The Lady is the Boss

What begins as a lighthearted battle of the sexes turns into a spectacular martial arts display in Lau Kar-leung’s The Lady is the Boss (1983).  The legendary Hong Kong stuntman/director fills his film with a cast of all-stars and fun callbacks to previous hits while riffing on the modern woman attitudes imported from the U.S. 

Mei Ling (Kara Hui), American-born and raised, arrives in Hong Kong to take over her father’s struggling martial arts school. But her gender doesn’t cause nearly as much controversy as her business tactics, which includes recruiting new students from discos, brothels and gay bars.  While the older students buy in to her trendy techniques, the old master (played by Lau Kar-leung himself) considers it a betrayal of his conversative teachings.  So when a local triad threatens revenge, he’s torn between saving face and saving his beloved school.

Miraculously The Lady is the Boss manages to never offend its audience while tackling some pretty touchy subjects.  The first half focuses on horny humor but when Mei Ling proves herself more than a match for any man, Lau Kar-Leung’s film goes into overdrive. From a clever scene involving escorts using their newfound skills to fend off handsy clients to a BMX bike demonstration that leaves every opponent in the dust, what could have been just another Inspector Wear Skirts spoof turns out to be a kung-fu movie that ranks right up there among the best the decade had to offer.

88 Films gives the film its US Blu-ray premiere from a new transfer using the original negative packaged in a classy slipcover that hides the original cover art underneath.  Extras include a commentary from Frank Djeng, interview with Sam Ho on Lau Kar-leung’s legacy and still gallery.

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