On paper, The Yin And The Yang Of Mr Go looks potentially interesting. A good cast including James Mason, Jack MacGowran and debutant Jeff Bridges (billed here as 'Jeffrey'); interesting Far East locations; and writing/directing credits for none other than well-known actor Burgess Meredith (yes, he who played Penguin in the Batman TV show and Rocky's trainer Micky in the first three Rocky movies). Within a few minutes of the film starting, however, one can only try to pick one's jaw from the floor because it becomes apparent almost straight away that this is a monumentally awful film. For anyone who struggles on gamely, thinking perhaps that the start is merely a blip and that the film will soon pick up, it doesn't. The actors presumably thanked their lucky stars afterwards that their careers survived this unholy mess of a movie (Bridges especially, considering that it was his first film). It's no exaggeration to say that The Yin And The Yang Of Mr Go would look right at home on a list of the worst 100 films ever made.Mr Go (James Mason, sorely miscast) is an Oriental villain. He wants the blueprints for a weapon-neutralising device which he plans to sell to the highest bidder. In order to get them, he hires a young American army draft dodger named Nero Finnegan (Jeff Bridges) and persuades him to get some gay sex footage with a CIA contact named Professor Bannister (Peter Lind Hayes)… upon seeing the sordid video, Bannister is easily blackmailed into surrendering the blueprints. Things take a strange turn when the spirit of Buddha intervenes and uses his mystical powers to change Mr Go's personality, transforming him from fiendish Fu Manchu-style bad guy into an unlikely good guy. (This is presumably the Yin and the Yang of the character, as described in the title). Suddenly, Mr Go is no longer a master-criminal but a saintly hero, intent on protecting Nero and ensuring the weapon-neutralising plans fall into the right hands rather than those intent on evil.The Yin And The Yang Of Mr Go is so choppily edited that one wonders if the original negative was cut with a pair of heavily worn false teeth. More likely is that the studio were so dismayed with the film they made hasty and unsuccessful attempts to cut it into some sort of releasable print. Either way, it doesn't work – the film is dreadful. Mason looks totally embarrassed beneath his crudely slanted eye make-up and goofy teeth, while Bridges demonstrates all the boyish enthusiasm of a newcomer without really managing to make sense of his character. Snippets of needless nudity are thrown in at regular intervals, plus occasional bursts of lacklustre action, but it's all to no avail. No amount of trimmings could hide the fact that this is a turkey of the highest order. Weird-but-most-definitely-NOT-wonderful, The Yin And The Yang Of Mr Go is easily one of the worst movies ever made.

Meredith wrote the script and directed this dog. Although laughably loopy, it's sad to see such a waste of James Mason and Broderick Crawford's talents. The ludicrous soundtrack pops in inexplicably at odd moments. There's an odd lesbian rape scene and a suggestively kinky gay sex scene with Jeff(rey) Bridges. The only skin you see is on young Asian women in the film who, unfortunately, play slutty, materialistic stereotypes. You won't see Asian males in the forefront of the screen as the characters are played by white actors. This is one movie serious film buffs can pass up. If you want to see Burgess Meredith at his best, watch him in the film WINTERSET, a compelling drama based on Maxwell Anderson's acclaimed Broadway play. The 1936 version of Winterset, based on the Sacco and Vanzetti case, was Meredith's film debut.

(There Are Some Spoilers) In all the world you couldn't find a more unscrupulous unprincipled and sleazy individual as the "Evil" Mr. Go, James Mason, an international power broker working out of his home base in Hong Kong.Mr.Go works in concert with the equally "Evil" and corrupt Japanese banker Ito Suzki, King Hu, who both would even sell their own mothers out, if the price was right, to the highest bidder. Having US weapons expert Robert Bannister,Peter Lyn Hayes, rescued from a plane that was shot down and crashed in Communist China Mr. Go wants to get information on the Side-Winder Laser Beam that the USA has perfected that would not only make nuclear war obsolete but impossible. This Side-Winder Laser would render nuclear weapons useless by destroying their ability to detonate and thus cause them to fall harmlessly to the ground like a coconut falling off a coconut tree.Knowing that Bannister wouldn't talk and that if he has him killed he'll never get the secret of the Side-Winder Laser Mr.Go lets him go free and then gets in touch with Tah Ling, Irene Tsu, his former lover and her obnoxious boyfriend Nero Finnighan, Jeff Bridges, a deserter from the US Army in Vietnam, and frustrated James Joyce wannabe writer. Mr.Go wants to get to get the uncooperative Bannister into a compromising position so that he can blackmail him into giving him that important information about the Side-Winder laser beam.Nero getting Bannister drunk and then taking him to a whorehouse he get him with his pants down as well as having Bannsiter do some very kinky and crazy stuff ,together with himself, on film. When later confronted with the evidence of him being a sexual pervert Bannister gives in and give Mr. Go all the information about the Side-Winder Laser Beam so that his bosses from CIA Chief Parker, Brodrick Crawford, on down so they don't find out about his sick and sleazy secret life. Living up to his reputation as a two-timing lowlife and first class sleaze-ball Mr. Go, with the help of Suzuki, has both Nero & Tah Ling kidnapped and later to be killed so that they'll never be able to spill the beans on what the two did to Bannister in getting him to open up and talk. It's just then when a miracle happened and the "Evil" Mr.Go is made to do a complete 180 degree turnaround and became a good kind and unselfish person saving both Nero and Tah Ling from the fate that he and Suzuki had in store for them. In the end Mr. Go even gives away the blueprint of the Side-Winder laser beam, to every nation on earth, making the horrors of a nuclear war impossible and thus truly bringing "Peace in our Time". The Budda who during the cycle of the fifth month every fifty years emits a beam, if world conditions warrants, from his third eye that hits a chosen individual and cause him or her to change the course of history. This time the wise Budda choose the "Evil" Mr. Go and made him the person who would end the fear of nuclear destruction and bring peace to all Mankind. You just don't know what to make of this movie since it's about a very serious subject but comes across, especially with it's goody-goody bubble gum music soundtrack, like a cross between a 1960's Frankie Avalon Annette Funicello beach party movie and a late 1950's and early 1960's teenage Rock&Roll musical.The action chase scenes shoot-outs and fights are hilarious but it doesn't seem to me that they were made to be that way but were so badly done that they came off looking ridicules and silly. The US government gets the British M16 to try and bring in both Dr. Go and Nero together with Tha ling as well as Bannister by having their top spy Mr. Leo Zimmerman, Jack MagGowran,put on the case. Zimmerman ends up screwing things up even more by first getting smashed over the head with a coffee pot by Nero then later getting himself shot, by what looked like Ito Suzuki's thugs. Thus allowing not only Nero Mr. Go and Tah Ling to escape but having them release the secret blueprint about the Side-Winder Laser Beam to the world! This puts Zimmerman and his spy organization the British M16, as well as the CIA & KGB, out of business.Directed by veteran actor Burgess Meredith who also had a role in the movie as Dolphin a weirdo Chinese acupuncture druggist wise man and what looks like some kind of a high priest as well as and undercover sleazy power broker, much like Mr.Go, all rolled into one. The movie "The Yin Yang of Mr. Go" is worth seeing not only to see for yourself that a movie like it was actually made but even more surprising just how the makers of the film were able to get top actors, back in 1970, like James Mason Broderick Crawford Jack MagGowan as well as Burgess Meredith to be in it? That has to be without a doubt the ultimate $64,000.00 question.

This utterly bizarre film is the closest you'll get to the Jess Franco experience without actually watching one of Franco's efforts. This is made even more remarkable by the fact that it does have a pretty starry cast, and not old has beens like Franco feels obliged to work with. The songs are truly awful although anyone who can get the word "meretriciously" into a lyric can't be all bad.