Hong Kong noir

[Silvermoth]

I kind of feel like a bit of Hong Kong noir at the moment. Anyone have any recommendations?

I've been trying to find a copy of infernal affairs but I can't seem to find it. Is that any good?

 

[henry_9305]

I kind of feel like a bit of Hong Kong noir at the moment. Anyone have any recommendations?

I've been trying to find a copy of infernal affairs but I can't seem to find it. Is that any good?

I love Infernal Affairs. Found it better than The Departed.

SPL, A Better Tomorrow, Mad Detective are all great.

 

[Naked Shia]

Try some Johnnie To movies, like Breaking News, PTU, The mission or Exiled. and most of all, watch the longest nite with Tony Leung and Lau Ching Wan.

Also, the Killer is a must see, since it's John Woo at his best. And I would highly recommend On the Run, with Yuen Biao and Charlie Chin. It's awesome, violent, and really dark.

 

[Ajendo]

Yeah Johnny To's movies are awesome. I also recommend 80s early 90s Hong Kong stuff, particularly Chow Yun Fat movies.

 

[Naked Shia]

Coolie Killer with Charlie Chin is kinda campy, but it's also one fo the first real noir movie from HK.

Then you have Long Arm Of The law, which is about some thugs from china coming to Hong Kong to rob. I would also recommend Men From The Gutters, this one is totally crazy.

City On fire is also a must see, considering how it inspired Tarantino. Actually, most movies from Ringo Lam should be inetresting for you. School on Fire is not a film noir per see, but it's really dark. The ending is chaotic as hell.

 

[Silvermoth]

Thanks guys, everyone here is really great!

 

[Naked Shia]

You're welcome. I've been a huge HK movies fan for years. Which makes me think you shuold definitely check Chang Cheh's Vengeance and Boxer from Shantung. He mostly made wu xia pian and kung fu movies, but those one are definitely in the film noir category, and they are huge influence on John Woo's movies (he was assistant director on Boxer from shantung).

 

[Tequilla]

Only noirs ?

As already mentioned , Johnnie To is the priority. Just grab his filmography and start from 98 (Hero Never Dies ). He also made some cool stuff before , some are wuxia and others' are a little rough on the edges (like Big Heat , recommended to see after you've seen his movies). Where to start ? I dont know. Mad Detective , Exiled are pretty acessible and easy films to watch.

Then there's a lot of stuff. Looking at my dvd collection , this is what i have.

Expect the Unexpected
Too Many Ways to be No.1
My Heart is that Eternal Rose
Better Tomorrow trilogy (well , just check Woo's entire filmography.)
Infernal Affairs trilogy.
Tiger on the Beat
On the Run
People's Hero
Long Arm of the Law
City on Fire
The Odd one Dies
Young and Dangerous Series (there's a lot of them. most of them are just reasonable. But its' a pretty remarkable example of hk cinema from the 90's)
Bullets over Summer
Big Bullet
Righting Wrongs (hardly a noir , but its very cool)
Full Contact
Made in Hong Kong
Beast Cops
Full Alert


More recently , outisde of To's , there's a few good movies. One Nite in Mongkok ; Accident , Confession of Pain , Dog Bite Dog , Color of the Loyalty , Colour of the Truth , Eye in the SKy

(at bold the ones i liked the most , outside of To's films)

 

[chintai80]

i remember really enjoying big bullet and beast cops.
one nite in mongkok is good, but makes u depressed after watching it. haha.
and too many ways to be no. 1 is pretty interesting.

 

[Tequilla]

Beast cops in one of the finest examples of the shambolics that a movie casting can be. On one hand , one of the finest actors there is playing an amazing role (Anthony Wong). On the other , Michael friggin Wong , certainly one of the less talented persons to ever grace the art of acting.

too many ways to be no. 1 is pretty amazing. Shame about the horrible transfer in the dvd. It has this very pale-greenish pallete. Looks so bad.

 

[Tequilla]

Léo Ho Tep mentioned a pretty amazing movie , Longest Nite (which is credited as a Patrick Yau film although there's several sources saying the movie is actually from To , he took over the project but allowed that the former director kept his name). Its a sort of cat and mouse thriller , that takes place in Macau and its a shame it kinda went under the radar , and its not so well known in the west (dvd also pretty crappy)

It features heavily Giorgio Moroder Chase, and its pretty ****ing great. It fits even better than in the Spanish Prisoner.

 

[Octoberist]

I think Jonny To is good, but his films (to me) aren't great. It seems like he's a low rent John Woo. Kinda like how I think Len Wiseman is a low rent Michael Bay.

 

[Naked Shia]

I think Woo's work connects better with me. When To tries to make sentimental movies like a hero never dies, it doesn't work that well for me. And lately, his work is redundant, Drug War was really disappointing.

You could also chek Edmong Pang's Dreamhome, it's not a noir movie, but it's definitely a great thriller/slasher.

 

[Octoberist]

I mean, Drug War is a good movie..but man, the third act just falls apart. There's a much deeper movie in there waiting to burst out but never had a chance. Still it was entertaining despite the very cute scenes where they straight-up rip-off Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol.

 

[Tequilla]

I vehemently disagree with the comparison with Woo t: , although i perfectly understand it because i actually found To because of it. But i dont think it has anything to do with style , Woo's always been a very flamboyant director , everything is big , large , melodramatic and extremely expressive in his films. To is in the other side of the spectrum. He's a very minimalistic director , personally to me one of the strongest visualist alives , with an incredible visual flair . The action usually happens as the drama unfolds , contrary to Woo's setpieces that were the center of the films. And if he wants to be flamboyant , he even acknowledges it in the movie, like Full Time Killer where he spoofs many action films.

The comparison might make sense because Woo (and Lam) for a while were major forces in creating hk cinema as a major brand and having a global reach , something To also accomplished being the most representative director in the last few years from that region. Both working in violent and nihilistic pics. But the comparisons sort of end there. They made heroic bloodsheds , he's a deconstructionist with those same genre conventions. He also plays a lot with narrative structures.

He's also incredibly chamaleonic (although he became famous because of his urban crime genre films) , and that has to do with his past and present. He was a commercial director and after founding Milkyway he never hid the fact he had to make a bunch of films that needed to follow the audience , and make some money even if they weren't great. Without those successes he couldn't have made the rest .

As for Drug War , we need to at least contextualize it. He's making a film for mainland China. With very strict rules. They had a censor board judging scenes !!" Its a simple high octane thriller , with some very cool setups done mostly by dialogues. And its incredible well lit. Far from its best , but if he doesn't start making movies elsewhere , he won't be able to keep making the films he wants to.

 

[Octoberist]

Drug War was pretty violent still. Especially with that poor girl cop at the end.

 

[Naked Shia]

Drug War has some awesome action, a boring story, and a stupind ending thanks to the censors.

That said, I do like To's work, at least when it comes to crime movies... most of the time.

But some of his movies I really hate, like sparrow. It has nothing to tell. Visually, it was stunning, but what a bore.

 

[Tequilla]

Sparrow is such a great tale. It's probably my favorite To film after the triumvirate Mission , Election I-II. It's a cozy simple comedy caper , with lots of romance. It's a very gracious film , and it looks like the director is having so much fun mimicking some of the french new wave. The car scene where smoking is transformed into a ritual of love , the lipstick left in the cigarette accompanied by Fred Avril and Xavier Jamaux music...so gooood.

 

[Naked Shia]

I can understand why some people like this movie. It's not my cup of tea though.