Hong Kong Action Guide

infernalaffairs.jpgI was pointed to this article via Asian Movie News over at their sister site, Beyond Hollywood. It’s reported to be a beginners guide to Hong Kong cinema and what to watch…Here’s the gist of the titles to watch…

Yes, it’s true, boys and girls, “The Matrix” wasn’t the first movie to invent the ol “falling down and shooting” move. I know it’s hard for some of you to believe, but hear me out…this is a guide to some of the best Hong Kong action movies that not only defined Hong Kong action, but set the ground rules for a lot of the action movies you are currently seeing, be it in the West or the East, but just never knew it.

The Killer (1989)
A Better Tomorrow (1985)
Hardboiled (1992)
The Mission (1999)
Infernal Affairs (2002)
So Close (2002)

There are also some notable recommendations, in the form of…

2000 A.D. (2000)
Hit Team (2001)
The Longest Night (1997)
Naked Weapon (2002)
Running Out of Time (1999)

So who’s seen which, and what did you think of them? Any surprises, and more importantly anything missing? I’ve caught Killer, Hardboiled, Infernal Affairs, and I have some of the others on my 347 long DVD rental list! I have to say out of those I’ve seen, Infernal Affairs rocked, and the difference between them is that the others were a little more over the top and wild, whereas Affairs was more grounded. Still, the remaining titles are going on my rental list right after I post this.

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12 thoughts on “Hong Kong Action Guide

  1. Agree with RIGHTING WRONGS. CYnthia Rothrock’s best (although her short fight scene w/Sammo in MILLIONAIRES EXPRESS was very good).

    Ringo Lam, Johnny To, and Benny Chan have been metnioned.

    I like BIG BULLET, but that they ran out of money at the end really shows.

    POWERFUL FOUR is good.

    I’m also a big fan of che Kirk Wong (THE CLUB, ROCK AND ROLL COP, OCTB ); his US offering THE BIG HIT is a film that is truer to the HK sensibilities than most.

    and POM POM AND HOT HOT is one of the more obscure but amazing hk films ever. Lam Ching Ying is incredible.

    of course as internat’l cinema has changed, it’s now time to focus on Korean action films (and cinema in general).

  2. Indeed Borloff Bullet in the head is a great film …

    … Was Richard Norton in “Above the law”? (I know I could check the IMDB, but its always more fun to ask real people)

    The Ringo Lam movie with lau Ching-Wan “full Alert” deserves a mention as well.

    As for martial arts, the swordplay movie by Tsui Hark “The Blade”, has got to be the best martial arts movie ever IMO. And yeah Jet Li is awesome in all his Hong Kong Kung Fu films.

  3. Don’t Laugh, but one overlooked gem, in my opinion, is the Yuen Biao / Cynthia Rothrock cop movie called…. Above the Law (or sometimes called “Righting Wrongs”. This movie is sweet. And it was directed by Corey Yuen (who directed The first “Transporter” and the Jet Li classic “Fong Sai Yuk II”).

    If you can get your hands on it, check it out…. it really entertains.

    I have also noticed that this thread seems to be on a cop/crime bend….. but for those who gotta get their Kung-Fu on….. check out;

    ANYTHING Jackie Chan made in HK in the 80’s and 90’s and his “New Police Story” movie was pretty damn good.

    The “Once upon a time in China” series with Jet Li.

    Fist of Legend – Jet Li…… ah hell…anything Jet Li didn’t make in the U.S. is worth seeing.

    Oh and one of the most intense movies i have ever, EVER, seen is the John Woo flick “Bullet in the Head”.

  4. Your not thinking of Running out of time Richard that film ends with Andy Lau driving off, I think your have confused it with something else.

    I would recommend

    Colour of the Truth

    Cop on a mission

    The Young and dangerous movies

    Tragic Hero

    Rich and famous

    God of Gamblers

    √¢‚Ǩ¬¶ and lots of the stuff already mentioned, although technically most of those are just crime films and not really Hong Kong action as in the late 80’s, early 90’s films of Woo and Lam

  5. While I liked John Woo’s “The Killer” I loved…L-O-V-E-D…”Hard Boiled”. While “A Better Tommorow” was fine, “A Better Tommorow II” was better.

    “Naked Weapon”? ugh.

  6. Hard Boiled & The Killer are the two flicks that introduced me to Hong Kong Action Cinema. I agree with the above mentioned flicks, but I would like to add Full Contact, a film by Ringo Lam, starring Chow Yun Fat & Simon Yam.

    Also: Organized Crime & Triad Bureau w/Danny Lee

    Big Bullet

    Time & Tide

  7. Triflic – definitely One Night in Mongkok – how could I forget that one, I even reviewed it for Twitch!

    Actually I might have seen running out of time…and hated it! Was that full of bizarre action sequences and the final fight cop vs robber in a train yard? Rubber face punches and all that? If so…it wasn’t for me.

    The rest are going on my list…anymore?

  8. The Mission (1999) is a very good film, it’s about a group of hired bodyguards who ended up becoming close which in their field of work is not a good thing. If you enjoyed this one, then i’d recommend PTU, while you’re at it, also pick up Breaking News, same director Johnnie To. He has a new film coming out in HK which i’m sure is going to be as good as PTU and The Mission, the film’s title is Election, it’s about the Triad societys’ electing a new leader.

    So Close (2002) is an action flick with Shu Qi (the female lead in Transporter) as one of the lead actress, it’s a tad cheesy but the action is really good.

    2000 A.D. and Hit Team are okay films, wouldn’t really recommend them though, i can’t even remember the story of these two anymore.

    Running Out of Time (1999) – this is fairly similar in concept to Infernal Affairs but is more of a cop vs crook mind games and doesn’t take itself seriously.

  9. I’d put Johnnie To’s “PTU” on the list, it’s pretty accessible and entertaining.

    Ringo Lam’s “CITY ON FIRE” (which stars Chow Yun Fat much like the first three choices on the list) is notable for the number of things Quentin Tarantino ‘borrowed’ for Reservior Dogs.

    Hard Boiled is one of the best full-on straight up action pictures ever made…The Killer may be more ‘operatic’ but Hard Boiled is the asian equivalent of “Die Hard”, meaning an undisputed action-classic.

    More recently “ONE NIGHT IN MONGKOK” and “SPL” are destined to become classics in the HK canon as well.

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