|
This thread is all about Hong Kong Action cinema primarily up until the handover....but post handover is fine too. I have some effortposts as a general guide I'll convert the YouTube links when I get home tonight. Hong Kong Triad Flicks. The Basics aka John Woo Films These are the typical Hong Kong Triad movies that everyone and their mom knows. Usually people with only this level of knowledge are artsy “foreign film fans”, QT fanboys, and anyone who read a AP article about John Woo or Chow Yun Fat. Nothing wrong with these films in anyway and there are great gateway movies. Our goal will be to take you further though. A Better Tomorrow (1986) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SR7q9_8qmak A Better Tomorrow 2 (1987) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6F6bD3vYuw0 (English Langauge Trailer produced by Cinema City) It’s not a great movie and you’ll want to punch Dean Shek in the nuts at times (the movie was done as a benefit to Shek who had money issues). The entire movie is redeemed by EAT THE RICE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0fEJt54vxI The final end battle (Note Shing Fui On comes back from the dead. lol RIP Big Silly, he passed away a few years ago after struggling with cancer, he was a great guy). Skip A Better Tomorrow III...you’re not missing much. The Killer (1989) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWa2_XavyvA US Trailer with reviews based on critics who saw messed up subs and thought it was an action comedy. Great movie, look again for Shing Fui On as the main bad guy. Hard Boiled (1991) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqjSnbu48Qw The epic original Hong Kong Trailer For beyond the John Woo looking glass. Just Heroes Directed by John Woo and Wu Ma https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JY1Z6bl0eSA Done as a charity pick for Shaw Brothers great Cheng Cheh (who was also Woo’s mentor and Wu Ma’s) this movie is stuff to the brim with HK and Shaw Brothers greats. Enjoy seeing a young Stephen Chow. It’s got Danny Li, David Chiang, Chen Kuan Tai and many others. Basically Cheng Cheh wasn’t in great financial state and the movie was done as a benefit for him, instead of retiring Cheng went to direct another film.  Cheng was a legend and through his Shaw Brothers films you can see the development of Heroic Bloodshed and Brotherhood (even with most films being period pics) which are hallmarks of John Woo’s films and most of the Hong Kong Triad Cinema, without Cheng Cheh, Hong Kong Cinema would be far far poorer.The Club (1981) Directed by Kirk Wong (of the insanely underrated The Big Hit) this movie actually predates A Better Tomorrow by nearly 5 years. It stars Chan Wai Man. Chan Wai Man is a tough tough motherfucker...don’t gently caress with Chan Wai Man. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rg0wfyACzCQ The movie features the use of a boat fan as a weapon Opening of the movie since I can’t find a trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tktekI6q2Q Hong Kong Godfather (1985) I love the ever loving poo poo out of this movie. It feature director by Johnny Wang and Stars Leung Kar Yan aka Beardy. This movie is filled with heroic bloodshed up the rear end. Avoid old non remastered censored copies. You know how boss this movie is? When Beardy is reading the newspaper the ad on the backpage is for Rambo: First Blood Part II! End fight spoilers...but you should still see it and this isn’t even the whole fight! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHfhKsLPQ8g On the subject of Beardy here is an excuse to show the end fight of Thundering Mantis https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynsuaBPDFvo Beardy and Sammo Hung https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9at2zelCKMA Tiger Cage 1 Yuen Woo Ping and Donnie Yen. Also features Beardy without a beard and Johnny Wang https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kf1F0QuFC18 Tiger Cage 2 (made in 1990...sue me) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guZz8FjShjk Features early Robin Shou. Dragon Family (1988) Lar Kar Leung Gangster film. Trailer will confirm the movie is filled with insane action https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKoc0Ct9Ho0 Tragic Hero (1987) Chow Yun Fat and Andy Lau. Two part movie with Rich and Famous as the other part https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8GtIhngQg8 Flaming Brothers (1987) Alan Tang and Chow Yun Fat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6eEQrsFnm4 Bonus Triad Vanity Project Aka all Hail Broken Tooth Casino (1998) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPZ2jowCwCw Marshal Prolapse fucked around with this message at 15:33 on Sep 30, 2015 |
#
?
Sep 30, 2015 15:06
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 8, 2024 18:31 |
|
|
Danny Lee is a badass. He has portrayed cops so many times that his public nickname is Lee, Sir (based on how a police officer would be addressed). Danny has been active since the Shaw Brothers days and also as a director, producer, and owner at a time of Magnum Film, his production company. He's responsible for some of the sleazy as gently caress CAT III movies, police procedural, and tons of other types of movies. Danny Lee also originally discovered Stephen Chow, Chow was later a massive tool including graffiti in a movie that basically said Danny Lee and his family can die/gently caress off (it's Cantonese you get a lot of leeway), this earned the enduring ire of the late great Shing Fui On (whose getting his post in the next few days day), who often worked with Danny Lee and Chow. So time for some Danny Lee trailers No Compromise (1988) Typical Danny Lee cop film...and there is nothing wrong with that! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSvHG7UL88w Red Shield (1991) Directed by Parkman Wong Stars Danny Lee and Beardy along with Yuen Wah as the baddie. Lots of action. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKVsYt5pyog Law With Two Phases Classic Danny Lee cops and triads movie https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpaBkUHAX_E Cop on the Town Hmm wonder what this is about? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phW4hVKS1aU Dr. Lamb (DO NOT WATCH AT WORK)  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUDYyHPgbpM Classic Cat III movie from Billy Tang (Red to Kill) and Danny Lee. Both directed the movie most likely with Billy doing the messed up stuff and Danny Lee with the cops beating the poo poo out of Simon Yam. Tiger on Beat 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDD8SxTPh4A Conan Lee and Danny Lee directed by Lar Kar Leung. Look for the stunt gently caress up in the trailer.....OUCH Marshal Prolapse fucked around with this message at 15:35 on Sep 30, 2015 |
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2015 15:09
|
|
|
I've wanted to see Tiger On Beat forever, but I can't find it anywhere.
|
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2015 15:55
|
|
|
Anonymous Robot posted:I've wanted to see Tiger On Beat forever, but I can't find it anywhere. It's on Blu-ray. I've been told it's truehd vs a normal fortune star upscale. http://www.amazon.com/Tiger-Beat-Blu-ray-Chow-Yun-Fat/dp/B004XVIVZI Check out places like yesasia for likely cheaper prices.
|
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2015 15:58
|
|
|
Yeah, unfortunately I only have a DVD player. I'm a cave man.
|
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2015 16:01
|
|
|
Anonymous Robot posted:Yeah, unfortunately I only have a DVD player. I'm a cave man. There should be copies floating around ebay I'd imagine. I used to have the universe did with the random WWII fighter plane on the cover.
|
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2015 18:01
|
|
|
Anonymous Robot posted:Yeah, unfortunately I only have a DVD player. I'm a cave man. You can get a blu ray player for like $30 these days I don't see why you wouldn't upgrade.
|
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2015 18:05
|
|
|
Basebf555 posted:You can get a blu ray player for like $30 these days I don't see why you wouldn't upgrade. I was going to say that, but perhaps it's a TV or monitor issue...but yeah somehow they managed to become cheaper than even DVD players did...and you can even hack some for region free.
|
|
#
?
Sep 30, 2015 19:22
|
|
|
This thread is great. Just like Kung Fu films, I love them, but know next nothing about them next to John Woo films. Stoked to dig into some of these
|
|
#
?
Oct 7, 2015 18:32
|
|
|
thatfuturekid posted:This thread is great. Just like Kung Fu films, I love them, but know next nothing about them next to John Woo films. Stoked to dig into some of these The Killer and Hard Boiled are two of the greatest and most influential action movies of all time. Definitely find and watch those.
|
|
#
?
Oct 7, 2015 18:35
|
|
|
thatfuturekid posted:This thread is great. Just like Kung Fu films, I love them, but know next nothing about them next to John Woo films. Stoked to dig into some of these Awesome. I mean I love John Woo films, but my god Hong Kong Action cinema is like an embarrassment of riches in terms of variety and style.
|
|
#
?
Oct 7, 2015 18:36
|
|
|
Big Bad Voodoo Lou posted:The Killer and Hard Boiled are two of the greatest and most influential action movies of all time. Definitely find and watch those. Oh yeah, those are actually the two that got me into HK Cinema. I just never really dug into more outside of the other JW films. After watching all those, I really want to track down Dragon Family and Hong Kong Godfather
|
|
#
?
Oct 7, 2015 19:39
|
|
|
That's what got me hooked as well. Check out Face/Off too, it's not really Hong Kong but 100% Woo + Cage. Going backwards, Hard Target is also amazing, though Broken Arrow not so much. Then everything in HK back A Better Tomorrow rules. I once did an effortpost on Bullet in the Head for one of the Movie of the Month threads. Johnnie To also made a shitload of great action movies. I don't have the time to effortpost this, but Triad Election, Mad Detective and Exiled are all pretty awesome. Wasn't a huge fan of Drug War but it's a solid movie anyway. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0864775/?ref_=nv_sr_1 City on Fire also stars Chow Yun Fat and owns bones. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Loj5n9gFxQg Haven't seen most of the other movies on the op's list so there's definitely work to do here.
|
|
#
?
Oct 7, 2015 20:13
|
|
|
Yeah, it's the gems that really make it fun. Heck, one movie is basically a remake of Taxi Driver and includes power tools...I have to look up the name later.
|
|
#
?
Oct 7, 2015 21:15
|
|
|
mobby_6kl posted:That's what got me hooked as well. Check out Face/Off too, it's not really Hong Kong but 100% Woo + Cage. Going backwards, Hard Target is also amazing, though Broken Arrow not so much. Then everything in HK back A Better Tomorrow rules. I watched City on Fire when I was maybe 12-13 because I had watched The Killer and hard Boiled. I rented it at blockbuster, went home and thought it was suuuper boring. I re-watched it about a year or so ago (25 now) and actually really dug it
|
|
#
?
Oct 7, 2015 22:38
|
|
|
^^^ Yeah actually initially I was also somewhat disappointed, having expected John Woo levels of action, but came around to really appreciate it. Just watched Hong Kong Godfather and it was amazing. Liked it way more than Exiled, actually, which was the last HK flick I've seen. I hate to spoil an awesome scene but if it gets a couple of people to watch it, it'll be worth it: 
|
|
#
?
Nov 16, 2015 02:00
|
|
|
mobby_6kl posted:^^^ That GIF alone makes me want to see it even more. What are the best releases of some of these films? I only ask because I know a lot fot he blu ray releases are bad rips of the DVD releases....which sometimes are bad rips themselves.
|
|
#
?
Dec 1, 2015 21:52
|
|
|
Dragon Dynasty and Tokyo Shock are basically the only game in town other than bootlegs, as far as I know (most of my Asian film experiences have not been legal).
|
|
#
?
Dec 1, 2015 22:10
|
|
|
A Better Tomorrow 3 is kind of a turd but that can be blamed on John Woo's falling out with Tsui Hark during the production. Woo reworked his original screenplay into Bullet in the Head two years later which is far superior to ABT3, but ABT3 is still worth watching if you're at all interested in HK cinema. Speaking of which it's kind of curious to me that you don't mention Tsui Hark at all in the op. Between producing A Better Tomorrow and directing Peking Opera Blues in 86 he basically defined the direction that HK cinema would take until the handover. Plus he produced The Big Heat which was Johnnie To's first action movie. He directed Time and Tide post-handover which owns owns owns and he's directed some of the most beautiful wuxia ever with Green Snake and The Blade. I won't belabor it too much more, but he's important. Wai Ka-fai is also a close and important collaborator of Johnnie To's at Milkway. Too Many Ways To Be No. 1 is my favorite of his. Alfred Cheung only directed one action movie as far as I know (On the Run), it's one of the most violent of the 80s. City On Fire has already been mentioned. Ringo Lam is great, check out Prison On Fire 1 & 2 and Full Alert for some of my favorites. Corey Yuen is better known for his action direction on a bunch of Hollywood movies (The Transporter in particular). Yes Madam, The Legend 1 & 2 and Righting Wrongs all rule. Jackie Chan, naturally--Project A and Police Story are classics. Peter Chan Ho-sun is better known for his romances but he directed a really great Donnie Yen movie a few years back, Dragon. Wong Jing is insanely prolific and a noted public rear end in a top hat. Check out Casino Raiders and the God of Gamblers series. Wong Kar-wai has aligned himself with western art directors since the beginning of his career and most of his movies are yearning romances some with action elements, though everything pre-handover has that same frenetic HK action energy to it, As Tears Go By and Fallen Angels in particular. He also directed Ashes of Time which is another great wuxia. And during the production of that, Jeffery Lau directed a farcical adaptation of the same novel it's based on titled Eagle Shooting Heroes starring the same actors in the same roles. My favorite post-handover director is Fruit Chan, his stuff from 97 until about 2004 is some of the most vital HK cinema made post-handover although he's fallen into the trap of basically just making horror pictures since Dumplings. Made In Hong Kong was shot entirely on leftover film stock and has a really desperate energy to it, its a gritty coming of age movie with a triad bent, very much in the vein of early Wong Kar-wai and Mean Streets. In addition to Donnie Yen, Chow Yun Fat, Andy Lau, etc. some other important actors are both Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Tony Leung Ka-fai, Leslie Cheung, Ng Man-tat, Brigitte Lin, Maggie Cheung, Michelle Yeoh, and Alan Tam Ok that was way too much mindspray. Anyway yeah, HK cinema best regional cinema. Radio Spiricom fucked around with this message at 08:04 on Dec 2, 2015 |
|
#
?
Dec 2, 2015 06:41
|
|
|
Paging SubG.
|
|
#
?
Dec 2, 2015 11:22
|
|
|
Criminal Minded posted:Paging SubG. We are long overdue.
|
|
#
?
Dec 2, 2015 15:03
|
|
|
thatfuturekid posted:That GIF alone makes me want to see it even more. LORD OF BUTT posted:Dragon Dynasty and Tokyo Shock are basically the only game in town other than bootlegs, as far as I know (most of my Asian film experiences have not been legal). Besides those, FUNimation also released a handful of classic Hong Kong action films as well as some more recent outings. Most are fairly middling, but Hong Kong Godfather up there is one of their releases. That movie, incidentally, is one of those final years of Shaw Brothers fits of insanity. "Gratuitous nudity, extreme violence, plentiful bloodletting, cheesy sets, even cheesier fashion" is a quote from a review that's somehow supposed to be NEGATIVE. Bullshit. This is a movie where Mr Han from Enter the Dragon plays the role of a guy named...Mr Han, and his grandson (the kid in that GIF) impersonates Bruce Lee. Also, that GIF is of that kid being killed because Hong Kong Godfather is the kind of movie where little kids get killed on camera. The nudity in that movie is a reminder that women in the 80s had big hair all over, if you get my drift. Tokyo Shock is a label of Media Blasters, who released a fair share of the Shaw Brothers classics. I don't think they used "Tokyo Shock" as the label for those, since that was more of the exploitation stuff that's now released as "Sushi Typhoon." Dragon Dynasty is pretty much done these past few years. Bey Logan, the man responsible for Dragon Dynasty being what it was following his efforts in the UK only Hong Kong Legends releases, is no longer there (which is why some of the later Dragon Dynasty releases aren't so hot). He seems to be doing stuff for the UK only again under a label called Cine Asia. I think the main company doing high quality releases of Asian action cinema in the US is Well Go USA Entertainment. The majority of their stuff is current-era, post-handover material (like all the Sushi Typhoon stuff), so they're the ones savvy enough to make sure stuff like Ip Man gets onto Netflix. Daryl Surat fucked around with this message at 02:34 on Dec 3, 2015 |
|
#
?
Dec 3, 2015 02:30
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 8, 2024 18:31 |
|
|
I mean, they're not releasing new stuff, but aren't most of the Dragon Dynasty releases still in print? Amazon seems to have basically everything they did still in stock. And yeah, Well Go is doing a lot of post-handover stuff. Celestial Pictures seems to have taken up distributing the Shaw Bros. stuff themselves digitally (they're the only non-Shaw logo on the Netflix versions) but I'm unsure who's currently got the DVD/BD rights to those, if anybody.
|
|
#
?
Dec 3, 2015 06:31
|
|