THE SEARCH FOR WENG WENG (2014) ***

Australian video store owner Andrew Leavold’s obsession with Weng Weng, the diminutive star of such WTF Filipino exploitation films as For Y’ur Height Only and The Impossible Kid, leads him to travel to Manila to find out the story of Weng’s rise and fall.  Early in his journey, Leavold learns Weng passed away some time ago, but undeterred, he presses on.  As chance would have it, he bumps into the editor of Weng’s films in a parking lot, and he just so happens to know where all the old timer Filipino stuntmen hang out.  There, he finds many of Weng’s former costars and directors, all of whom are more than eager to tell all about his story.

The Search for Weng Weng works not only as a heartfelt tribute to the smallest star of the big screen (at 2’ 9”, he’s in the Guinness Book of World Records for shortest leading man), but it’s also a bizarre and sometimes surreal documentary in its own right.  Much of the fun comes from seeing how sheer dumb luck keeps propelling Leavold forward on his filmmaking quest.  He even winds up getting a face to face interview with former Filipino First Lady, Imelda Marcos, who had Weng as her guest many times.  (She even invites the documentary crew to visit her husband's perfectly preserved corpse in the family crypt!)  

The biggest takeaway from all this (which is also evident in Weng’s films) is that Weng had a genuine screen presence and charisma.  Yes, the productions were often slipshod, and many of the jokes were aimed at him, but he did a great job within the confines of those movies, which had their own unique quirky charm.  Plus, Weng did all his own amazing stunts!  I mean, of course he did.  At 2’ 9”, who could possibly double for him?  The Search for Weng Weng is further proof good things come in small packages.