THE SEARCH FOR WENG WENG (2007)

 If you've been amazed by the antics of the world's smallest secret agent, Weng Weng, in films like FOR Y'UR HEIGHT ONLY and THE IMPOSSIBLE KID, then you owe it to yourself to check out this in-depth search into the true-life story behind this incredible little fellow. While I had been warned that Weng's experiences weren't all happiness and stardom I think the film does a good job of not being bogged down in the negativity and bitterness of his treatment and does a balanced job of showing how Weng should represent overcoming ridiculous odds to make something of yourself(or maybe in this case not to feel too exploited by greedy bastards that prey on the weak!). While most of the film works to shine light on some obscure film history (and Imelda Marcos' insanity!) it all ends on a very sentimental note.
 One of the saddest things to me, with no silver-lining, in this whole movie was finding out that a majority of crazy Filipino cinema has been lost to the ages due to shitty storage practices and general lack of interest. In fact it seems that most of Weng's films don't exist anymore which really makes those few that we can see even more cherished(at least by insane-cinema lovers like myself).

D'WILD WILD WENG (1982)

 This might be the only western that has a gang of ninjas in it. It might also be the only western where Mexican banditos are played by Filipino gentleman with big Mexican hats and I'm certain it's the only western where the Indians(aka Native Americans for you sensitive types)are played by midgets(aka little people for you PC-robots). The story involves our 3 foot tall hero Weng Weng, his very tall buddy Gordon(who looks like the Philippines version of George Eastman) and their mute pal(who's mute because he had his tongue cut out) Lupo, who take on a vicious gang of girl-snatching bandits and ninjas. I would probably rate this Weng Weng adventure slightly under his two James Bond-rip-offs (FOR Y'UR HEIGHT ONLY and THE IMPOSSIBLE KID) simply because you don't get as many insane stunts from Mr. Weng but he does get into the expected kung-fu and gun-fu and any Weng is still good Weng!

Workout with little Weng!:

THE IMPOSSIBLE KID (1982)

                                          "Goddamned midget!  He's beginning to get my goat."

If you enjoyed the exploits of Filipino midget star Weng Weng in FOR Y'UR HEIGHT ONLY then you have to catch this sequel for more wacky adventures of secret agent 00.  More insane stunts from our little guy including some death-defying tight-rope walking, using a bedsheet as a parachute and a crazy mini-motorbike jumping over a cliff bit as well as all kinds of kung-fu/chop-socky antics.  One thing that did get on my nerves with this one is the repetitive use of the Pink-Panther theme as well as a couple of other musical cues that show up over and over again until you want to stick chopsticks in your ear-holes.  But if you can overlook that you will get to see the amazing spectacle of a 3 foot tall man beating the living shit out of full-grown bad-guy terrorists.  Speaking of our terrorists their leader wears a nifty hood like a true super-criminal and they're not above sneaking around in awful drag get-ups so that's something.  Other highlights include our little hero getting stuck in a birdcage after being captured, Weng getting all the chicks he can handle and the action-packed finale where Weng gets his hands on a machine-gun that's bigger than him and runs around killing mother-fuckers.
 A sequel titled LICENSE EXPIRED is promised in the end credits but I'm pretty sure that one was never made and that's a damn shame.

FOR Y'UR HEIGHT ONLY (1981)

Filipino-made,  martial arts-filled, James Bond takeoff flick featuring the amazing kung-fu abilities of Mr. Weng Weng, who is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the shortest man to ever be the star of his own motion picture.  This is truly the type of picture that needs to be seen to be believed and is something that could only be made in The Philippines.  Standing at a tiny 2'9" and dubbed with a pip-squeaky little voice, Weng elevates this movie from what would have been just another silly kung-fu spoof to something remarkably entertaining.  He does all his own stunts which consist of lots of hits to his enemies balls, some nifty acrobatics and a bunch of gun-play.  Plus his comedy stylings, peeping on naked ladies, disco dancing or cracking nutty one-liners work great in his portrayal of a mini-James Bond who, of course, is quite the ladies man.  The bizarre dubbing and slapstick antics only help to keep me watching what most people would probably label a terrible film but that's their loss.  For such a little guy, Weng is reportedly the biggest star to ever come out of the Philippines and I can see why.  You can't help but root for this guy.  This is actually Weng's 5th film appearance and he went on to do a few more as Agent 00.  I'll definitely be looking to find some of his other films.