Matching Escort | aka Wolfen Ninja (1982) Review

"Matching Escort" American DVD Cover

AKA: Wolf Devil Woman 2, Venus the Ninja
Director: Pearl Chang Ling
Cast: Pearl Chang Ling, Meng Fei, Wong Hap, Peng Kang, Sek Fung, Chui Chung Hei, Chan Gwan Biu, Ho Hing Nam, Chai Hau Keung, Philip So Yuen Fung, Wong Kwok Fai
Running Time: 94 min.

By Milkcan

“Matching Escort” is one part a comedy, one part a revenge story, and one part about teamwork (and on the side there is a hint of romance). Keeping this in mind, as well as the overall history of these type of low budget movies, it amazingly stays focused and holds up well through the end. The princess of a respected emperor witnesses her father’s murder at the hands of an enemy vying for complete power of the land. She escapes death and, as time goes by, befriends an elderly man who teaches her in the ways of martial arts, preparing her for a showdown with the father’s murderer. This princess character is played by an actress by the name of Pearl Cheung. I haven’t seen a movie with her starring in it before, but I would most definitely now like to view more of her work. Her facial features, her body movements, the way she rolls her eyes and makes faces- this is an actress meant for physical comedy. I thoroughly enjoyed Cheung’s performance, and it was the saving grace of this movie.

Now, the comedy here is not brilliant or very funny. It is the type of comedy that stirs laughter amongst children, and has that absurd quality that can be found in a lot of anime shows. But it was Cheung’s performance that did make me smile several times. This comedy remains in the film throughout the first half, and occasionally will reappear later on, except in those scenes it is brought on by a different character: as a side story, a mysterious young warrior and his servant happen to appear everywhere at the right moments, and the servant is one of those dim-witted, slapstick kinda guys (although this setup doesn’t hinder the film, these two characters could have been avoided at no cost). By the time Cheung’s character learns how to fight, the movie plunges deep into bloodshed and revenge. Taking place mainly during the night hours, the killing scenes are well done and brought on by Cheung with a certain confident, cold-blooded feeling. She moves with the speed and flexibility of a Japanese samurai, drawing the blade, slicing, and retreating it back quickly. The fight scenes consist of a good deal of jumping and leaping, characters who cough up and spew blood, severed limbs, and interesting camera tricks that make characters seem as if they move at the speed of light. Even now, Pearl Cheung convincingly plays the part with a great seriousness and dark tone.

“Matching Escort” may not be the best the genre has to offer, and it may have hilariously silly sets and props, but it was made an enjoyable experience thanks to the exuberant and lovable Pearl Cheung.

Milkcan’s Rating: 8/10