cityonfire.com | Her Name is Cat

	Her Name is Cat "The movie is as stupid as it's title." - Mighty Peking Man Her Name is Cat (1998) Literally: Panther Girl Director: Clarence Ford (Fok Yiu-Leung) Producer: Albert Yeung Writer: Jing Wong Cast: Almen Wong Pui-Ha, Michael Wong Man-Tak, Chong Wing, Ben Lam Kwok-Bun Running Time: 89 min. Plot: Leopard Girls Yien Yin and Na Chuen were bodyguards of China's leaders. They both moved to Hong Kong and became assassins for Sister Shin. John, who is a Sergeant in Police Force, out of his original sense manages to trace the Leopard-Girl. To his surprises, John finds that he himself is instead being followed by Yien Yin and finally they take to each other. During her last mission to kill Councilor Chiang Hwa, Yien Yin fails for the reason that John and his daughter Bibi are on the scene as well. Sister Shin is so angry that she decides to kill Yien Yin. And from that moment, Yien Yin and John have to be on the run. Reviews ALVIN GEORGE'S REVIEW: "Her Name is Cat" is a pseudo-Woo movie that is confusing, irritating, and sometimes downright dull. It's a situation of style over substance (read: the plot is stupid as hell), and I didn't like the style. I've seen a lot of stylized movies in my lifetime ("Hard-Boiled," "Personal Best," "Star 80," "Pulp Fiction," "The Outsiders," and "Streets of Fire," just to name a few), but this one doesn't cut it. The leading lady, playing a cat-like assassin, lacks the on-screen charisma of, say, Michelle Yeoh. I have to admit that the fast-forward button was my best friend during the movie, and the minute it started to turn into a sappy romantic drama, I shut the damn VCR off, not watching the movie any further. The only parts that got me going were the big violent action scenes and the various scenes of the girl working out while techno music plays on the soundtrack. One action scene involving hand-to-hand combat isn't as good as such scenes found in a Bruce Lee movie, let alone a Jackie Chan movie. During the exercise scenes, I couldn't help but think of the various scenes from the "Rocky" movies where Sylvester Stallone trains while dramatic music plays on the soundtrack, plus that one scene in the "Charlie's Angels" feature film where the girls kicked ass while the song "Smack My Bitch Up" played on the soundtrack. You know a Hong Kong film sucks when the Chinese director puts an Anglicized name on the credits. That was the case for "Slaughter in San Francisco," where the notorious Lo Wei used the pseudonym William Lowe (no relation to Rob) to put on the credits, and it's the case for "Her Name is Cat" also. Where's Michelle Yeoh when you desperately need her? ALVIN GEORGE'S RATING: 2.5/10 YATE'S REVIEW: I just dont know what to make of this film. It sure as hell is no Naked Killer. The action is really uninspired, the plot utterly terrible, and the performances sub-par. There were some redeeming qualities though. Almen Wong and Michael Wong look good together. The stylishness of the direction was decent, though it did tend to give me a headache. Overall, a substandard film. I really did expect better from Clarence Ford. YATE'S RATING: 5/10 MIGHTY PEKING MAN'S REVIEW: One of the most silliest plots in Hong Kong Cinema - if you can follow it. Here's what I caught: Some chick, who eats nothing but instant noodles, loses her unborn baby due to multiple blows to the belly. Then, for some reason, she becomes a cat-like assassin. In the next scene, after a techno-inspired work-out session, she blows a few bad guys to pieces. Because of this, she is hunted by a cop (played by Michael Wong) whom she later figures out is on to her. She ends up falling in love with him and vice versa. After a few "Chungking Express-like" incidents, the two become lovers and fight for their lives against the enemies. Director Clarence Ford (Naked Killer) tries too hard to make a stylish, cutting edge, sexy, romance, action, thriller and he misses, by miles. "Her Name is Cat" is confusing, boring, and the leading actress, probably due to her role, has no screen presence at all. In other words, this movie sucks chunks. The movie is as stupid as it's title. MIGHTY PEKING MAN'S RATING: 1/10

Her Name is Cat

"The movie is as stupid as it's title."

- Mighty Peking Man

Her Name is Cat (1998)

Literally: Panther Girl

Director: Clarence Ford (Fok Yiu-Leung)

Producer: Albert Yeung

Writer: Jing Wong

Cast: Almen Wong Pui-Ha, Michael Wong Man-Tak, Chong Wing, Ben Lam Kwok-Bun

Running Time: 89 min.

Plot: Leopard Girls Yien Yin and Na Chuen were bodyguards of China's leaders. They both moved to Hong Kong and became assassins for Sister Shin. John, who is a Sergeant in Police Force, out of his original sense manages to trace the Leopard-Girl. To his surprises, John finds that he himself is instead being followed by Yien Yin and finally they take to each other. During her last mission to kill Councilor Chiang Hwa, Yien Yin fails for the reason that John and his daughter Bibi are on the scene as well. Sister Shin is so angry that she decides to kill Yien Yin. And from that moment, Yien Yin and John have to be on the run.

Reviews

ALVIN GEORGE'S REVIEW: "Her Name is Cat" is a pseudo-Woo movie that is confusing, irritating, and sometimes downright dull. It's a situation of style over substance (read: the plot is stupid as hell), and I didn't like the style. I've seen a lot of stylized movies in my lifetime ("Hard-Boiled," "Personal Best," "Star 80," "Pulp Fiction," "The Outsiders," and "Streets of Fire," just to name a few), but this one doesn't cut it. The leading lady, playing a cat-like assassin, lacks the on-screen charisma of, say, Michelle Yeoh. I have to admit that the fast-forward button was my best friend during the movie, and the minute it started to turn into a sappy romantic drama, I shut the damn VCR off, not watching the movie any further. The only parts that got me going were the big violent action scenes and the various scenes of the girl working out while techno music plays on the soundtrack. One action scene involving hand-to-hand combat isn't as good as such scenes found in a Bruce Lee movie, let alone a Jackie Chan movie. During the exercise scenes, I couldn't help but think of the various scenes from the "Rocky" movies where Sylvester Stallone trains while dramatic music plays on the soundtrack, plus that one scene in the "Charlie's Angels" feature film where the girls kicked ass while the song "Smack My Bitch Up" played on the soundtrack. You know a Hong Kong film sucks when the Chinese director puts an Anglicized name on the credits. That was the case for "Slaughter in San Francisco," where the notorious Lo Wei used the pseudonym William Lowe (no relation to Rob) to put on the credits, and it's the case for "Her Name is Cat" also. Where's Michelle Yeoh when you desperately need her?

ALVIN GEORGE'S RATING: 2.5/10

YATE'S REVIEW: I just dont know what to make of this film. It sure as hell is no Naked Killer. The action is really uninspired, the plot utterly terrible, and the performances sub-par. There were some redeeming qualities though. Almen Wong and Michael Wong look good together. The stylishness of the direction was decent, though it did tend to give me a headache. Overall, a substandard film. I really did expect better from Clarence Ford.

YATE'S RATING: 5/10

MIGHTY PEKING MAN'S REVIEW: One of the most silliest plots in Hong Kong Cinema - if you can follow it. Here's what I caught: Some chick, who eats nothing but instant noodles, loses her unborn baby due to multiple blows to the belly. Then, for some reason, she becomes a cat-like assassin. In the next scene, after a techno-inspired work-out session, she blows a few bad guys to pieces. Because of this, she is hunted by a cop (played by Michael Wong) whom she later figures out is on to her. She ends up falling in love with him and vice versa. After a few "Chungking Express-like" incidents, the two become lovers and fight for their lives against the enemies. Director Clarence Ford (Naked Killer) tries too hard to make a stylish, cutting edge, sexy, romance, action, thriller and he misses, by miles. "Her Name is Cat" is confusing, boring, and the leading actress, probably due to her role, has no screen presence at all. In other words, this movie sucks chunks. The movie is as stupid as it's title.

MIGHTY PEKING MAN'S RATING: 1/10