Joy Sales HK VCD Synopsis: Having learned that the underworld society smuggled a batch of gold, the police authority sent Hu Pai and so on to watch and arrest. But unexpectedly it's robbed by the 5th Rat of another gang. Therefore, Hu Pai was demoted as a traffic policeman. Hu Pai's girl friend Little Wild Cat intended to join Royal Police but didn't know how to get in, and so handled cases often in the name of Hu Pai. One day, when she met the youngest of Five Rats and was ready to arrest him, but was stopped by Risking San Niang. The second boss of Five Rats and Lawyer contrarily accused Little Wild Cat for pretending to be police. The 5th Rat wanted to sell the robbed gold to the 1st boss, but the latter took possession of it and sent Black Baboon to kill the 5th Rat. Before dying, the 5th Rat said "gold drawing, elder sister, fire" Little Wild Cat and Hu Pai started to investigate the 5th Rat's sister Ever Changing Fox. Fox and her partner Smiling Tiger held the picture of hiding gold. The 1st boss, for the gold, started a chasing fight with Fox, Smiling Tiger and Stupid Rat. They used tricks one another with being extremely ridiculous. (81 Mins)

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Views: Presented by Karl Maka, Dean Shek, and Raymond Wong over at Cinema City, A Book Of Heroes lets you know what kind of film you are in for from the get-go, and hardly stops to catch its breath until it ends. The story opens with a gang of masked-men riding a forklift truck to a robbery, before they find themselves on-the-run from policeman Hu on a bicycle. The chase takes him into the middle of a bike race which results in Hu winning first place. Shifting to the introduction of our lead girl Little Mei who, after challenging some men in a drinking game, brings on the first action-sequence as she takes-on some gangsters in an wonderfully choreographed bar-fight that sees the arrival of the awesome Yukari Oshima, and delivers some hugely impressive stunts that would make even the most hardened Hong Kong action-fan wince in pain. From here on in, A Book Of Heroes gets even more insane as it follows the adventures of the two cops, a couple conmen, an Interpol agent, a gas station attendant, and some angry gangsters in a race to find the stolen gold before Japanese crime boss Yamashita gets his hands on it!

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It's fair to say that this mid 80s action flick is one crazy film – but what else would you expect with director Kevin Chu Yen Ping at the helm? This is the same guy that brought us the equally insane Fantasy Mission Force, the fun Shaolin Popeye movies, the star-studded Island Of Fire, and in recent years the entertaining Kung Fu Dunk and Treasure Hunter with Jay Chou, as well as many other great titles. In fact, his filmography is highly impressive that offers some crazy films and some crackers, but I have to say that I am a fan of his work. Of course, as with the most of his titles from this period, the story and script are so OTT and insane that you must remember to switch your brain off before settling down to watch this one. A Book Of Heroes is a lot of fun and a tad mental at times, offering cartoon-like humour and situations aplenty but at the same time showcases some of the best martial arts fights and stunts ever committed to celluloid, along with a great cast to support it and a fun soundtrack – imagine My Lucky Stars on crack and you've got the picture. This was during a time when Hong Kong action films from Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, and many others, were dominating the box-office, but Taiwanese stuntmen were proving themselves to be on another level altogether. I remember this coming to my attention at an early age while watching the incredibly fun Lucky Seven and being both shocked and amazed at the talent involved. In fact, I'd be as bold to say that some of these very films both offer-up and challenge the action choreography of many great Hong Kong titles – with their only downfall being that their screenplays, directors abilities, and choice of cast weren't always of a higher calibre of what was on offer from their neighbours at this time.

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Taiwanese actor Hu Kua (aka Hu Chih Hsiung) makes his film debut as Hu Pai, the young cop with no luck. His character and looks reminded me of Conan Lee's roles in Tiger On The Beat and Prince Of The Sun, and also stars in Chu's Funny Family that was shot the same year. The lovely Pauline Lan stars as Little Mei - a similarly named character like her one in Funny Family that paired her with Hu Kua once again. This little firecracker had only just made her film debut the year before in Yu Kan Ping's little known Myth Of A City alongside prolific Taiwanese star Sun Yueh – most recognisable to fans in the west as the scruffy old guy in Fantasy Mission Force who enjoys singing – and had vanished from screens for almost 2 decades before coming back for a role in Patrick Tam's drama, After This Our Exile, with Aaron Kwok before continuing her career as a television actress through to today. I have to say, doubled-or-not, Lan most certainly impresses in her first action role and delivers some fun moves throughout the many of her on-screen fights. The always impressive Yasuaki Kurata plays the big villain of the piece, complete with a white cat on his lap and glorious mansion. While I know it's not the same place, his house looks exactly like the same set as the Gentleman's Club from Project A (with the double staircase and chandelier) which had obviously came out a few years earlier. By this stage of the game, Kurata had starred in a strong 50+ titles in Hong Kong and Taiwan, starting with his debut in Chang Cheh's The Angry Guest for Shaw Brothers, going on to star in a host of classics for the studio from Four Riders to Heroes Of The East, and other classic titles such as Secret Of The Shaolin Poles, The Magnificent 3, Legend Of A Fighter, Ninja In The Deadly Trap, Aces Go Places 2, A Life Of Ninja, and the awesome Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars. 1986 would see him also star in The Seventh Curse with Chow Yun Fat and give a highly memorable role in Sammo Hung's epic Millionaires Express, making it the second time that year where he would star alongside the amazing Yukari Oshima after A Book Of Heroes.

 

This has got to be one of my favourite roles with The Osh, and although she's missing for a good chunk in the middle, the Nipponese nutcracker steals the show with her incredible martial arts abilities and fight scenes. Although she had already starred in Japanese television shows, 1986 would be the year that saw her make her Hong Kong/Taiwanese feature film debut starting with the brilliant Kung Fu Wonder Child (with choreography by Alexander Lo Rei), Kevin Chu's Funny Family and A Book Of Heroes, and her show-stopping role in the aforementioned Millionaires Express. Of course, the following year would define her as the 'one-to-watch' with her villainous performance in Angel/Iron Angels alongside Moon Lee, that would start the high-demand of the ass-kicking femme fatale. The wonderful Elsa Yang (aka Queenie Yang) joins the team as one half of the con-artists alongside David Tao Da Wei – who played a similar role alongside Brigitte Lin in Chu's Fantasy Mission Force. Having started in the film industry in the late 1970s with Five Pretty Young Ladies, Yang went onto star in a host of fun titles including Wandering Dragon, The Fight For Shaolin Tamo Mystique, Gold Queen's Commando, Pink Force Commando, Challenge Of The Lady Ninja, and A Life Of Ninja once again with Kurata. I'd say that A Book Of Heroes was one of her last full roles, along with The Kinmen Bombs for director Ting Shan Hsi, but she definitely holds her own alongside Yukari and Pauline as she kicks-ass and looks good doing it.

 

The wonderful Chen Hui Lou – most famously known for his role as The Unicorn in Jackie Chan's Fearless Hyena – cameos as Hu and Little Mei's police chief, and child actor Bin Bin (aka Siu Ban Ban) pops-up for a little bit of action. This is the same cute kid from Wong Jing's fun Magic Crystal, who would retire from the film world at the age of 12 after starring in Sammo Hung's Daddy, Father, Papa – although made a brief return in 2015's Sorry Baby, and is now the father of Little Bin and Mini Bin (I kid you not) who have went on to start acting themselves. The brilliant Eugene Thomas appears as Kurata's right-hand man and gets to show-off his impressive skills once again, going up against all of the heroes at one point or another. I adore seeing this lanky fighter in action – having first caught him in the super fun Ninja USA when I got it on video back in 1990. That would only have been his second role after debuting alongside his close friend, Alexander Lo Rei, in the fantastic Super Ninja in 1984 where he would then go on to star alongside him in films such as Mafia Vs Ninja, Ninja The Final Duel, Ninja Condors, and the cut-and-paste effort Ninja The Battalion. I also can't forget that he was one of the highlights from another of my favourite childhood movies, the aforementioned Lucky Seven, which was made the same year as this and also starred a number of actors here such as the hilarious Fang Cheng – the petrol station attendant with the styled facial hair who also stars in Fantasy Mission Force – as well as the impressive Chang Yi Teng, Tsai Chong Chiu, and Chang Chung Yu...

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The fight action in A Book Of Heroes is incredibly similar to (once again) Lucky Seven, which leads me to believe that some of the same choreographers and stunt-team were on board for that production the same year. The man in charge here though is Lin Wan Chang, a bit-part actor, extra, and choreographer that appeared in many early Joseph Kuo titles as well as films such as Half A Loaf Of Kung Fu, Sun Dragon, Magnificent Bodyguards, Iron Neck Li, Big Boss Of Shanghai, and played the prisoner that escaped in Fantasy Mission Force. But as well as directing the action for a host of Kevin Chu's titles, including the aforementioned Jackie Chan vehicle, Lin went on to direct a handful of films himself including Kung Fu Kids 5 & 6, Young Kickboxer with Alexander Lo Rei, and City Of Darkness with Donnie Yen, Collin Chou/Ngai Sing, and Billy Chow – each of which also star Chang Yi Teng. The fights in A Book Of Heroes are fast and furious, with some amazing moves and plenty of painful looking stunt work that will have you reaching for the rewind button more than a few times. And while the film may have its flaws on a technical level or via its broad comedy, it still makes for a highly entertaining watch and one that's proving harder and harder to find!

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Overall: Crazy fun with awesome fight scenes and mad stunts, makes A Book Of Heroes a must for fans that miss the golden years of Hong Kong cinema!!