Bullet Points: The Prodigal Boxer
Just before Alexander Fu Sheng stepped into the role of Chinese folk hero Fang Shih-Yu (aka Fong Sai-Yuk) in Heroes Two, Men from the Monastery and Shaolin Temple and decades before Jet Li did it in The Legend and The Legend II, Meng Fei would take on the role in 1972’s The Prodigal Boxer…
- Mama’s Boy: Fong Sai-Yuk (Meng Fei) is a martial artist who trains under the watchful eye of his mother (played by Pai Hung). Fong Sai-Yuk’s mother does not like when her son goes out galivanting with his friends, fearing he’s going to use the skills she has taught him to get into fights and cause trouble. As an audience we can relate to her fears because as the movie begins Fong Sai-Yuk and his friends are gambling on cricket fights with a group of students from Iron Hand Tan’s school and chaos ensues… resulting in Fong Sai-Yuk unintentionally killing one of Iron Hand’s students so we already know that Mama Fong’s fears are not unfounded. But despite his mother’s protests, Fong Sai-Yuk hops the wall and goes out with his friends… figuring it would be easier to ask for forgiveness later than her permission now.
- BMF’s: When word gets back to Iron Hand Tan (Kurata Yasuaki, Edge of Fury) that one of his students was killed by Fong Sai-Yuk, he and his brother (who actually seems to be the one with the iron hands, while his brother has the iron feet) take some of their students and go to the home of Fong Sai-Yuk. When they arrive Fong Sai Yuk is still out with his friends, when Iron Hand Tan explains he is there to take Fong Sai-Yuk down to the police for killing one of his students… Mama Fong can not believe her son would kill anyone… and moments later a fight erupts. The fight ends tragically when Fong Sai-Yuk’s father, who was a businessman not a fighter, is killed.
- Proud Mama: Contrary to what his mother may have believed, Fong Sai-Yuk and his friends were actually out looking for some thieves who robbed a young woman Siu Pin (Maggie Li Lin-Lin) and her mother who were passing through town. Fong Sai-Yuk does in fact track the thieves down and after a big martial arts battle, he recovers the stolen money. Surely this good deed will more than make up for Fong Sai-Yuk disobeying his mother’s orders, in fact Fong Sai-Yuk believe his mother will actually be proud of him so he returns home with a great deal of confidence… and that’s when his mother breaks the devastating news about his father’s death
- Mother Knows Best: Knowing her impetuous son will want to seek revenge before he is properly trained to do so, she doesn’t tell him who is responsible. Instead, they pack up and go out to the country where they can lay low and Fong Sai-Yuk can receive the additional training he’ll need to avenge his father’s death… but it isn’t long before Fong Sai-Yuk strong arms two of the family’s servants into telling him who killed his father. And the moment he finds out, he hops on a horse and heads to Iron Hand Tan’s school… things don’t end well for Fong Sai-Yuk, after he is nearly beaten to death trying to avenge his father… his mother was right, he was not ready for the task. And it isn’t long before his mother shows up to bring her son back with her, with some help from Siu Pin. The two women begin the long process of nursing Fong Sai-Yuk back to health.
- Mother May I: Once Fong Sai-Yuk is healthy again, his mother resumes his training and it isn’t long before his skills show improvement… but it also isn’t long before he grows tired of being out in the middle of nowhere and he is asking his mother if he can go into town. Mama Fong says no way, but that’s never stopped Fong Sai-Yuk before. Siu Pin accompanies Fong Sai-Yuk on his trip to town (she is crushing on him hard at this point) and it is seemingly a welcome break for the two… until Fong Sai-Yuk notices some Iron Hand students causing trouble and he can’t help himself but to get involved. The result of his sticking his nose in their business… Fong Sai-Yuk ends up fighting Iron Hand Tan and his brother once again and once again Fong Sai-Yuk gets his ass kicked! But to his credit (and the credit of his training), he gets his ass kicked way less than the first time he met the dastardly duo. Fong Sai-Yuk’s mother and Siu Pin scoop him up again, take him home, nurse him back to health and as soon as he is able to resume training he does so.
- Mama Said Knock You Out: Fong Sai-Yuk’s mother finally decrees he is ready to avenge the death of his father… but she doesn’t want Fong Sai-Yuk to just go kill them, that’ll get him thrown in jail. Instead, she has Fong Sai-Yuk formally challenge Iron Hand Tan and his brother, because apparently if you kill your opponent in competition with an audience in attendance it is a murder loophole. But two important questions remain, will the third time be the charm for Fong Sai-Yuk and more importantly will his mother survive until the end of the movie???
I have seen countless films featuring the martial arts teacher/student trope, but of all those movies I can’t recall one featuring a mother/son dynamic like The Prodigal Boxer. But that novelty is not the only thing that made The Prodigal Boxer stand out for me, the strong performances by both Pai Hung and Meng Fei in their respective roles made the story work. And if I am talking performances, I can’t leave out Kurata Yasuaki, who exudes movie bad guy energy every second he is on screen.
You know what else I can’t leave out? Bonus Bullet Points…
- AKA: The Prodigal Boxer was released under different titles in the United States… Kung Fu: The Punch of Death, Kick of Death and Death Punch.
- The Basher Box: A restored version of The Prodigal Boxer was released as part of Pearl River Collection’s The Basher Box (along with The Awaken Punch). The Basher Box version features an all new 4K transfer from a 35mm negative of The Prodigal Boxer and it also features a commentary track with the hosts of The Clones Cast, Michael Worth and Matthew Whittaker.
- Reprisal: Meng Fei would reprise the role of Fong Sai-Yuk in several movies including The Secret of the Shaolin Poles and The Invincible Kung Fu Trio.
