For years, I have heard of this film called Bruce Lee Versus Gay Power. Well, I finally scored a copy that was fan subtitled. The onscreen title is Kung Fu Contra as Bonecas, which the subtitles translate as Kung Fu Against the Fairies.
I had no idea that the film was a comedy. It is not a funny one, but it is supposed to be a comedy. The villains must punch in before they go to "work" (robbing, murdering, etc.). The head bandit likes to have his hair styled (in curlers). Another bandit uses his hands as telescope and then wipes off the imaginary glass. If all of the above sounds hysterical to you, then you might be the ideal target audience for Kung Fu Contra as Bonecas.
The plot involves land grabbing. A respected citizen has hired the bandits to kill a Chinese family and then later another farm owner and his daughter. The son (who most certainly is not Asian) from the Chinese family returns from studying martial arts abroad just in time to save the farm owner's daughter, who also somehow knows martial arts. The son, who seems most upset by the fact that the bandits killed his pet pig, vows revenge.
In addition to not being Chinese, the son is also not named Bruce Lee. In fact, I am not sure he is ever referred to by name. He wears a T-shirt of The Kung Fu TV show, and the film feels indebted to that TV series. I guess David Carradine Versus Gay Power did not have the same ring to it. For that matter, the bandits were not as effeminate as one might expect from the alternative title. The villains might act in a bizarre manner, somewhat like the ones in Django Kill! (was that film a hit in Brazil?), but they also party with dance hall girls. Only one of the villains seems to actually be gay. So how did the alternative title became attached to this film? Got me, but it is a memorable title.
Kung Fu Contra as Bonecas (or Bruce Lee Versus Gay Power) is a pretty cheap and shoddy film. The martial arts are pretty much limited to jumping and a few kicks. The humor is miserable. The most interesting aspect about the whole film is that alternative title. See it if you must, but don't say I didn't warn you.
