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New Directions in Africa--China Studies

Chris Alden

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Book

Despite the accumulation of studies drawing from other fields, China-Africa studies still bears the...

The Magic of Concepts: History and the Economic in Twentieth-Century China

Rebecca E. Karl

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Book

In The Magic of Concepts Rebecca E. Karl interrogates "the economic" as concept and practice as it...

Awix (3310 KP) rated The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go (1970) in Movies

Dec 9, 2020

'It'll make you think of Dr No!' promises the poster for this almost indescribable comedy-thriller written and directed by Burgess Meredith. It didn't make me think of Dr No: it made me think of what it must be like to take hallucinogenic drugs while suffering from a bad case of the flu. The details of the plot are almost enough to defeat the English language - suffice to say that the key turning point in the story comes when the Buddha (who also narrates the story) uses his mystic powers to turn villainous Chinese-Mexican Mr Go (James Mason - yes, it's James Mason trying to play a Chinese-Mexican) into a benevolent philanthropist.

It's not just that the film is bizarre and incoherent, with plenty of gratuitous nudity, and European actors cheerfully playing Asian characters: it's also that the production values are incredibly primitive. It's almost like watching pornography without the sex (or so I would imagine). Not one element of this film is robust enough to elevate it into 'so bad it's funny' territory. It's just bad. That said, Jeff Bridges made his film debut in it, which presumably goes to show that even the least promising starts can lead to a distinguished career. But even so - for masochists and the troubled only.