#mona fong

[gokaiju]

唐朝豪放女 (An Amorous Woman of Tang Dynasty) (Eddie Fong, 1984) Cover for Spectrum Films by Gokaiju

[fibula-rasa]

The Lady is the Boss (1983)

Director: Lau Kar-leung

Cinematographer: Tsao An-Sung

Producer: Mona Fong

This entry of Female Filmmaker Friday might need a little explanation, so here:

Who is Mona Fong?

Mona Fong Yat-wah, who passed away just last fall at 83, was a successful nightclub singer that went on to become a key force in the production department at Shaw Brothers Studio. In 1969, Fong gave up music to work for SB under Run Run Shaw (who she would marry nearly 30 years later). In less than a decade, Fong became a producer for the studio ushering in its golden age of martial-arts pictures.

Fong produced many of SB’s most iconic films of the late 1970s through 1980s. Among the 164 production credits she racked up are many Lau Kar-leung helmed classics including The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978) and Legendary Weapons of China (1982). And the film above, The Lady is the Boss (1983).

Fong held high positions at TVB, one of the largest commercial television producers in China, between 1988 and 2012. While Fong slowed down on the film production front in that time, she still managed to produce Hero (1997), an oft-lauded film from the late-90s wuxia revival.

You might wonder why I didn’t choose one of her more well-known films -- like those I listed above. That’s simply because more people should watch The Lady is the Boss. Kara Hui is one of my personal favorite kung-fu film actors and I relish the films she got to lead. The Lady is the Boss is scripted, directed, and choreographed by Lau Kar-leung, so it’s a given that it’s an expertly constructed film with perfectly shot and imaginative fight scenes (even a BMX fight sequence). And yes, that also means she bankrolled Gordon Liu’s baby oil habit.

It’s also genuinely funny.

What’s the movie about?

The master of a struggling traditional martial arts school has passed away and Chen Mei Ling (Kara Hui), the highest-ranking member of the martial arts family, comes to Hong Kong from America to take over her father’s school. There’s an uncomfortable adjustment period for the head instructor of the school (Lau Kar-leung) and his students as Chen tries to modernize the school and bring in new students. Chen comes up with a ton of marketing schemes for the school but runs into trouble when her new class in constructed primarily of night-club denizens. In fact, all the new women students are escorts at a bar run by a gangster. The gangster is none too pleased that his escorts now know how to defend themselves and this leads to a final battle at a gymnasium between the gangsters and the martial artists.

I know a lot of martial-arts movie fans aren’t big on the more humorous films out of Hong Kong, but just chill out and have fun with this one.

[myfavoritepeterotoole]

Peter O'Toole and Mona Fong

*** Mona Fong (Chinese name: 方逸華 / 27 July 1934 - 22 November 2017) was a Hong Kong film and television producer and production manager.

[jus-a-dash]

R.I.P. Bruce Lee and Mona Fong

[leonardcohenofficial]

[2getherinelectricdreams]

<3

[filmfandojo]

Mona Fong famed producer if such kung fu cult classics as Five Venoms, The Kid with The Golden Arm, Shaolin Temple, Challenge of the Masters and numerous other Shaw classics (as well as numerous TV series and programs) passed away at eh age of 89. She was an unsung hero and force behind Shaw Brothers Studio and confidant to Sir Run Run Shaw. She will be missed!

[myfavoritepeterotoole]

Peter O'Toole and Mona Fong (Producer) 1960s