AllMovie

Dirty Ho is director Lau Kar-Leung's masterpiece, a seamless and thrilling blend of story, humor, and martial arts choreography. Gordon Liu plays playboy prince Wang Chin-Chin, who lives a carefree covert life so he that doesn't have to accept his royal responsibilities. To avoid detection by his brother's henchman he has to use is fighting skills discreetly so as not to attract attention, resulting in the film's cleverly and ornately conceived set pieces. In one Wang is challenged to a fight and claims that Kara Hui, playing an anonymous courtesan, is his bodyguard and slyly manipulates her movements (knocking her arm forward, tossing her into a jump kick) so that she fights his adversary. It is a credit to Liu and Lau's choreography and Lui and Hui's physical agility that what sounds utterly implausible becomes an expertly staged showstopper. (Here one can see the influence of Hollywood musicals, particularly Gene Kelly's, on the director's work.) Other highlights include a battle involving umbrellas, spoofs of the gimmicky drunken and animal fighting styles popular in kung fu films at the time, and the final battle when Wang is stabbed in his leg and the crippled hero and his hapless jewel thief protégé Ho Chi (Wong Yue) have to take on General Liang (Lo Lieh) and his henchman. Besides the action sequences just as much attention is given to witty dialogue, characterizations, stylized crane and dolly camera work, and sophisticated editing and structural techniques. Dirty Ho captures the best of Lau's creative strengths, combining drama and action with a cheeky spirit that doesn't diminish the thrill of the fight.