Weird Wednesdays: Yes, Madam

This screening was part of the Alamo Drafthouse’s Weird Wednesday series. For upcoming shows, click here.

During the height of Hong Kong action movies Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Rothrock began a successful run of films in the ‘80s. Although their career paths were very different, the converging performances in Yes, Madam cemented their stardom within martial arts films.

Before becoming an Academy Award winner, Michelle Yeoh studied ballet at the Royal Academy of Dance in London. She competed in beauty pageants and won the title of Miss Malaysia in 1983 before moving on to compete in pageants in the UK and Australia. Yeoh famously made her first appearance on screen in a Guy Laroche commercial alongside Jackie Chan in 1984. After filming the ad with Chan, Yeoh was featured in two small action roles before being cast in her first leading role for Yes, Madam.

 In complete juxtaposition to Yeoh, Cynthia Rothrock pre-stardom was a renowned martial artist and by 1985 had won five championship titles. Rothrock was the first woman to appear on the cover of a martial arts magazine and is credited to have been the inspiration for Mortal Kombat’s Sonya Blade. While performing martial arts demonstrations, Rothrock was noticed by Hong Kong based production company Golden Harvest. Within two years she debuted as Inspector Carrie Morris in Yes, Madam for her first feature length film.  The duality of their careers is displayed through the fight choreography, character choices and costumes which bring style and charisma to this genre film.

Yes, Madam is everything you would want and expect from an action movie that came out in 1985. While director Corey Yeun starts the story with a classic cop movie catalyst where an important person is murdered under suspicious circumstances, the stakes here aren’t the real draw. Instead, we’re here for people beating each other up while wearing cool clothes and driving fast cars.

In the opening sequence of Yes, Madam, Inspector Ng, played by Michelle Yeoh, stakes out a bookstore and catches a predator preying on unsuspecting women. Moments later as a robbery begins to take place, hero cop Ng confronts the armed robbers without hesitation and proceeds to shoot them down one by one as they try to escape. She offers the last remaining assailant mercy in the chaotic justice style of Dirty Harry before blowing him away when he reaches for his gun.

Within minutes, the scene crystallizes everything we need to know about Ng. She doesn't resort to violence unless absolutely necessary, she has a strong sense of justice that compels her to act by the book, and, if tested, she can bring down an entire team of criminals trying to rob the bank with stylish violence and grace without thinking twice. Ng doesn’t want to resort to violence unless she feels it’s necessary. She easily could have beat the bookstore pervert down and would have been completely in the right to do so. However, Inspector Ng has a sense of justice that compels her to act by the book and bring the suspect to the police station for questioning. But if she is tested and justice calls for it she can bring down the entire team of criminals trying to rob the bank violently with style and grace without thinking twice.

After tracking down a suspect wanted in connection for the initial murder, a crowded airport turns into an all out brawl between the police and the suspect. Ng proves herself more than capable as she holds her own against a man that is twice her size.

Inspector Ng’s outfit is notably brighter than her male counterparts and as the terminal chase continues we see the bright colors weave past the men and she is right on the suspect’s trail. Ng’s full body extended kick makes her float through the air as if she had the capability of flight. When Cynthia Rothrock’s Carrie Morris arrives in the film, she immediately clobbers the suspect before revealing that she’s arrived in town to help Ng’s investigation. Ng’s effortlessness opposite Inspector Morris’ brutal beatdown style that is fast but deliberate perfectly compliments the grey tones that we see when Morris makes her appearance on screen.

Ng and Morris’ differences even extend to their interrogation styles. Ng is kind and offers the suspect a cup of tea while he openly admits he will not cooperate. Morris on the other hand kicks the cup of tea out of his hand and reminds Inspector Ng that “we’re paid to be policewomen, not kindergarten teachers.” The western woman’s attitude nearly comes off as arrogance but it’s clear she’s got the confidence and skills to back it up. She’s even confident enough to let the large man in handcuffs go because he is “not [her] equal. I beat you in the airport already. You wanna give me another chance to beat you?”

At a certain point in most action films like this the audience is introduced to the baddest of bad guys, the only character that will really put our heroes to the test. This film provides that archetype through actor Dick Wei who towers over Ng and Morris. Ng finally has a chance to engage with Dick halfway through the film and he proves to be a tough challenge. In their first scene together Ng moves right alongside Dick as if she was performing a delicate tango or foxtrot while being in the tight confines of a bar restroom. Morris’ combat style is much more direct. Kicks and punches land with authority, every strike is intentional and extremely lethal.

There is perhaps no better moment in a classic action film such as Yes, Madam when the unlikely duo begins to truly act like a team. As Ng and Morris are flipping and kicking their way through a nightclub, there’s a fantastic shot where they take a fighting pose back to back. After seeing the two women at odds with each other for most of the film, seeing them united in combat is truly satisfying. But even here, their differences are highlighted. Morris wears a classic black outfit while Ng rocks a very '80s white outfit with a stylish popped collar.

Keeping in the standard setting for action movies the duo are kicked off of the force for turning in false evidence and they have to hand in their badge and gun. Being the dedicated cops that they are, Ng and Morris aren’t giving up on this case so easily. This leads them to the final and best fight sequence of the film. Do you want to see someone backflip into glass while hanging upside down? This scene is where you’ll find that level of master stunt work. The final showdown between the heroes and villains in this film without doubt brings the duality between the leads full circle.

This film and especially the finale are best experienced in a crowded theater. I’m not sure if I have ever seen a screening that was this rowdy on a Wednesday night. Rightfully so, the last sequence is the ultimate show of what this film has to offer. Ng’s ballroom, dance-forward style is in full gear and Morris’ devastating strikes shatter the wood panels of the gaudy room where the action takes place. The combat moves up and down the stairs as weapons are pulled from their decorative holsters on the walls, glass is breaking, and the flips and kicks are gravity-defying.

Yes, Madam is a perfect example of the lost art of cheesy but highly-entertaining action films.  The duality between Yeoh and Rothrock’s characters can be seen every time the two are on screen together. Their costumes are incredibly ‘80s, the characters couldn’t be more different than one another, and each has their own distinct style of martial arts that compliments the other. Given that this was both Rothrock and Yeoh’s feature length debut, it’s no surprise both went on to have successful careers.