DVD Synopsis: The only clue to a mysterious murder at a wedding ceremony, is a begonia – who left it and why sets the scene to a tale of fantastic magic and incredible fantasy which weaves itself round phenomenal swordplay and outrageous martial arts! It's colourful, it's fascinating, it's a trip! (90 Mins)

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Views: This early 80s Taiwanese adventure offers somewhat of a confusing plot, depending on which version you were lucky enough to watch. Jade Dagger Ninja features no ninjas in the classic sense (or jade daggers at that) but revolves around a highly sought-after statue known as the Purple Jade Badger. Perhaps it was a title or matter that got lost in translation – or perhaps it was a simple fact that a film called the Jade Badger Ninja just wouldn't be as appealing. Also known as the Shaolin Fox Conspiracy, the film works its way around the upcoming wedding of Yu Long (Tien Ho) and Aurora (Doris Lung) who, while on a walk one day, gets attacked and is saved by The Flying Fox (Roc Tien). As Yu Long approaches, he gets a tad jealous of their newfound friendship – something that continues throughout as Aurora agrees to help The Flying Fox get help for the murder of his wife. One particular object can help – the Purple Jade Badger, a priceless statue that contains a magical elixir that grants those that drink it, invincibility. The statue lies in the hands of Governor Liu (Wang Hsieh), Aurora's father, and it doesn't take long for The Flying Fox to find out that he's not the only one after it. As more characters appear and rival clans clash, this tale of revenge and double-crossing soon comes to a close as The Flying Fox finds his wife's killer, albeit a little too late. With the Purple Jade Badger in his possession, killer Shen Wu Han quickly drinks the magical elixir and turns into a powerful demon, proving to be a much bigger threat for The Flying Fox than first imagined. It all leads to an action-packed showdown which is definitely the highlight of the film!

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The DVD version of Jade Dagger Ninja isn't a terrible watch, but there is an uncut version of the film with its Shaolin Fox Conspiracy title, available on YouTube with about 60% of the film in glorious widescreen. If I'm honest, it actually makes for a better watch – although is still dubbed in English, and often hilariously at that. And its also because of this dubbing that I feel the film gets a little messier than it really is. Jade Dagger Ninja can come across as a less refined Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon although with a host of campy characters, pointless actions and situations, and melodramatic romances. Saying that, there are definitely some fun and innovative fight scenes throughout that just about save this from becoming one to completely avoid. This is all thanks to Wang Chi Sheng, an actor of over 100 films such as Snake And Crane Arts Of Shaolin, Fearless Hyena, Dragon Fist, Shaolin Vs Ninja, A Life Of Ninja, and the Alexander Lo Rei classics, Shaolin Vs Lama and Shaolin Chasity Kung Fu, of which he also helped choreograph. Sticking around on a number of Lo Rei projects, Wang also worked as the assistant director on the awesome Ninja Hunter and choreographed one of my favourite Leung Kar Yan kung-fu flicks, Demon Strike. While the fights aren't the greatest we've ever seen, they are well choreographed and fun to watch but Wang saves the best for last as Kam Kong cameos as the white haired demon, beating the living daylights out of everyone, smashing through walls with no effort at all, and flinging people around like rag-dolls.

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The cast is pretty decent with the popular Roc Tien Peng in one of his last starring roles before retiring from the business with his last project and self-directed film, The Legend Of All Men Are Brothers, in 1984. The character of The Flying Fox is a character he has played many times, so brings nothing new to the role overall. The wonderful Doris Lung Chun Erh (Aurora) also delivers one of her last roles, stepping back from the camera the following year and only appearing in old footage from The Magnificent used in the IFD film, Kickboxer The Champion, in 1990 which was also combined with footage from The Left Hand Of Death. Taiwanese actor, Tien Ho, who had starred alongside Roc in a number of productions stars as Hao Yu Long, the fiancé of Aurora, and veteran actor Wang Hsieh stars as her father. Starting life in the industry in the late 1950s, Wang appeared in many classic titles from Taiwanese wuxia films to Shaw Brothers hits like Valley Of The Fangs, The 14 Amazons, Bamboo House Of Dolls, and Super Inframan, to many Alexander Lo Rei classics, and modern hits like A Better Tomorrow, Bloody Brotherhood, and Iron Angels. The film is directed by Li Chao Yung in what would be his last ever title, having also delivered the similarly themed (and cast) A Hero's Tears and Everlasting Chivalry, just a couple of years before...

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Overall: As messy as many Taiwanese flicks were back then, Jade Dagger Ninja still proves to be a fun enough watch with its unintentional comedy and great fight scenes!