Chao Zhou xiao han (1982) User Reviews

Hilarious Kung Fu Comedy

[WilliamSchweitzer · 7/10 · 8 February 2006]

I found this movie on VHS for a dollar on the Previously Viewed rack at a local video store. Being a fan of kung fu movies, I purchased the movie and added it to my collection.

It was most definitely a pleasant surprise. Hilarious storyline, many humorous interactions between "Little Fatty" and anyone who he comes in contact with, including bowing down to a frog and chanting "I worship the toad" and falling face first into a pile of crap in his quest to earn a living bringing in a criminal.

I've never heard of any of the actors in this film, but the opening credits state that one of them was the personal martial arts trainer to Muhammad Ali. If I remember correctly, the opening screen indicated that Little Mad Guy was produced by Snake Video.

I would most definitely recommend this movie to any fan of kung fu, if you can find it. Since buying it, I have not been able to find any mention of it from any vendor or online, with the exception of this brief IMDb profile.

More low rent comedy action nonsense from Hong Kong

[Leofwine_draca · 5/10 · 26 February 2017]

LITTLE MAD GUY is one of those slightly crazed comedy kung fu films that were being made in Hong Kong from the late 1970s onwards. Such films were inspired by the success of Jackie Chan and his legacy and while few of them are perfect - they're too low budget for that - a lot of them are interesting, particularly for fans of the genre.

This film's main star is the youthful, slightly overweight Ng Ming-Choi, who was known as the honorary eighth member of the "Seven Little Fortunes" Peking Opera School troup that counted Chan, Sammo Hung, and Yuen Biao among their number. Ming-Choi plays the usual dumb, idiotic, but good-hearted character who studies toads in order to perfect his own toad fu style. Yeah, I really did write that.

Much of the action and comedy comes from the presence of Shaw Brothers veteran Fan Mei Sheng playing Little Fatty's master. These two have a real love/hate relationship so how much you enjoy this film really depends on your tolerance for low brow Hong Kong comedy. Simon Yuen has a few scenes playing his usual character but he's in it so little that it's really not worth watching it just to see him for such a brief time. The plot plays out exactly as you'd expect, finishing on a climatic fight, and it's all very average by genre standards.

"You have the back of a toad and the venom of a snake."

[classicsoncall · 4/10 · 23 January 2007]

I'm not a devotee of these action kung fu flicks, but every once in a while they're a neat change of pace. This one is almost entirely fighting from start to finish between a core trio of antagonists, Master Ma, Little Fatty and Chun Wu. Little Fatty appears to be the central character, owing his martial arts ability to a life long study of frogs and toads. The bandit Wu is portrayed by Tiger Yang, who the opening credits claim was Muhammad Ali's martial arts instructor. Funny, but I don't recall ever hearing of Ali having an interest in the martial arts.

Honestly, at almost two hours, this one was a bit much for me, but I stuck it out to the end just to be fair about it. At some point, it must have been revealed that Master Ma was Little Fatty's father as the credits on this site state, but that was lost on me; I recall in an opening scene that Ma revealed himself to be Fatty's uncle, and Fatty remembered him as such.

Ultimately, Little Fatty proves victorious against the bandit Wu, but it was two against one for a good part of that battle, and it ended in quite gruesome manner with Fatty bashing Wu's head with a good sized rock. I'm glad they didn't show that. For me, the film was redeemed somewhat by the presence of a pretty Chinese girl who spent her screen time being rescued from Wu.

Best line of the film: Fatty to Ma - "Master Ma, I'll put your leg on for you". You'll just have to see it for yourself.

Best Dollar I Ever Spent

[billschweitzer · 8/10 · 23 October 2006]

Found this gem at the Movie Gallery in Hazleton, PA. They were selling off all of their old VHS tapes. This is definitely one of the funniest kung fu comedies I have ever seen.

The story centers around "Little Fatty", who is attempting to collect the bounty on a fugitive, and his many failings in accomplishing this mission. "Little Fatty" studied the toad form of kung fu, and opens the movie bowing to a toad in the woods while repeating the words "I worship the toad", and it only gets funnier from here.

If you manage to find this, definitely pick it up. Good luck, because I haven't found it anywhere else.