THE SECRET MESSAGE is an amusingly cheap Taiwanese wuxia story with a plot centred around the Poison Clan and the struggle for control after the clan's leader goes missing. Mainly it's a hodge podge of genre tropes and ideas, with a blind swordswoman kicking up a fuss and various encounters in the woods between rival characters. The film has a low key magical aspect to it so you get magic weapons and characters flying through the air as well as a couple of cheesy creations. The cast is generally undistinguished, but there are smaller parts for genre regulars Chen Sing and Phillip Ko, both of whom needed more screen time.
3 Reviews
competent at best
winner5522 August 2006
ej's kung-fu capsule review for films of the chop-socky old-school -
1. basic plot type - historical; clan vs. clan; revenge; some weapons; some magic 'fu; some political intrigue; broken-hearted romance.
2. plot construction - poor; confused and listless.
3. dramatic - tries to be.
4. funny - not at all.
5. dialog - poor.
6. cast performance - just so-so.
7. crew performance - competent at best.
8. amount of fighting - lots.
9. quality of fighting - good.
10. any special cast or crew notes - none.
11. big positive - good fights.
12. big negative - two annoying child-actors.
bottom-line - who should see this movie - only a kung-fu cultist with a Saturday afternoon to waste.
1. basic plot type - historical; clan vs. clan; revenge; some weapons; some magic 'fu; some political intrigue; broken-hearted romance.
2. plot construction - poor; confused and listless.
3. dramatic - tries to be.
4. funny - not at all.
5. dialog - poor.
6. cast performance - just so-so.
7. crew performance - competent at best.
8. amount of fighting - lots.
9. quality of fighting - good.
10. any special cast or crew notes - none.
11. big positive - good fights.
12. big negative - two annoying child-actors.
bottom-line - who should see this movie - only a kung-fu cultist with a Saturday afternoon to waste.
Worst Movie Ever.
datashade22 January 2001
This movie beats Manos Hand of Fate.
Highlights include: exploding German Shepards (in Feudal Japan), keychain-studded scimitar, long-lost relatives who just appear with no introduction or explanation, dissolving ninjas, and a cameo appearance by a magical monkey.
Buy this movie. You will laugh until you cry tears of blood.
Highlights include: exploding German Shepards (in Feudal Japan), keychain-studded scimitar, long-lost relatives who just appear with no introduction or explanation, dissolving ninjas, and a cameo appearance by a magical monkey.
Buy this movie. You will laugh until you cry tears of blood.
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