What asian film/series have you just seen.. marks out of 5

[HungFist]

Twisted Sex (セックスドキュメント 性倒錯の世界) (Japan, 1971) [DVD] - 2/5
"Modern Japan. Sex is everywhere. There we have a woman with a woman. Or is it a man after all? What is a man or a woman anyway?" The third and final in Sadao Nakajima's sex doc series covers transvestites, gay men, lesbians, tattoos and S&M. This one is actually interesting in parts, especially in its romantic portrayal of gay men, something which is greatly aided by Ichiro Araki's cool score that blesses the entire film. There's also some interesting footage with Nippon Irezumi Club needle masters creating sadistic full body tattoo art with the kind of visions of torture hell familiar to viewers from Teruo Ishii's ero guro films. The doc gets less interesting when it moves to S&M content (Oniroku Dan also appears here). Again, the film is perhaps more valuable as cinematic curiosity and time capsule than as informative doc, but it is cinematically more accomplished than the first two. Oh and the words quoted in the beginning? The voice belongs to narrator Ko Nishimura, probably best known to foreign audiences as the priest in Lady Snowblood (1973).

Hot Springs Geisha 2 (温泉ポン引女中) (Japan, 1969) [DVD] - 3/5
The first Hot Springs Geisha (1968) film, a harmless sex comedy and one of Teruo Ishii's dullest efforts, only managed to sneak in one or two brief topless shots. This sequel does more in the opening credits scene alone. It's a skin flick in and out, but thankfully one with an enjoyably laidback swing, drenched in 60s aesthetics, and without too many boring bits. And just when you're about to get a bit tired of it, it throws in a bizarre nude party scene with Tatsumi Hijikata's Butoh dancers! And then there's a super violent shocker final reel that makes you wonder if the filmmakers decided they should've gone the Joy of Torture (1968) route instead. Though unjustified quality wise, you can't quite help but to see the Beneath the Valley of the Dolls (1970) parallels. This is as good if not better than the two Norifumi Suzuki directed instalments (parts 4 and 5).

[Killer Meteor]

There are two different versions of Millionaire's Express, both with exclusive footage. I have no idea which version represents a director's cut or original theatrical version.

[chazgower01]

Aces Go Places (1982, Hong Kong) internet 3.5/5
For the influence it had on the Hong Kong Film Industry and Jackie Chan, in particular, I wonder if there was anything comparable to this when it was released?
Director Eric Tsang had tried to make a money chase type of comedy in 1980 with ‘The Loot’ and 1981 with ‘The Crazy Chase’, but neither of those had a star like Samuel Hui (his comedian brother starred with Jackie Chan in Cannonball Run the previous year). Making a perfect pairing with Karl Maka, they’d knock out four successful sequels and constantly give Jackie Chan a run for his money for the top of the box office over the next few years.
Yet these movies aren’t even much known outside of Hong Kong Film buff circles.
(Side note: I suspect, Aces Go Places beating Dragon Lord is PART of what made Jackie think Dragon Lord was a disappointment - it got beat by almost HK $10 Million) - he’d come back from America an even bigger star in Hong Kong, but got beat at the box office by a Pop Star - but I SUSPECT, what REALLY made Jackie think he had to start moving towards movies in a modern setting was that Dean Shek and Richard Ng’s ‘It Takes Two’ - a goofy comedy in a modern setting - just barely lost out to Dragon Lord for the #2 spot! Dean Shek! Dean Shek was also a producer and actor on Aces Go Places, but he wasn’t the STAR. He was one of the main stars of ‘It Takes Two’.!
Now I LIKE Dean Shek and even Richard Ng, mostly, but for Jackie’s ego, this had to seem crazy. Those guys were bit actors! Just an observation. And I've never seen 'It Takes Two'.)
Aces Go Places is a little bit absent on the Kung Fu, as in, almost non-existent in it, but it does have stunts, and comedy, and a nice pace that makes it easy to watch even now. And like I said, the chemistry between the two stars (and Slyvia Chang) really helps.
Samuel Hui is King Kong, a thief who steals some Diamonds from some bad guys, framing them for the crime. Two cops (Maka and Chang) are after him, but he ends up teaming up with them to go after the badder, bad guys.
The finale has a bunch of cars blowing up, but I guess people like that. And then Sam Hui jumps over a car as it speeds at him, which looks really cool (though it may not have actually been him). Tsui Hark has a small part as a ballet director.

[grim_tales]

There are two different versions of Millionaire's Express, both with exclusive footage. I have no idea which version represents a director's cut or original theatrical version.

Interesting, I never knew that I have the HKL DVD so wonder what version that is

[chazgower01]

Oh, and based on what information I had available, here is the Top 10 Hong Kong Box Office for 1982:

1. HK $26,043,773.00 Aces Go Places
2. HK $17,936,344.00 Dragon Lord (Jackie Chan)
3. HK $16,724,578.00 It Takes Two
4. HK $16,157,801.00 Shaolin Temple (Jet Li)
5. HK $15,475,087.00 Boat People
6. HK $13,927,084.00 Till Death Do We Scare (Alan Tam)
7. HK $11,809,432.00 Carry On Pickpocket (Sammo)
8. HK $10,104,527.00 The Dead and the Deadly (Sammo)
9. HK $08,827,520.00 The Perfect Match
10. HK $08,482,128.00 The Miracle Fighters


I really want to check out Ann Hui's Boat People which I hear is great, and of course It Takes Two, which I'm sure is kinda goofy.... the two Sammo movies should be easy to find in some form...

[chazgower01]

Winners and Sinners (1983, Hong Kong) facebook 3/5
Winners and Sinners was the first of what many Hong Kong movie fans consider to be a part of Jackie Chan’s ‘three brothers’ movies (Himself, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao), even though Jackie’s part is minor and Biao only appears in one scene.
However it would set the stage for much of how Jackie changed his career - he plays a cop, the fight scenes are a mixture of brutality and comedy, and the stunts hurt just watching. But the real change is that, for once we see Jackie in a modern setting. What inspired this?
The previous year, the first Aces Go Places would dominate the box office, and in February of 1983, the sequel would do almost as well at HK $23 Million. Could all three Dragons together, also in a modern crime caper comedy/action movie topple them from the top spot?
Nope. Winners and Sinners would finish 2nd at HK $21 Million and the great Project A (and let's make no mistake, it's better as a movie than either of those two OR the first Aces) would finish 3rd at HK $19 Million. Around the rest of Southeast Asia, those two movies probably did monster business - but in Hong Kong, they still weren't #1
Directed by Sammo Hung, Winners and Sinners tells the story of five petty criminals who meet in jail - Teapot (played by Sammo Hung), Curly (John Sham), Exhaust Pipe (Richard Ng), Vaseline (Charlie Chin), and Rookie (Stanley Fung) who decide to form a friendship and start a cleaning company, so they can stay out of trouble.
But, a crime boss dealing in counterfeits is released the same day and through co-incidence, their paths will cross, leading to hijinks and some fun fighting.
Adding to the humor is Curly's sister Shirley (played by former Hong Kong beauty queen Cherie Chung), who the group jockey's for affection from. It also features Richard Ng's hilarious 'invisibility' scene.
Jackie Chan plays an unlucky cop who provides some of the better fight scenes, and he has a cool short spar with Yuen Biao during his cameo.
They'd somewhat repeat this whole process with My Lucky Stars and Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars, but more importantly, Chan, Hung and Biao would team up for a number of movies together that many feel are some of Jackie’s best fighting movies.
Added notes: That’s Moon Lee as Yuen Biao’s girlfriend! Mars has a small role as a robber.

Top 10 Hong Kong Box Office for 1983 (of the numbers I have available to me):
1. HK $23,273,140.00 Aces Go Places II
2. HK $21,972,419.00 Winners and Sinners (3 Dragons)
3. HK $19,323,824.00 Project A (Jackie Chan)
4. HK $15,439,323.00 Burning of Imperial Palace
5. HK $14,102,667.00 Espirit D’amour (Alan Tam - 1st Ringo Lam)
6. HK $13,782,062.00 All the Wrong Spies (George Lam/Brigitte Lin)
7. HK $12,946,443.00 Perfect Wife?! (Dean Shek)
8. HK $12,021,886.00 Reign Behind a Curtain
9. HK $09,386,443.00 Just For Fun (Frankie Chan)
T10. HK $07,691,332.00 Play Catch (Alan Tam)
T10: HK $07,373,743.00 Hong Kong Playboys (Wong Jing)
(Zu: Warriors from the Magic Mountain did HK $1,587,851!!!)

[chazgower01]

Lazy Hazy Crazy (2015, Hong Kong) Amazon Prime 4/5
Category III's don't have to be mindless sex romps, and Director Jody Luk Yi-Sam's 'Lazy Hazy Crazy' is anything but mindless.
It's the story of two high school girls, one a virgin (Tracy - Ashina Kwok) and one who has sex with older men for money (Chloe - Koyi Mak). In to their life comes Alice (Fish Liew), who's even more jaded and promiscuous, and her and Chloe form a bond that threatens to alienate Tracy.
Even though we see all three naked throughout the movie at various times, it doesn't really upstage the narrative. It's about friendship, alienation, coming of age, betrayal and complex feelings - and yet, none of those are as easy as the words that describe them, because of the decisions we make in life.
We also learn some of the reasons why they are who they are, separate from the rest of the students, all the while battling to understand each other.
Great performances by all three actresses, as it's almost like we're a camera spying on their private lives - sure, revealing in a physical sense - but just as revealing in an emotional sense.

[chazgower01]

Project A (1983, Hong Kong) DVD 4/5
After Aces Go Places dominated the Hong Kong box office in 1982, and then started off 1983 with a HK $23 Million sequel, Jackie must've realized that it was time to at least APPEAR in a modern Hong Kong movie with Sammo's Winners and Sinners. It still wasn't enough to overtake AGP2, but it did finish the year at just under HK $22 Million.
He brought Sammo and Yuen Biao on to his own directed Project A, which was at least a little more modern... but still not present day. It would finish 3rd at the HK box office at $19 Million.
I've always seen this movie as being in three parts. The first part has only one fight - the police vs the navy - and mainly consists of the Chinese Navy being disbanded and having to become cops. It's ok.
The second part is far and away the best - Jackie and Yuen Biao attack the bad guys headquarters and an all out brawl ensues - with Jackie quitting the police force and delivering his man to the chief - one of my favorite scenes. It then has Jackie on the run and includes a few fights side by side with Sammo and all of his cool stunts through the city streets, including his drop from the clock tower.
The third part (and the longest) is almost as good with the great Dick Wei, in one of his most classic roles (and that's saying A LOT) as the Pirate leader, where the Three Dragons begin their assault on their hideout. And off the top of my head, if this is the last time Jackie outright KILLS his adversary, it sure is a wild way that him and Sammo and Biao do it!
That finale is maybe the best thing they've done up to that point and it should rightfully be remembered as a great battle with all three of them taking on a savage Dick Wei.
Neither Jackie or Sammo (with Yuen Biao's help) could top the popularity of Aces Go Places 2 in Hong Kong, but they still had TWO hit movies, totaling over HK $40 Million in 1983, which is something no one else could claim.

[HungFist]

King of Porno (ポルノの帝王) (Japan, 1971) [VoD] - 1/5
Dumb Tatsuo Umemiya / Shingo Yamashiro comedy about a young bloke whose dick grows to inhuman dimensions (obviously a role tailor made for star Umemiya's ego). He visits a doctor, impresses ladies and opens a porn shop before running afoul with yakuza... With few laughs, sparse nudity and one big slong that is little utilized and never seen, this is dull junk, as bad as some of director Makoto Naito's other films with Umemiya. The boredom gets to the point where watching a big fake dick would probably have been more fun than what the film has to offer). Well, it does at least have a subtly titled theme song called "Manhood's Symbol" by Umemiya!

King of Porno: Red God of the Turkish Bath (ポルノの帝王失神トルコ風呂) (Japan, 1972) [VoD] - 2/5
This is a better than the first film, with more naked girls, more outrageous scenarios and visually more stylish. There's an especially hilarious Umemiya's dick vs. a brothel scene, as well as some fun stuff with Umemiya putting up a whorehouse with only foreign girls he's picked up from the street. Yumiko Katayama is in the film as well. Unfortunately the film keeps abandoning its own good ideas, even the Turkish bath theme is ultimately just a background elements. Also, opening and closing 20 minutes, in which absolutely nothing interesting happens, are excruciatingly boring.

[chazgower01]

Wheels on Meals (1983, Hong Kong) Amazon Prime 3.5/5
I never understood how people rated this movie as highly as they do - if not for the finale, I might even put it below Winner and Sinners. The story is flimsy, the comedy is ok, the stunts are few and far between, and the fights throughout are quick and sporadic. The finale is pretty good, which features the first Jackie/Benny 'the Jet' Urquidez fight but... even that seems shorter than it should be. Jackie gets his ass kicked through most of the fight and then throws a magical punch out of nowhere to wobble Benny, before finishing him off. Yuen Biao is getting his butt handed to him when he suddenly picks up a vase and knocks his opponent out. That's the best they could come up with?
Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad movie - just more on par with Winners and Sinners than Project A or some of what would follow. Was Jackie trying to get Sammo to make a movie more like Winners and Sinners because it had topped him at the box office the year before? In other words... for a Jackie Chan movie, it's very light on fighting, and very heavy on characters.
Which isn't necessarily bad - we get one of the few sexy scenes in a Jackie movie, where Lola Forner is shown in silhouette showering, before walking out in just a dress shirt and panties to tease Jackie and Yuen for a bit. Wouldn't see a whole lot more of those kind of scenes in JC's movies...
And there is the stunt with knocking the two punks off their motorbikes as they drive toward Jackie and Yuen, which is still cool to see, in the Spanish marketplace... but Richard Ng and John Shum as mental patients just seems to be shoehorned in to flesh out some kind of story (or fill up space).
Still... for what we do get of excitement, it's worth seeing. Almost like a test run for what would come next...



Three Dragons!

Yuen Biao 'leering' at Lola Forner

Great behind the scenes pic of Jackie and 'The Jet' working out a fight scene!

[chazgower01]

My Lucky Stars (1984, Hong Kong) Amazon Prime 3/5
1985 would be a big year for Jackie Chan, and it would start off in February with the second 'Lucky Stars' movie, which shot to #1 at the box office and outdid every movie the rest of the year. Of course, it helped that the Aces Go Places team decided to take a year off, but My Lucky Stars' HK $30.7 Million made it Jackie's highest grossing film yet.
It starts off promising enough, in Japan, with Jackie and Yuen Biao (as plain clothes cops) chasing some bad guys (driving stunts and then acrobatic stunts at a carnival) before being surrounded by.... ninjas! They put up a good fight (shot somewhat unevenly by a usually sure directed Sammo), but Yuen gets captured, so Jackie has to call in a favor to have some of his old 'orphanage buddies' released from jail to help him.
From there, we get a good 40 minutes of 'lucky stars', that depending on how you feel about it, is either a huge waste of film or some amusing laughs. Sure we get a young, attractive Sibelle Hu slinking around in a flimsy nighty for one scene, but watching 30+ minutes of these knuckleheads vying for her attention gets old.
We get a good fight, as Sammo and Jackie take on a few goons before we get even more 'Lucky Stars' (Richard Ng, Eric Tsang, Charlie Chin, and Stanley Fung) and a slow work up to the finale.
Much of this film feels like filler, but once Jackie reappears and makes his way through the fun house it picks up quickly. Jackie takes on Dick Wei (as a Japanese fighter!) in easily the best fight in the film, though Sammo taking on a roomful of goons is entertaining as well and Yuen Biao gets in on some action. Also Sibelle Hu has to battle Japanese muscle lady Nishiwaki Michiko, though Sammo finishes her off way too early.
In fact, the whole finale is over far too quickly, and it always leaves me feeling a bit underwhelmed. It has its moments, but it still baffles me how this outdid one of Jackie's greatest movies (Police Story) at the box office released later that year.

[chazgower01]

The Protector (1985, USA) haiuken.com 2.5/5
Director James Glickenhaus and Hollywood's second attempt to break Jackie Chan into the American market, starts at night in the Bronx, with some bad guys who look like they just came from the set of 'Escape From New York' robbing a truck of computers - Detectives Billy Wong (Jackie) and his partner get there too late, so they go and have a beer instead and end up squaring off with different hoodlums.
Lots of overly ridiculous shooting of guns and no kung fu, as Jackie's partner is killed and one of the bad guys gets away. Cool Charlie's Angels pinball machine though.
"Gimme the f*ckin' keys," Jackie tells the guy at the dock, so he can chase after the killer. Wow! This was worth it just to see that!
Jackie meets his new partner, a younger, skinnier Danny Aiello and they make small talk, where Jackie is a jaded, tough-talking cop. As bad as this movie is in terms of Glickenhaus' overwrought story and cliched action (typical angry Police Captain, last straw, etc.), I kinda like seeing Jackie in this role....
Anyway, they end up having to go to Hong Kong after the bad guys, who kidnapped some hotshots daughter.
"Discretion is my middle name," says Jackie. He's got some classic funny lines in this.
Then they go to a massage parlor where we see a naked lady, and Danny Aiello is about to get a happy ending ("Hey! When did you grow a beard?"), but Jackie's masseuse is about to give him a knife in the back and finally we get to see Jackie fight a little bit. It's somewhat like the scene in Rush Hour 2 at the massage place, except it looks like it was filmed by someone who didn't know what they were doing.
"Gimme a break", Jackie tells Moon Lee, who's English actually sounds pretty good.
Moon Lee's dad is offed, they consult a Chinese fortune teller, naked women prepare the 'product', there's a story 'twist'...and a portable cannon.
"Listen you creep", Jackie tells the bad guy over the phone, after they try to pay them off, "It's not your money we want. It's your ass!"
At the end we get Jackie vs Bill Wallace and some of what I can only assume are some of his stunt men and then Jackie with a big crane.
The Protector did $981,000 at the box office and finished #65 of all the R rated movies of 1985 and #152 of ALL movies in 1985. THAT is a flop. In a weird way though... I kinda liked it.

[chazgower01]

The Protector (1985, USA, Hong Kong Version) youtube 2/5
Jackie had a cut of the movie done for Hong Kong, where he took out all of the nudity and he added some side story about Sally Yeh as some synchronized aerobics dancer with a talisman necklace of some significance. He tries to talk to her about it and has to fight two guys who've been vying for her attention. It's a Jackie Chan-ish style fight in a weight room, that doesn't last very long, isn't all that creative, and only slightly better than what was in the film.
He visits her a little later and finds a bomb in her apartment that he defuses himself, before the bad guys try and shoot them with machine guns through the door. He then takes her to the airport.
Jackie also adds a scene of Bill Wallace fighting, that shows how they kill Moon Lee's characters dad.
Sally Yeh's cute, but I like the U.S. version better. Jackie should make his own tough cop movie...

[chazgower01]

Royal Warriors aka In The Line of Duty (1986, Hong Kong) haiuken.com 4/5
One of the earliest Hong Kong movies I saw outside of a Jackie Chan or Bruce Lee film (and James Ryan in Kill or Be Killed - more on that soon), I remember putting this in the VHS player and immediately watching it from beginning to end.
Royal Warriors was Michelle Yeoh's second starring role (Yes, Madam!), but this was the one I saw first, and it made me a fan of her from then on. It starts out with her in Japan looking like a tourist (she's actually a Hong Kong cop) when she has to intervene and beat up two hoodlums trying to kill a former member of their gang. The fight is pretty great, and I remember it surprised me at the time to see a female really take it to two guys in a film. I liked it!
From there it goes to her airplane ride back where she shares the ride with a transferred yakuza prisoner who gets freed by an accomplice who shoots the two cops. An even better fight breaks out on the plane that leads to Michelle busting one bad guys head open with a fire extinguisher and sending the other bad guy's head through the airplane window.
Helping her through this fight is retiring young family man Japanese cop Sanada Hiroyuki and male bimbo air cop Michael Wong, who can can't contain his interest in Michelle. That all happens in the first 15 minutes!
So then we have 15 minutes of characterization, but GOOD characterization because then something happens that REALLY propels the story forward (I won't spoil it) and from that point on it's ON!
The fights, the car stunts, the revenge, the shooting - I'll put the gun battle/fight in the neon restaurant up against any of the same type of scene in any Hong Kong movie - it's great stuff!
And yeah, Yeoh is pretty fun to watch kicking butt, but Hiroyuki is a madman! His fast and furious kicks and punches are just as entertaining - but this is very much Michelle's movie and she is fantastic - not only in the action scenes but in the dramatic ones as well.
Still one of my favorite modern Hong Kong movies.
Action Director Mang Hoi returns to work with Michelle from Yes, Madam! and Director David Chung would go on to work with Michelle on her next movie Magnificient Warriors.
THIS is Hong Kong Action Cinema.

[HungFist]

The Master of The Turkish Bath (Kigeki toruko-buro osho-sen) (喜劇トルコ風呂王将戦) (Japan, 1971) [VoD] - 1/5
Dull as dishwater Shingo Yamashiro comedy about a pig sound making silly man who finds success in brothel business with his equally silly male and female cohorts. Don't expect any naughtiness as this is essentially a family friendly affair (no graphic sex whatsoever, a tiny bit of nudity) despite the subject matter. Worse yet, there's not one interesting scene in the film. Ok, perhaps the "Mobile Toruko" at the back of a truck was a fun idea. And there's Bunta Sugawara cameo. They don't count to much. The humour is mainly based on people making funny faces or saying silly things. One of the films in Toei's related-in-name-only Kigeki/Comedy series, following Toho's similarly titled 60s series.

Sex Up And Down (Kigeki sex kobo-sen) (喜劇セックス攻防戦) (Japan, 1972) [VoD] - 2.5/5
Amusing Shingo Yamashiro sex comedy about a love doctor treating miscellaneous patients. Miki Sugimoto plays one of the three sukeban girls who barge into his clinic and demand to be hired (her role is small though). The supporting cast also includes Tooru Turi, Yukie Kagawa, Yoko Mihara, Yayoi Watanabe and Ryuhei Uchida as "pervert ninja". Unlike Master of the Turkish Bath, this film is absolutely packed with boobs - and gags dumb enough to get some laughs. Norifumi Suzuki's sex comedies like the two onsen geisha films make a good comparison as this resembles them. There's not much plot or exceptional qualities, but director Shin Takakuwa does acceptable job keeping things watchable and not overly goofy. He also directed one of the best Sonny Chiba films, the cop thriller A Narcotics Agent's Ballad (1972).

[grim_tales]

Wheels on Meals (1983, Hong Kong) Amazon Prime 3.5/5
I never understood how people rated this movie as highly as they do - if not for the finale, I might even put it below Winner and Sinners. The story is flimsy, the comedy is ok, the stunts are few and far between, and the fights throughout are quick and sporadic. The finale is pretty good, which features the first Jackie/Benny 'the Jet' Urquidez fight but... even that seems shorter than it should be. Jackie gets his ass kicked through most of the fight and then throws a magical punch out of nowhere to wobble Benny, before finishing him off. Yuen Biao is getting his butt handed to him when he suddenly picks up a vase and knocks his opponent out. That's the best they could come up with?
Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad movie - just more on par with Winners and Sinners than Project A or some of what would follow. Was Jackie trying to get Sammo to make a movie more like Winners and Sinners because it had topped him at the box office the year before? In other words... for a Jackie Chan movie, it's very light on fighting, and very heavy on characters.
Which isn't necessarily bad - we get one of the few sexy scenes in a Jackie movie, where Lola Forner is shown in silhouette showering, before walking out in just a dress shirt and panties to tease Jackie and Yuen for a bit. Wouldn't see a whole lot more of those kind of scenes in JC's movies...
And there is the stunt with knocking the two punks off their motorbikes as they drive toward Jackie and Yuen, which is still cool to see, in the Spanish marketplace... but Richard Ng and John Shum as mental patients just seems to be shoehorned in to flesh out some kind of story (or fill up space).
Still... for what we do get of excitement, it's worth seeing. Almost like a test run for what would come next...




Yuen Biao 'leering' at Lola Forner

She was gorgeous in Armour of God

[chazgower01]

Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars (1985, Hong Kong) facebook 2/5
I'm not the biggest fan of the 'Lucky Stars'... wait is this how I started off the review of their last movie? Not sure, but anyway, the first movie had its moments, the second I found a bit tiresome, and now this... the 'horny old guys' thing is just a bit creepy, and not even funny - I WISH it was funny, because it takes up about 2/3rds of the movie. But seeing them chase around 4 girls that are more than half their age (and try and use voodoo on them to make them fall in love - ugh...).
Sibelle Hu is back, but this time as Sammo's love interest and Rosamund Kwan (in an early role) becomes the new target for the Lucky Stars. Rosamund has two somewhat revealing scenes, the first in a see-thru nighty in the bathtub (tricked by the Stars) and the other when she walks into a bathroom on a gunman, pretends to be blind, and pulls down her pants and pees. Not used to seeing the usually reserved actress like this!
The first fight comes about 28 minutes in as Sammo battles some crazy guys dressed as girls with machetes before Sibelle shoots one and they run away. Skip to Jackie, Yuen Biao and Andy Lau taking on some thugs back - this is a pretty good fight in a warehouse - maybe we'll get... nope. More Lucky Stars.
It continues on like this - when the action is good, it's really good - Richard Norton as a villain, car and motorcycle stunts - but for every 3 minute burst of action, we get 15 minutes of the Lucky Stars. Not a good trade off. Thankfully, it was coming to an end.
Note: Jackie fights a sai wielding Kurata Yasuaki, but Sammo finshes him off with a pair of tennis rackets - really, Yuen Biao has the best fight scenes in this, short as they are - lots of regular bad guys, including James Tien, Dick Wei, Chung Fat, Phillip Ko - Michelle Yeoh as a judo instructor, a Moon Lee and George Lam cameo at the end... and Sandra Ng plays a Thailand tourist in her first movie!

[chazgower01]

Heart of the Dragon (1985, Hong Kong) haiuken.com 3.5/5
I had never seen this movie before - had only heard that it wasn't good - and to be quite honest, as I watched it the first time, looking at Sammo's haircut, I couldn't help but think of 'Simple Jack' from 'Tropic Thunder'. But really - this movie easily won me over, not only with the story, which is decent (and certainly better than those Lucky Stars movies), but with the performances, which are really pretty darn good.
Sammo plays a mentally challenged grown man (with the mentality of a young boy) who is taken care of by his brother, (Jackie Chan) a Police Investigator with dreams of marrying his sweetheart and becoming a sailor. He can't however because his brother isn't capable of caring for himself, and this causes some great dramatic tension, that both Jackie and Sammo are well up to performing.
Emily Chu (A Better Tomorrow) plays the long-suffering girlfriend and shares an actual (Hollywood) makeout kiss with Jackie.
Sammo accidentally gets involved in a robbery and Jackie saves the day, leading to a big police chase, stunts, fight, etc.
In fact, there's a little more action in it than people give it credit for - as much, if not more than in the Lucky Stars movies, and it actually flows better into the story than those movies. Plus you have James Tien as the big boss, and Dick Wei as the main bad ass - what more could you ask for?
How about a Jackie vs Dick Wei finale fight (while James Tien tries to shoot him), leading into Jackie taking on six guys with crowbars, leading into a final battle with Dick Wei? And this ISN'T Jackie as we know him in this role - he actually straight out kills some people (gun shot, crow bar through the heart) in this role.
My one big complaint - the music - which jumps between cheesy and outright horrible. Well, it was the 80's.

[grim_tales]

I remember the ending of the film being really touching and sad Fuck.
Also back in the day some reviewers described the film as Hong Kong's answer to Rain Man (or something like that), despite the fact this came out first.

[chazgower01]

Police Story (1985, Hong Kong) Hong Kong Rescue DVD 5/5
It's interesting to look back on 1985 and see that maybe one of Jackie Chan's greatest movies, wasn't even #1 at the box office that year! It did earn Jackie a Best Picture Award and his Stunt Team a Best Action Direction Award at the 1986 Hong Kong Film Awards* though! And it was hugely successful throughout the rest of Southeast Asia.
On top of that it was hugely influential in cinema, not only there, but in America as well.
It starts with the famous shanty town scene/police shootout, that leads to Jackie's bus stunt. It's as great of an opening to an action movie as you could want! Then we get Jackie's version of Lucky Stars style comedy as he is assigned to protect a star witness (Brigette Lin), by having a fellow cop (Mars) pose as a hired killer so he can save her, leading to a REAL fight with the boss' thugs, leading to a jealous girlfriend (Maggie Cheung) and Brigette using his stupidity against him to escape as he sleeps.
Which means that without a star witness, the bad guy gets off scott free! So Jackie is relegated to regular police duty, leading to more comedy (answering multiple phones, eating noodles), and trying to make up with Maggie. Some people criticise this middle part of the movie, but really it evens it out, and I think is enjoyable to watch - much more enjoyable than the Lucky Stars guys.
Jackie then gets some (what he thinks) is inside information in rescuing the star witness, but it backfires and he gets charged with murder!
With 20 minutes left in the movie, it takes off and doesn't let up. The mall fight is one of the greatest in the history of Hong Kong film, and Jackie ends it with a spectacular stunt.
On top of all of that, Charlie Cho gets punched in the face.




* At the 1986 Hong Kong Film Awards, Police Story also got nominated for Best Director (Jackie Chan - Mabel Cheung won for 'Illegal Immigrant'), Best Actor (Jackie Chan - Kent Cheng won for 'Why Me?), Best Actress (Brigitte Lin - Pauline Wong won with 'Love with a Perfect Stranger'), Best Cinematogrpahy (Cheung Yiu Cho - Poon Hang Sang won for 'Life and Death') and Best Film Editing (Peter Cheung - Chow Cheung Kan won for 'Hong Kong Graffiti')
Jackie was ALSO nominated for Best Actor for a second film that year, for his performance in 'Heart of the Dragon'. Sammo, for his performance, was NOT, though he did get nominated for Best Director for the movie.

1985 Hong Kong Box Office

1. HK $30,748,643.00 My Lucky Stars (3 Dragons)
2. HK $28,911,851.00 Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Stars (3 Dragons)
3. HK $26,626,760.00 Police Story (Jackie Chan)
4. HK $20,335,429.00 Heart of the Dragon (Jackie and Sammo)
5. HK $20,092,129.00 Mr. Vampire
6. HK $18,418,994.00 Kung Hei Fat Choy (Dean Shek)
7. HK $17,089,402.00 Mr. Boo Meets Pom Pom (Sammo AD)
8. HK $16,931,337.00 Working Class (Sam Hui - Tsui Hark)
9. HK $16,602,480.00 Happy Ghost II
10. HK $13,917,612.00 The Protector (Jackie Chan)

HK $11,618,066.00 The Unwritten Law (Andy Lau)
HK $10,740,607.00 Mummy Dearest (Alan Tam)
HK $10,405,978.00 Flying Mr. Bee (Kenny Bee - Wong Jing)
HK $10,019,862.00 Yes, Madam! (Michelle Yeoh)
HK $09,892,821.00 Affectionately Yours (Alan Tam)

[HungFist]

Sex, Gamble And Big Money (Porno gamble kigeki: O ana, chu ana, heso no ana) (ポルノギャンブル喜劇　大穴中穴へその穴) (Japan, 1972) [VoD] - 1/5
Panty stealing gambling addict becomes a gigolo but quits because the customers are too ugly. He then begins running various scams relating to prostitution and gambling with his associates. This is another Shingo Yamashiro / Yusuke Watanabe comedy. Watanabe was a capable drama director (e.g. the excellent, noirish Two Bitches, 1964) but awful with comedy, at least as far as these Yamashiro films go. This film's highlight is when Yamashiro snatches panties from a bathhouse and the owner turns out to be an old granny.

Note: the following review is for the King film that preceded King of Porno. I saw and reviewed them in the wrong order, resulting in some backwards logic if you read them in the posting order. Gomen.

King of the Widow-Killers (未亡人ごろしの帝王) (Japan, 1971) [VoD] - 1.5/5
Part 3 in the King series (1970-1972). There were 5 films in total, all starring Tatsuo Umemiya as a young bloke who leaves his poor family and doctor dad behind to make fortunes in a big city with the help of his big slong. Yes, you read that right. There's also comedy, a bit of melodrama and some action when he runs afoul with gangsters. I have not seen the first two films, but considering the series theme song was called "Manhood's Symbol" and each of the three latter films followed the same formula, it's reasonable to assume the first two were in the same alley as well. This film features Umemiya becoming a gigolo. There's no nudity or good laughs, but it does feature the 'pop star about to go Roman Porno' Sally May as one of Umemiya's customers (Umemiya must have had a thing for blondes as he screwed a Caucasian girl in every other sexploitation flick he did, climaxing with the Oh Wonderful Utamaro (1974) where he claims to have had real sex with co-star Sharon Kelly). Other cinematic achievements are modest but there is the kind of technical basic quality to the film and direction that keeps it just about watchable.

[Killer Meteor]

The Hero (1972)

AKA Wang Yu The Destroyer AKA Rage of the Master

"Our master wouldn't have thrown me out of the school, if you had not told a tale!"

Jimmy Wang Yu remakes The Chinese Boxer replacing the Japanese villians with Thai boxers - said Thai boxers being Chinese actors in circus strong-man outfits and goofy wigs. Unoriginal, but very entertaining. For a 70s basher, the two female leads get a decent share of the action. The fights are clunky but furious, the wirework is naff, and Wang Yu only has one facial expression, but you should enjoy it.

7/10

PS Be warned, the dub job on this is hideous! - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8NJpRZsO6E

[chazgower01]

1986

I guess we can forgive Jackie for not putting out a movie in 1986, as he had 5 in 1985, including the Top 4. Plus, the release of Police Story would spill over into 1986.
So did the Hong Kong box office, wilt and fade away without a new JC movie?
Quite the opposite, as a new star exploded onto the scene, with Chow Yun Fat starring in John Woo's 'A Better Tomorrow' rocketing to the top spot and a new all-time box office high of HK $34 Million!
Chow's stock had slowly been rising, having had a few moderate hits here and there including '100 Ways to Murder Your Wife' (at #10) with Sally Yeh in June (and Seventh Curse at HK $10 Million). But ABT made him a superstar.
The Aces Go Places franchise finally started to cool with IV, finishing #3, Sammo had a few hits, and a new kid by the name of Jet Li, proved that at least HE could make an old-time kung fu movie successful.
Wish I could find some information on what Royal Warriors did at the box office.

1986

1. HK $34,651,324.00 A Better Tomorrow (Chow Yun Fat - John Woo)
2. HK $28,122,275.00 Millionaire’s Express (Sammo)
3. HK $27,012,748.00 Aces Go Places IV
4. HK $23,109,809.00 Lucky Stars Go Places
5. HK $22,485,500.00 Inspector Chocolate
6. HK $18,106,589.00 Martial Arts of Shaolin (Jet Li)
7. HK $17,559,357.00 Peking Opera Blues (Tsui Hark)
8. HK $17,072,137.00 Mr. Vampire II
9. HK $16,822,229.00 Where’s Officer Tuba (Sammo)
10.HK $15,339,277.00 Happy Ghost III

13.HK $14,575,873.00 Royal Warriors (Michelle Yeoh)
14.HK $14,106,643.00 100 Ways to Murder Your Wife (Chow Yun Fat +)

HK $10,219,984.00 Seventh Curse (Chow Yun Fat)


Note: List has been updated with more accurate information!

[Killer Meteor]

I suppose having the hole in the head didn't help

Do you have a top 10 box office for 1980?

[chazgower01]

Yes, Madam! (1985, Hong Kong) youtube 3.5/5
Over the years, I never could find a good copy of this movie, and the only time I ever watched it was 20+ years ago from a crappy VHS bootleg. I remember liking the finale, but I couldn't remember why I was overall not that impressed with the film (compared to Royal Warriors, which I loved).
You have Michelle Yeoh as an ass kicking CID, Cynthia Rothrock added as her unwlecome help from Scotland Yard, James Tien again as the top boss, with Dick Wei again as his bad ass right hand man, Tsui Hark in a funny supporting role, Corey Yuen directing and action directing and Sammo Hung producing (with a short cameo). Plus supporting roles from a whole host of familar faces. How can you go wrong?
Well that's easy. First - spend too much time on John Shum and Mang Hoi as inept thieves and silly comedy. Second - don't feature Yeoh and Rothrock enough. It's that simple.
However - there are some great scenes in this movie. The opening with Michelle Yeoh is excellent as she stops an armored car robbery - Rothrock's introduction at the airport fighting Eddie Maher is pretty cool and the finale is great featuring both ladies in battle (Yeoh vs Chung Fat and Rothrock vs Wei) and Yeoh's crashing thru the glass as she flips two bad guys over the rail.
And the ending is pretty cool.
It just all could've been better.