Torgo Tours Hong Kong While Dodging Bullets

Cantonese original audio. Always. Dubbing is for lowlives and something you should never choose over the original audio if you have a choice.

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San Franciscan lesbian dwarves and their tomato orgies.

I actually have a download of the cantonese version but no subtitles because every Asian film I know of has about 6 different versions.

Swordsman and Enchantress - Throwback



Fans of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon are bound to enjoy this Shaw Brothers wuxia since it is one of its many inspirations. It kicks off with a walk in the woods reminiscent of the one in Rashomon and the beauty doesn't let up until the end whether it's from the natural world or the fantastical one. The latter, thanks to the multi-colored lighting and skies of perpetual twilight make you feel like you're watching a moving painting. Aesthetics are not all this movie has going for it, though: for one, there's the political struggle with its quest for the deadliest sword in the land shared by royals, the ever-charismatic Ti Lung's usurper and quadruplet enforcers, all of which resembles the plot of a Game of Thrones season. There's also the myriad sword and spear fights, none of which are dull or make you tire of that sweet "ping" sound whenever weapons cross. There's even a tiny village and a magical tea that, when drank, shrinks its victims so they become imprisoned inside it! All that's missing is Zoolander being told that people can fit inside the building. Oh, and there's one of the hallmarks of this genre that is also a highlight of Crouching Tiger: a forbidden romance between Ti Lung's Xiao and Li Ching's Shen, which is full of quality will they/won't they tension.



Again, the political struggle in this movie satisfies in the same way that the one in Game of Thrones does, especially for how it proves that the pursuit of power is empty if it's at the expense of what really matters in life. However, to bring up George R. R. Martin's brainchild one more time, it's as if an entire season of the series were crammed into the movie's 90 minutes. In other words, subpar subtitles in the version I watched are partially to blame, and even though the conclusion left me satisfied, I can't say I entirely understand everything that happens in this movie. Other than that, it's bound to start or perpetuate an obsession for the wuxia genre. It will also do the same for one Ti Lung.

My guy (or gal): Ti Lung, obviously. An even cooler Clint Eastwood - yes, I went there - of Shaw brothers wuxia.

Running Out of Time -



If so many '90s crime thrillers from Heat to Die Hard with a Vengeance taught us anything, it's that having a master lawman match wits with a master criminal is a guaranteed way to make sparks fly. That rule also applies to this movie, which does not surpass Michael Mann's magnum opus, but it has an element that makes movies like it all the more involving and that it pulls off very well: a criminal with an ulterior motive.

With his cool demeanor and unwavering confidence, Andy Lau makes Cheung into a classic Johnnie To antagonist. Ching Wan Lau's hostage negotiator, Ho, is also no slouch in the swagger department, coming across like he is the smartest man in the room as soon as we meet him. I'll also reveal - and reassure - that Cheung is not just concerned with business. Time is not just running out for Ho to find him, in other words: it's literally doing so for his rival. These factors all but sweeten how intricately and clever their cat and mouse game plays out, a highlight being Ho attempting an office building escape with duct crawling that would impress John McLane. Like the typical To movie, it is efficient, but it still allows room to breathe and at just the right times. If it's not a potential final attempt at romance, it's Cheung showing his gift for banter with Ho and with his co-workers.



This movie is a bit on the convoluted side, so much so that I had to consult a plot summary more than once to confirm I was on the right track. It's all but exacerbated by a typical annoyance with Hong Kong movie imports: lackluster English subtitles. A shot of a key newspaper headline, for instance, goes untranslated. There are also parts of the "romance" that have not aged well. Besides that, it's another satisfying entry in the filmography of one of the most reliable directors I know, who luckily also happens to be very prolific. It says a lot that two of his best movies came out in the same year!

My guy (or gal): inspector Ho Sheung-Sang. Just the kind of take charge person you would like to be at your workplace.

As Tears Go By -



Wong Kar-Wai's directorial debut successfully explores a familiar yet never uninteresting theme: the less than fruitful impacts a career in crime has on what really matters in life. One reason why I'm drawn to movies from Hong Kong is a reason why our hapless anti-hero Wah (Lau) wants to make a life there: it is one beautiful and seductive place. Like he does in his classics that followed, the director accentuates these qualities - especially in terms of all that neon - but without making light of the city's dark underbelly. Even brighter, though, is the work of Kar-Wai's muse, Maggie Cheung. Besides how natural and charming she makes Wah's cousin Ngor, I like how she enhances Lau's performance for well he conveys Wah's desire to regain his humanity and his difficulty in doing so.

Movies like this one tend to have a character who is an adrenaline delivery system, if you will - think Gary Oldman in State of Grace or Joe Pesci in Goodfellas - and this one has a doozy in Wah's cohort Fly (Cheung). As Wah's hilariously poor attempt to set him up with a legit job indicates, even if he were to drag himself out of the business, there's that damned obligation to his brothers that will always drag him back in. Fly's inability to stay out of trouble highlights what else fuels my passion for Hong Kong cinema: how tactile and visceral the action feels. Whenever I think I have become desensitized to fight scenes, movies like this one remind me that I'm not, which says a lot when you compare the scale of a scuffle at a Mahjong table to ones where machine guns or laser cannons are blazing.



Again, the allure and inescapability of a life of crime is well-worn territory in all of cinema, especially Hong Kong cinema. Wong Kar-Wai still manages to bring something new to the table and make it his own. While it's not my favorite movie of his, it has all the qualities that make him one of my favorite filmmakers. Since each of his movies are so unique, you could start with any of them, but this one is as good a place as any to kick off an obsession with his work (oh, and with Maggie Cheung's as well).

My guy (or gal): Site (Ronald Wong), who based on the trouble Wah and Fly are always in proves that going home and being a family man is not such a bad thing.

I always confuse Days of Being Wild and As Tears Go By (not the plots, just the titles).

I rewatched them both last year and quite enjoyed both.

It doesn't help that they have virtually the same cast!
Say what you want about Max - I feel kind of guilty for being a subscriber - but at least they have a good Wong Kar-Wai selection.

Five Shaolin Masters -



Five Shaolin Kung Fu masters seek vengeance on the Qing soldiers who destroyed their temple in another awesome Shaw Brothers entry that should be described as "epic." Besides exceeding the studio's typical runtime, it deserves to be called an epic for the grand scale director Chang Cheh gives this story. The beautiful Taiwanese vistas are wide and the numbers in this conflict are high. The movie is intimate when it needs to be, though, so luckily, I walked away feeling like I knew all the main players very well. As for the good guys, the venerable Ti Lung's Tsai Te-Chung and Alexander Fu Sheng's naive on some occasions, supremely confident in others Ma Chao-Hsing stood out to me the most. Johnny Wang Lung-Wei's turncoat, on the other hand, brings the love to hate vibes in the best way. The combat scenes are all the more exciting as a result, which like the best Shaw Brothers movies feature a mix of weapon and hand-to-hand combat. The movie also deserves credit for being mature enough to know that when there's a lot a key players, it's important to help the audience keep track of who to root for and who to heckle all times. It does this in two other ways that explain why I keep coming back to this studio: their distinctive costumes and vibrant colors.



Again, the characters are memorable and the fighting remains intense until the bitter end, but you know what I'll remember the most about this movie? The secret hand gesture the five masters use to connect with their allies. There is something reassuring about the masters not only building their ranks in such a friendly manner, but also how willing their recruits are to risk their lives for the cause. I'm not sure if it's because all the other Shaw Brothers movies I've seen are of the lean and mean variety or my short attention span is to blame, but my attention did waver in the final act. The important thing, though, is that while the credits rolled, I had a sensation I typically only feel after watching historical dramas that I have witnessed something big, complete, and well...epic. I can only hope that the rest of the Kung Fu movies I watch leave me with this feeling.

My guy (or gal): Ma Chao-Hsing, who to those Seven Samurai fans out there I would describe as the Kikuchiyo of the five masters.