and in the heat of the moment he slaps her in
the face. She runs away upset and ends up meeting a legless sifu who lives
underground. He wants her to set right the evil deeds of his wayward disciple
Lui Chung, who by this time has convinced all the sects that Yeen is a
bad person. How stupid can they be! But I guess back then people don’t
lie. So when they do, everyone believes them. I asked my parents about that—and
that’s what they told me. Just as Yeen is being attacked by all the sects,
Yung comes to the rescue and declares his innocence. Lui Chung then traps
everyone with a giant electrified net, but Yung is able to burn a hole in
it with a fireworks gun that the legless sifu gave her. Our heroes proceed
to break into the Lui Chung’s underground lair and rescue Yung’s sifus.
Heroism wins the day!
Back at the ranch, Yung argues with Yeen telling
him to drop the heroic stuff and not to go to the Kay Leen sect.
Then someone invites them to Mo Tong Mountain. The priest there wants
to tell them who the arsonist is but never gets a chance. There is a
misunderstanding when the members of the Mo Tong sect ask the heroes
to give up their swords, and a fight erupts. Yeen is injured as they
leave. Back home, Yung nurses him but wakes up one morning to find him
missing from bed. Little do they know that Yeen has faked his own suicide
so that Kay May and Yung won’t come after him when he goes to Kay Lin
to give his life to them.
The last scene is the most powerful and climatic. Yeen is ready
to slice his throat when Kay May, who had found out that he is still
alive, suddenly arrives and asks how he can do this and how will Yung
go on living. Then Yung also comes. It is the most sobby scene I have
ever seen: Yung says that Yeen must not die and that if he kills himself
then he must marry her first. So they exchange wedding vows and then
Yung prepares to end his life. Finally, Sou Kay Hak and Mok come to the
rescue. Suddenly, Lui Chung appears and things get chaotic as he tries to
take over the Kay Lin sect. Then the Mo Tong priest comes and tells them
that he witnessed Chai Ming setting the fire. Both Yeen and Kay are ready
to take revenge when Wun suddenly arrives and reveals himself as Chai Ming’s
daughter. Because of all that she did, they spare her father’s life. The
story ends happily with Sou Kay Hak agreeing to give up one of his treasures
to help the Mo Tong priest, as long as Yeen and Yung don’t forget to invite
him to their wedding banquet.
Reviewed by Sue Guttilla
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Connie meets sassy Josephine
at the scene of the crime.
Connie vows to kill himself as payment
for wrongfully killing a member of the Kay Leen sect.
Lee Kui-on and Josephine fight to the
death.
Josephine declares her love to Connie.
Will our heroes survive? Tune in next
week!
Yung Yuk-yi plays the vengeful woman
who was scorned by Connie’s sifus.
Josephine is getting fed up with the
always-up-to-no-good Sek Kin.
The legless sifu’s evil disciple proves
that villains do laugh louder than the average person.
Josephine and Connie exchange marriage
vows moments before Connie must kill himself.
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