This is an uneven but entertaining wuxia pian film from the great director Chu Yuan ("Killer Clans," "The Magic Blade"). The title refers to the film's villain, a legendary and seemingly super-powered bandit/rapist who can swoop through the air and slay an entire group of swordsmen in less time than it takes to recount this movie's incredibly twisty plot. The so-called "Bat Without Wings," whose face is covered in makeup that would make Gene Simmons envious, was supposedly slain five years ago, but now a new killer has suddenly appeared claiming to be the infamous "Bat" himself.

A benevolent swordsman (played by Derek Yee Tung-sing) teams up with the father and the fiancé of a woman who was abducted and brutally slain by the "Bat" (Ku Feng). Together they track down the mysterious killer, but, as in most films of this type, they soon discover that things are far from how they initially appeared.

The movie has elements of melodrama, comedy, action, horror, mystery, and just about anything else you can think of. In fact, the movie's biggest problem is that there's so much plot to wade through and so many characters to keep track of (it seems like a new character is introduced almost every five minutes) that it's difficult to get emotionally involved in the proceedings because the players are mostly rendered in shorthand and come across as mere puppets to the convoluted plot mechanics. Yee is earnest in the lead, but there's not much substance to his character beyond his good will and his expert sword-fighting skills.

For those familiar with Chu Yuan's movies, there's little here storywise that feels particularly fresh or original, save for the outlandish title character and some gruesome horror elements (a headless woman),but the film moves at a fairly quick pace and there are some decent action sequences. As usual, Chu's direction is stylish and makes fine use of the colorful studio sets. Some story elements are a bit cheesy and suggest that this movie is not to be taken as seriously as some of Chu's more dramatically compelling ventures.

Styling himself after Gene Simmons from KISS, kung fu villain Bat Without Wings adopts demonic black and white make-up, crazy hair, and flamboyant wardrobe to wreak havoc, raping and murdering women at whim. Twenty-eight martial artists aim to put a stop to his reign of terror, but only two live to tell the tale, the brave duo finally doing away with the face-painted menace once and for all, or so it seems: five years later, and it appears as though Bat Without Wings has somehow returned from the grave to continue his work.

Even more puzzling than the Bat's choice of glam-rock get-up is the plot for this early-'80s Shaw Brothers kung fu film, which is all over the place and guaranteed to confuse anyone struggling desperately to keep up with the subtitles. I tried my best to follow the muddled story, which rapidly introduces numerous similarly named characters, but it wasn't long before I had to admit defeat and be content to enjoy the more film's outlandish moments (the dismemberment of one of the Bat's victims, moving walls of bamboo in a poisoned swamp, and Christmas reindeer decorations that activate secret doorways),the fighting (of which there is plenty),and the impressive cinematography (the film looks great throughout).

4/10 - way too messy to rate any higher, although I might have added an extra point had the Bat spat blood, breathed fire, or sung 'Rock and Roll All Nite'.

BAT WITHOUT WINGS is another convoluted tale from Shaw director Chor Yuen, very similar in terms of story to his other movies for the studio with one exception: the titular character. He's an anti-superhero of sorts, a crazed rapist who dons face paint to dress up as a member of KISS before going on a rampage of destruction. The heroic characters in the film proceed to track him down and try to figure out his identity, while being stalled by the usual complexities of the martial world, with various rivalry and treachery getting in the way. As is usual for a Chor Yuen film, the exemplary ensemble cast make it worth watching, although it does feel a bit tired plot-wise. Derek Yee is the erstwhile hero, backed up by a villainous Yuen Wah, a cameoing Jason Pai Piao, Chan Shen as a hellish fighter, Ku Feng as the title character, and Ai Fei and Ching Li in support.