Plot: Triad families in Hong Kong squabble and take revenge on one another.
This is supposed to be a rich gangster epic but is much more like a soap opera (expect plenty of howling Chinese women) with bloody action scenes. It takes tragedy seriously: in one scene a gangster's wife and his ten kids are all blown up whilst in another a woman is shot in the back of the head. There is more blood than the last act of a Jacobean tragedy. The final scene is a family affair as a pair of brothers, their father and a cousin all blow each other (and a large house) to pieces, bit by bit. The 1980s clothing is suitably hilarious and there is an excellent action scene involving a van but it doesn't make up for all the poor melodrama and the overly long running time.
Worth no (sober) viewings.
This is supposed to be a rich gangster epic but is much more like a soap opera (expect plenty of howling Chinese women) with bloody action scenes. It takes tragedy seriously: in one scene a gangster's wife and his ten kids are all blown up whilst in another a woman is shot in the back of the head. There is more blood than the last act of a Jacobean tragedy. The final scene is a family affair as a pair of brothers, their father and a cousin all blow each other (and a large house) to pieces, bit by bit. The 1980s clothing is suitably hilarious and there is an excellent action scene involving a van but it doesn't make up for all the poor melodrama and the overly long running time.
Worth no (sober) viewings.