Hong Kong Movie Reviews »
Legendary Weapons of China (1981) Movie Review
At the turn of the 20th century, China is in chaos as foreign imperialists move in and divide the country into neat little pieces to exploit. This leads to the rise of quasi-religious societies/cult...
Read More »The Odd One Dies (1997) Movie Review
Hong Kong films about hitmen are pretty much a dime a dozen, especially those which feature a pair of mismatched assassins, generally one of which is quiet and reflective, and the other loud and...
Read More »2046 (2004) Movie Review
It’s always been one of my biggest regrets that I haven’t cultured myself sufficiently to the point where I can rattle off the titles of the operatic scores and music that shows up in...
Read More »The Longest Nite (1997) Movie Review
Hong Kong action films commonly have a strong moralistic streak, whether they are of the ‘heroic bloodshed’ genre typified by John Woo films such as “The Killer” or “Hard Boiled”, or the recent crop...
Read More »Trilogy of Lust 2 (1996) Movie Review
It’s not easy championing Category III films, and trying to convince people of the entertainment value of exploitation shockers such as “Red to Kill” or “Dr. Lamb” can be difficult at the best of...
Read More »Suzhou River (2000) Movie Review
Following the global success of “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, viewers in the West have witnessed a revived interest in the works of fifth generation Chinese directors such as Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige. These...
Read More »The Untold Story 2 (1998) Movie Review
Given the success and influence of “The Untold Story”, a sequel was inevitable; the only surprise being that it actually took five years for it to appear. Although “The Untold Story 2″ has no...
Read More »The Untold Story (1992) Movie Review
“The Untold Story” is not only the greatest category III film ever made, but also one of the best of any kind to have come from Hong Kong. Gripping, horrific and uncompromising, this infamous...
Read More »The Shaolin Temple (1979) Movie Review
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Boy sees father killed by evil warlord. Boy escapes to Shaolin Temple to learn kung fu. Boy gets payback. Of course, there’s more to the plot...
Read More »Explosive City (2004) Movie Review
At this point, with the dearth of good action films coming out of Hong Kong, I’d watch any movie that didn’t star one of the Twins. Heck, right now I’ll settle for a movie...
Read More »Three: Extremes – Dumplings (2004) Movie Review
Two years ago “Three” was released as a single movie, an anthology composed of three different stories made by three directors from three countries. (Hence the title, if you were wondering.) “Three…Extremes” once again...
Read More »White Dragon (2004) Movie Review
I’ll be the first to tell you that I don’t find a lot of the recent Hong Kong comedies, well, funny. For the most part the filmmakers take the basest form of what they...
Read More »In the Line of Duty 4: The Witness (1989) Movie Review
Yuen Woo-ping’s “In the Line of Duty 4: Witness” starts off in Seattle, where Hong Kong detective Yeung (Cynthia Khan) arrives to work with the local PD to take down some drug smugglers. Meanwhile,...
Read More »New Police Story (2004) Movie Review
Apparently Jackie Chan is tired of being the “Clown Prince of Kung Fu”, as he’s commonly known, because his character in the highly anticipated “New Police Story” is prone to fits of crying at...
Read More »Run and Kill (1993) Movie Review
“Run and Kill” is another Category III film from the prolific master of the genre, Billy Tang (“Red to Kill”, “Dr. Lamb”). Given the trashy DVD cover and the rating, prospective viewers would be...
Read More »There is a Secret in my Soup (2001) Movie Review
The U.S. box office has borne witness to a number of head to head battles between films about giant meteors, Robin Hood, and even crime solving dogs. However, Hollywood has never seen a contest...
Read More »Naked Poison (2000) Movie Review
If you ignore the lurid pictures of naked women covered with snakes and spiders on the box, “Naked Poison” may initially seem to be a Hong Kong variant on the Hollywood bad taste sex...
Read More »Red to Kill (1997) Movie Review
“Red to Kill” is possibly the most infamous Hong Kong Category III film of all, and is a journey to the darkest, sleaziest recesses of exploitation cinema. Even compared to its deranged peers, it...
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McDull, Prince de la Bun (2004) Movie Review
One is almost inclined to forgive “McDull, Prince de la Bun” if it had been anything other than pretty good. After all, the original was such a good film, and its epic telling of...
Read More »Chinese Torture Chamber (1995) Movie Review
“Chinese Torture Chamber” is a Category III film that stands out, not only as one of the genre’s most popular, but also as a genuine mainstream box office hit in its native Hong Kong....
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