These are all films where Michelle Yeoh had a major role. Note that she's is credited as "Michelle Khan" up until 1993.
"Yes, Madam" (1985)
I don't know how many of you have seen any of Michelle Yeoh's early work, pre-Hollywood, pretty much anything before
Tomorrow Never Dies, but I never had, so this was my first time watching
Yes, Madam. If you like silly foreign '80s action movies that have been dubbed, you'll like this. If that's not your thing, then I don't recommend it. I liked it, but it's not anything great. I enjoyed it for what it was.
Michelle Yeoh plays a cop, who's partnered with another female cop from Britain who's been sent to Hong Kong. They have track down a criminal who works for a pair of white-collar seemingly above-board crime bosses that nothing can be pinned on. In the process, Michelle Yeoh's character and her buddy-cop are aided by two comic relief characters who got mixed up with the criminals as they go after the bad guys. Hijinks ensue.
The British female cop is tough as nails and takes crap from no one. Michelle Yeoh's cop, on the other hand, is the Good Cop who's as pleasant as she is professional, but can still kick your ass.
Better still, considering this was made in the '80s, I'm impressed they didn't make Michelle Yeoh's character a love interest. A cop and a martial artist who just happens to be a woman, and having it be portrayed in a positive light.
The ending, if you haven't seen it, is totally crazy. I'm not going to give it away. That's all I really have to say about
Yes, Madam. I enjoyed watching this. It's as far from Star Trek as you can get. So, it's a nice change-of-pace and I look forward seeing more of Michelle Yeoh's work.
"Royal Warriors" (1986)
This is definitely a far better action vehicle for Michelle Yeoh. She kicks ass and takes names in this film. It's a revenge story, on multiple fronts, even though the story is really just there to set-up context for all amazingly choreographed action scenes. It doesn't the goofy craziness of
Yes, Madam, but it does have some crazy over-the-top Hong Kong action. Michelle Yeoh's totally in her element and her character is the one who saves the day and stops the Bad Guy.
I was hoping to find a dubbed version of
Royal Warriors on Tubi, but it kept taking me to another Michelle Yeoh film,
Magnificent Warriors. So, I ended up watching
Royal Warriors on Darkroom and in Cantonese with English subtitles. If you're into '80s Hong Kong action films, you'll love this one.
"Magnificent Warriors" (1987)
Back to Tubi for this one.
Magnificent Warriors is a step up for Michelle Yeoh. This film is a period piece, making this her highest profile movie up to this point. It takes place in the 1930s and a group of fighters, led by Michelle Yeoh's character, have to stand up to the Japanese military. Once again, the actual plot is secondary to the fight scenes and the pyrotechnics, but Michelle Yeoh's charisma, personality, and martial arts stand out.
My favorite scene is when Michelle Yeoh's character and two others are captured and taken prisoner. They're about to be executed, and none of these characters knew each other before, but they suddenly know all about each other, their lives, and their backstories. It's pretty funny. But it would never work in the United States where everything is taken so literally.
After
Magnificent Warriors, Michelle Yeoh got married and retired from acting. She doesn't do any more movies for the next five years. After her marriage ends, she gets back into acting and makes up for lost time in a big way. But that's for another time.
"Super Cop" (1992)
Michelle Yeoh's first film in five years, but it's really a Jackie Chan film that Michelle Yeoh just happens to be in. She plays a no-nonsense military officer to Jackie Chan's police officer. It's more of a steppingstone, from Michelle Yeoh's end, to get her back into show business. What they have here is something that was avoided in her '80s films I've watched. In one scene, Michelle Yeoh's character wants to talk business, but Jackie Chan tries to flirt with her. Luckily, she's not having any of it.
There's a
Super Cop 2, but I'll swing around back to it later.
"The Heroic Trio" (1993)
This film is what I consider to be Michelle Yeoh's true comeback. This is the first time she's credited as Michelle Yeoh instead of "Michelle Khan". She plays one of three superheroines who rescue babies from an evil and all-powerful kidnapper. It's quirky but fun. The trio of heroines are referred to as wonder women, they have past histories and have saved each other from death. I enjoyed this more than most 21st Century superhero movies I've seen.
"Holy Weapon" (1993)
This is the first of these movies I'm watching that I'm not enjoying on any level. I shut it off part-way through. It takes place sometime during the Qing Dynasty (which lasted from 1644 to 1912), the violence is so over-the-top I can't take it seriously, and there's no real story. Michelle Yeoh is in the film, but she's not in it that much from what I can tell. I'm not interested enough in it to continue. At least not sober and not while I have other and better things to watch. But... Severed limbs, horses' heads being chopped off, human bodies exploding as they collide into each other in the air with blood splattering everywhere? What's not to love?
"Wonder Seven" (1994)
I can't find this movie anywhere available for streaming. I checked multiple platforms. Regardless, it's a movie I want to talk about it for reasons that will become clear. I'll quote the description of it from Plex TV:
"Wonder Seven, a secret group of well-trained government agents in China, has been assigned a case of a computer disc robbery. At first everything seems to go smooth, when a disastrous national conspiracy unravels."
Sounds like a precursor to
Section 31. That being the case, I can see why Michelle Yeoh would be interested in a project like S31. I wish there was a way for me to watch
Wonder Seven, but it wasn't meant to be, so moving along...
"Wing Chun" (1994)
Like the
Holy Weapon, this movie takes place during the Qing Dynasty, but it's an action-comedy instead a bad action movie, and it's a much better showcase of Michelle Yeoh's talents. In particular, her abilities as a martial artist are on full display. With a bo, with a sword, acrobatics, kickboxing, and hand-to-hand fighting. She has an amazing speed and agility. Great defensive, great offensive.
One common thing in the period pieces is they always observe Michelle Yeoh's characters are wearing men's clothing. She's also underestimated as a fighter by the men until she proves them wrong. On the other end, in this movie, other women characters are asking her why she doesn't wear women's clothes, and they think she should be more feminine. Although, in the end, her character does end up getting married.
I think it's possible the creators used to the period piece to mask similar spoken or unspoken attitudes in the Present Day.
In several of her films, period piece or not, she teams up with a group of characters. Sometimes all women. Amazing for the time, and I'm starting to think Michelle Yeoh is sort of like Hong Kong's Sigourney Weaver or Linda Hamilton. The action star who's a woman, standing out in a genre dominated by men.
"Stunt Woman" (1996)
This was Michelle Yeoh's best film up to this point. She plans a stuntwoman on set while they're trying to make a movie. It shows all set-ups, and everything involved in putting together stunt scenes for the movie-within-a-movie. Within this film is also a true love story for Michelle Yeoh's character that doesn't work out and feels believable. I don't want to spoil the plot in case anyone ever decides to watch it, but it shows how dangerous performing stunts can be. And in certain shots, you can get a real sense of dread. Especially when jumping from heights.
Unlike with Michelle Yeoh's other movies, this one is slower paced, isn't all action for the most part, except when stunts are performed, and we see some of the film crewmember's lives as well. Again, I won't spoil anything, but we to see the director's family life and that weaves into the story as well.
Martial arts isn't the only thing on display here.
Stunt Woman spotlights Michelle Yeoh's acting ability in a dramatic role that's more grounded than she had done up to this point in movies where action was the main focus. You really get the sense in here that Michelle Yeoh wanted to spread her wings. And, if you don't mind reading subtitles, I recommend it.
