Film Name: 皇家女将 / She Shoots Straight / 皇家女將
In October 1989, the mother of the Seven Little Fortunes passed away. The members personally handled the funeral arrangements and attended the memorial service, an experience that may have sparked the idea to pool their talents and produce a female-led action film.
Given their background in Peking Opera troupes, it was only natural for the Seven Little Fortunes to consider using “Women General of Yang Family” as the plot foundation. Most intriguingly, both Sammo Hung’s and Jackie Chan’s teams each contributed an “action starlet”: The former naturally featured Gao Lihong as the lead, while the latter showcased Carina Lau. What many don’t know is that Carina Lau’s screen debut in “Naughty Boys” was produced by Jackie Chan (the end credits show Jackie personally demonstrating action scenes for her). Later films like “Project A II” and “I Am Sorry”—which earned Carina her first Hong Kong Film Award nomination for Best Actress—were also directed or produced by Jackie Chan. In other words, Carina Lau’s martial arts skills were honed by the Jackie Chan Stunt Team. Thus, the pairing of Gao Lihong and Carina Lau in this film represented the female equivalent of Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan—no wonder the posters prominently featured the two of them.
Incidentally, had Michelle Yeoh not retired from acting after marrying Daniel Pan in 1988, Carina Lau’s role likely would have been hers. Yet in this film, Lau leaps and bounds with fierce intensity, truly embodying Jackie Chan’s fighting style; while Gao Lihong naturally channels Sammo Hung’s approach. The task of refining both their techniques into female-suitable combat moves fell to Yuen Kwai.
Supporting roles included Sandra Ng and Leung Wan-sui, both of whom appeared in Jackie Chan-produced films in 1988—either Lady Enforcers or Police Story II (they also co-starred in 1989’s The Inspector Wears Skirts II, again produced by Chan)—showcasing their action skills. They too could be considered “female fighters” cultivated by the Jackie Chan stunt team. In fact, 1988 was a year of dual success for Sandra Ng. While she portrayed an action heroine in “Lady Enforcers,” she simultaneously played an “ugly girl” in Wong Jing’s “The Crazy Companies,” laying the foundation for her later versatile acting career.
As for Deng Biyun, who portrayed the role of Lady She, she was a renowned Cantonese film actress who passed away in 1991. At her funeral, Jackie Chan and Chow Yun-fat jointly carried the coffin, expressing their mother-son-like bond with Deng Biyun—since she frequently portrayed loving mothers in her lifetime, she was affectionately nicknamed “Mama” by industry peers.
The film’s main antagonist, Agnes Aurelio, actually builds upon the image and style of Michiko Saeki from “My Lucky Stars,” as she is a Filipino bodybuilder and wrestler. In fact, director Yuen Kwai excelled at designing fight sequences for actresses from diverse backgrounds. For instance, “Yes, Madam!” showcased Malaysian star Michelle Yeoh and American actress Rhea Rourke. He followed the same formula here, though the climactic duel between Gao Lihong and Agnes Aurelio clearly outshone the Hu Huizhong vs. Michiko Saeki matchup in “My Lucky Stars.”
With Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan producing the martial arts starlet, Yuen Kwai directing, Yuen Wah as the antagonist, Yuen Tak as the martial arts choreographer, and even the script supervisor being Yuen Kik—a junior sister from the “Seven Little Fortunes”—what else would you call this but the “Seven Little Fortunes” crew? Even Liu Zhirong, who plays the obnoxious cop, evokes memories of the shady lawyer in “Police Story.” Before his father Liu Kexuan passed away, he collaborated with Sammo Hung on “Carry On Pickpocket” and with Jackie Chan on “Project A,” so Liu Zhirong had connections with both legends.
Even the supporting cast and extras were a collaboration of several core teams. For instance, from the Hong Family Crew: Zhou Jinjiang (assistant director), Xu Xia, Xiao Dehu, Zhong Fa, and “Sun Wukong” Cao Rong; from the Cheng Family Crew: Yin Fa, Zhu Dou, Jia Shifeng; and Yuan De consistently partnered with Yuan Kui throughout the late 80s. Even the film’s producer, Chen Peihua, had served as producer on multiple films for both Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan. For Sammo, these included “The Prodigal Son,” “The Dead and the Deadly,” “Winners and Sinners,” “My Lucky Stars,” “Heart of Dragon,” “Eastern Condors,” and “Dragons Forever.” For Jackie, they included “Project A” and “Legend of the Brothers.”
So while many may view this as a typical Hong Kong female action film of its era, few realize it’s actually a classic collaboration by the “Seven Little Fortunes.” It could even be called the female counterpart to “Dragons Forever.” This significance alone makes it worth watching.
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