It’s finally time to tackle the girls-with-guns subgenre, which is mainly popular because you get to see attractive women beat the crap out of people. Some of these movies have a more comedic tone (The Inspector Wears Skirts) while others are uncomfortably dark at times (Yes Madam!, Royal Warriors), but most of them are crap. That’s not to say that they aren’t entertaining, but they certainly aren’t the highest form of entertainment (though there are some exceptions). Angel (also known as Iron Angels) is kinda both entertaining crap and sometimes a dark action movie.
After the police destroy Thai opium fields, the drug lords lead by Madam Yeung (Oshima Yukari) take action and savagely kill the officers in charge of the raid. The police hire a group of mercenaries called the Angels to take care of things...and by “take care of things,” I mean shoot a bunch of people. That’s pretty much the jist of it.
After the police destroy Thai opium fields, the drug lords lead by Madam Yeung (Oshima Yukari) take action and savagely kill the officers in charge of the raid. The police hire a group of mercenaries called the Angels to take care of things...and by “take care of things,” I mean shoot a bunch of people. That’s pretty much the jist of it.
The opening of the film hints that we’re in for a really dark and intense action movie that takes itself very seriously. That is until we’re introduced to our main protagonists who hang out at nightclubs, wear 80’s outfits, and listen to dated music while engaging in archetypal romantic subplots. It’s evident from the first few minutes that this movie is a product of its time. And in a way, it’s delightfully dated. The overly typical characters, the music, the fashion; They’re all part of the fun.
But still, no one goes to a girls-with-guns movie for stuff like that. We came here for the action! And this movie delivers. Girls-with-guns movies typically feature some really crazy stunts and intense fight scenes, and this movies is no different. There are some pretty painful looking stunts on display including falls, explosions, and car chases. And, of course, all of this is real. So when someone gets hit by a car or just barely jump out of the way from an explosion, you can almost feel it.
But still, no one goes to a girls-with-guns movie for stuff like that. We came here for the action! And this movie delivers. Girls-with-guns movies typically feature some really crazy stunts and intense fight scenes, and this movies is no different. There are some pretty painful looking stunts on display including falls, explosions, and car chases. And, of course, all of this is real. So when someone gets hit by a car or just barely jump out of the way from an explosion, you can almost feel it.
The action is incredible, but the action during the middle of the movie is somewhat downgraded by the characters’ acceptance of what’s going on. It doesn’t really seem like they care. And when the characters don’t care when they’re in danger, so do we. Of course, the end of the movie takes a turn and becomes extremely dark. There are more stunts and more realistic fighting. And it looks awesome. The infamous duel between Moon Lee and Yukari Oshima takes place and it’s probably some of Tony Leung Siu Hung’s best.
The action holds up extremely well, but not much else does. You very easily realize that you probably shouldn’t take this movie too seriously partly due to the sometimes painful dialogue, almost nonexistent character development, and Yukari Oshima as an overly despicable villain that would only exist in an 80’s action movie. But when this movie hits bullseyes, it really freakin’ hits bullseyes. The beginning is fantastic, the ending is fantastic, and the middle has enough stunts and insanity to make this an easy-to-watch action movie.
The action holds up extremely well, but not much else does. You very easily realize that you probably shouldn’t take this movie too seriously partly due to the sometimes painful dialogue, almost nonexistent character development, and Yukari Oshima as an overly despicable villain that would only exist in an 80’s action movie. But when this movie hits bullseyes, it really freakin’ hits bullseyes. The beginning is fantastic, the ending is fantastic, and the middle has enough stunts and insanity to make this an easy-to-watch action movie.
Besides the incredible action and stunts, this movie is full of 80’s action movie cheese which makes me think that this movie is kind of a piece of crap. I’m not saying it’s bad. Heck, it’s a great time, but it’s still crap. Fans of action movies and the girls-with-guns sub-genre will not leave disappointed. It’s nothing ground-breaking, but the action’s great, so who cares?
Images from HKMDb and Fetich World
Images from HKMDb and Fetich World