Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold — Cleo Goes Kung Fu

This week on Black Deth 101, Nubius Black and Johnny Deth follow Tamara Dobson’s iconic super-agent overseas for the 1975 sequel Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold. This time, Cleo leaves the streets behind and heads to Hong Kong and Macao, where missing agents, martial arts mayhem, casino corruption, and Stella Stevens’ outrageous Dragon Lady collide in one wild blaxploitation/kung fu mashup.

Directed by Charles Bail, the film stars Tamara Dobson, Stella Stevens, Ni Tien / Tanny, Norman Fell, Albert Popwell, and Caro Kenyatta. The plot sends Cleopatra Jones to Hong Kong after two government agents, Matthew and Melvin Johnson, disappear while investigating a heroin operation connected to the Dragon Lady’s casino empire.

We get into:

Cleo as an international action heroThe first Cleopatra Jones already made her larger than life, but this sequel turns her into a global superhero: fashion model, federal agent, martial artist, rescue squad, and walking disco explosion.

Blaxploitation meets Shaw Brothers energyThe movie leans hard into Hong Kong action, with casino intrigue, kung fu fights, boat ambushes, henchmen, and secret criminal operations. Run Run Shaw is listed as producer on several sources, which helps explain the East-meets-West action flavor.

Tamara Dobson’s presenceRoger Ebert noted Dobson’s striking height and screen presence, calling attention to the film’s parade of capes, hoods, metallic outfits, and impossible-to-miss fashion statements. That’s half the movie right there: Cleo doesn’t sneak into Hong Kong — she arrives.

Stella Stevens as the Dragon LadyIs the villain problematic? Absolutely. Is she memorable? Also absolutely. We talk about the camp, the menace, the stereotype, and the way the film turns its villain into a strange cocktail of Bond villain, casino boss, and grindhouse cartoon.

Mi Ling / Mi Lin-Fong deserves more loveNi Tien, credited in some sources as Tanny, gives Cleo a local partner and brings real action-movie energy to the team-up. The movie works best when Cleo and Mi Ling are fighting, investigating, and moving through the Hong Kong underworld together.

The Johnson Brothers: Matthew and MelvinAlbert Popwell and Caro Kenyatta play the missing agents who kick off the rescue plot. We also ask the important question: are these guys smooth operators, comic relief, or just two brothers who should have stayed off that boat?

Cleo’s wardrobe is ridiculous in the best possible way. The casino setting gives the movie a pulpy Bond-style atmosphere. The Hong Kong location work and martial arts angle help separate it from the first film. And Tamara Dobson still owns every frame she walks into.

The Dragon Lady characterization is loaded with 1970s exploitation baggage, especially in how sexuality and Asian villainy are coded. The plot is thin, some of the comedy is uneven, and the movie sometimes feels like it wants to be Bond, kung fu, and blaxploitation all at once without fully committing to any one lane.

Is Casino of Gold a worthy sequel — or is it just a funky, fashionable, kung fu side mission?

Episode TopicsThings We LovedThings That Don’t Age GreatBig Question of the Episode