However, even on the most miniscule of budgets, Phillip Ko usually manages to put together some decent action sequences, and Angel on Fire certainly has that in abundance. Even though Ko didn't have much of a budget to work with (this production is yet another of his that was shot in the Philippines) and no real big stars to speak of, he manages to create an entertaning no-brainer action flick. Don't get me wrong. You're not going to confuse Angel on Fire with anything even near the top tier of Hong Kong action movies, but if you enjoy movies you can check out with some beer and trash-talking friends, then Angel on Fire is right up your alley.

As for the story, it's chewed up and reconsituted crud that has Melanie Marquez as a model-turned-thief who steals some sort of "precious object" (as specified by the craptacular subtitles, which somehow adds to both the cheese factor and enjoyment of the film) from a Buddhist temple. She double-crosses her boss (Phillip Ko) and heads to Manila to sell the object to another bidder, where she is also pursued by cops from both Hong Kong (Cynthia Khan) and the Mainland (Sharon Yueng).

The exposition has that "edited with a butcher knife" feel of Godfrey Ho's movies. Characters come and go and there are a lot of subplots that are never really fully dealt with; Sharon Yeung's character, in particular, has an odd habit of just popping into the movie and then leaving. Plus, there are a lot of gweilo characters that just come on for one scene and disappear -- it seems like they almost were just finding tourists and paying them a few bucks to be in this movie. Despite the schizophrenic way the film plays out, the action is good enough to warrant a viewing, unlike Godfrey Ho's films, which just come off as slightly warmed-up poop. At any rate, if you're some sort of movie snob, then stay far away from Angel on Fire. But if you have a soft spot for good-looking women kicking ass, you could do much worse than this.

ANGEL ON FIRE is directed by Hong Kong director (and former action star ) Philip Ko, who also has a feature role in the film as a gang leader named Rocks. Cynthia Khan, best known for the IN THE LINE OF DUTY series, takes top billing as an unnamed Interpol agent, who goes undercover to catch a thief. Waise (13 COLD BLOODED EAGLES) Lee plays Su Chin, the Interpol chief who gives her this assignment. Sharon Yeung plays another Interpol agent named Wong Li, who joins Cynthia Kahn’s character uncover.

Mimi is a former-model turned thief. She breaks into a Shaolin temple and steals an ancient relic. She is caught in the act by the monks, and they chase her through the streets of Hong Kong on bicycles. She is then picked up by helicopter, which is piloted by the gang leader who hired her to steal the relic, Rocks. Mimi tells him that she was caught in the act and wasn’t able to get the relic. Meanwhile, Interpol chief Su Chin (Waise Lee) assigns one of his top agents (Khan) to go undercover and capture Mimi and recover the relic, no matter the cost. He informs her that she will be joined by another under cover Interpol agent named Wong Li.

Rocks accompanies Mimi to the headquarters of a crime boss named Tony. Tony hired Rocks and Mimi to retrieve the relic, but Rocks betrays them both and steals the relic at gunpoint. Rocks is actually loyal to a different crime boss who wants the relic. What Rocks does not know is that the statue he possesses is a fake; Mimi still has the original. Rocks' boss is furious when he finds out he has a fake relic, and threatens to kill Rocks. At the airport, Cynthia Kahn meets a goofball taxi cab driver named Harry, and they attempt to follow the suspects, but the taxi breaks down in the middle of nowhere. Cynthia and Harry become fast friends, and she calls on him again for her transportation needs.

Harry tells her he is a boxer, and asks her to go to one of his fights. The fight turns out to be one of the illegal pit-fighting affairs, held by the crime lord that is desperately trying to acquire the relic. Harry has to fight a massive fighter from Africa called Black Leopard. The mean African fighter clearly has the advantage, but Harry manages to outsmart the Black Leopard, and he and Cynthia flee the illegal fight.

Mimi has managed to avoid capture and retain the relic. She goes to a huge field with a large circular electrical tower to make the switch and get her payoff from a third party buyer. Things get a little complicated when Tony and his men show up. Tony goes on a tirade saying how hurt he is she betrayed him (apparently they had some romantic thing going on). Just as Tony is about to kill Mimi, Rocks arrives with his own battalion of thugs, including the Black Leopard. An all-out war erupts between the gangs for possession of the relic. Cynthia and Harry show up and join the fray. Then undercover Interpol agent Wong Li arrives to assist them. But how can three people stop an explosive gang war?

Director Philip Ko wrote the script, directed, and acted in ANGEL ON FIRE. The only positive thing I have to say about Mr. Ko’s talents, is that he is a decent character actor. This film is very bad, even by B movie standards. Some films are so bad, that they are entertaining (like MIGHTY PEKING MAN or PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE), but this is just plain bad. The script is terrible, the direction and production is without any style or flair, the characters and acting are atrocious (except for some of the character actors portraying the crime lords). Ko does not know how to generate any suspense or tension, or give us any characters we can care about.

Cynthia Khan is graceful in ANGEL ON FIRE. She kicks butt and looks good doing it. Though she mostly uses her martial arts skills to beat the bad guys, she does resort to firearms a few times. She is an underrated actress, but you would never now it from this film (I still can’t believe she slummed in this production). Sharon Yeung is looking butch and showing her age. But she can still move like a limber young panther. Her role is limited, and she just shows up at the climax to help Cynthia Khan fight the rival gangs.

The film chugs away at a snails pace, until the last thirty minutes or so. Despite the ineptness of the entire movie, the last act delivers some excitement and violent action. Two gangs do battle over who will keep the relic, and our heroines help take down thugs from both gangs. The battle ground shifts to a small airport where things get crazy when the gang leaders take to the sky. Tons of rapid-fire, machine-gun action, exploding grenade launchers, and endless kung-fu fights finally bring the film to life for a little while. This climax still does not justify having to sit through the entire movie though.