In 1981, Chuck Norris was in his prime and Bruce Lee had been gone for ten years. The attitude toward martial arts movies in general was really negative, then this little gem hit. The best way I can describe it is "Better than Kill Bill" and ten years ahead of its time. Marilyn Alzona (Mary Carol), a university student in Los Angeles is summoned back to her Stockton, California, home following the murders of her parents. Eventually she learns that megawealthy Hiraldi Teak, a politically connected landgrabber was responsible. Unable to get any help from the local sheriff, Marilyn takes matters into her own hands.
This is no female Batman! Long before the Robocop/Basic Instinct/Lethal Weapon school of gritty realism this teenaged vengeance machine pulls no punches. An expert in Kali, a Filipino martial art utilizing both weapons (primarily sticks) and empty hands, she breaks bones, dumps guys on their heads, and cuts through anyone in her way. What's different about this is that it's completely believable! The well-built but muscular young actress (who apparently left the acting world after this film) looks extremely realistic and due to the Filipino martial arts choreography, utilizing a lot of body anging and finesse, the viewer really does get the idea she's beating up on guys twice her size.
In the most spectacular sequence, she takes out five guys on a hillside strictly through evade and strike techniques, to face off Bruce Lee's friend and protege, Dan Inosanto. Inosanto must have had a hand in the choreography as the Filipino martial arts techniques look very authentic.
To make matters better, this film actually has a story and character development. Director John Soet, who also penned the script, cleverly turns this from what could have been another run-of-the-mill revenge themed slugfest to a character study of a typical teenage girl who took her easy life for granted suddenly finds herself having to deal with the loss of everyone she loved and takes action not to avenge herself, but because she doesn't want to see it happen to others.
Worth the price of admission is a sequence which reveals how Marilyn got her skills. Her father was a farm labor contractor in Stockton and every night, when she's eight, she hears an eerie, rythmic "clacking" sound. Eventually she gets out of bed to investigate and finds the Filipino immigrant farmworkers practicing stickfighting by the light of the moon. Her mentor-to-be casually steps out of the shadows. It is important to remember that this is a 1981 film. In the days before computerized special effects, the director created a masterful transition sequence utilizing nothing more than fades, a good ol' smoke machine and what appears to be at least five Asian girls of varying ages and physiques to show Marilyn becoming progressively more muscular, taller and more skilled.
I haven't seen this film in years and the only VHS copy I had was a dupe. I doubt if it's still in distribution anywhere, but if it is, today it could become a cult classic. If it wasn't well-known it was because it was simply ahead of its time.
In 1981, Superman hit the big screen with the line, "You will believe a man can fly!" Skirmish could have just as easily used the line, "You will believe a girl can kick butt."
