| Fresh off the chaos that was Swordsman, Raymond Lee helmed this drama with gangster genre aspects up for cliché target practice but he showcases a will to make something that will peek out just a little bit more distinctively than the rest of the output at the time. While Ti Lung's character journey is about leaving the gang life in order to settle down (yea...easy as pie as always), Lee knows that if you put enough sincerity and get actors of dignity and charisma, you can achieve better things than expected of the surroundings. That happens with Ti Lung's strong leading act, embodying a character who realizes he has failed but also that success was never going to be an option in life, knowing what he knows now. Lo Lieh is equally good in a seemingly ordinary supporting act but Lo brings subtlety along the way that speaks well to the veteran nature of the loyal character. It's not the greatest drama tools employed here (some over the top melodramatics comes with it) but it's effective in a modest way. Watchability level also goes up whenever action director Tony Leung steps in, in particular an intense shootout at a funeral parlor has a nice gimmick not seen in too many other films. Also with Olivia Cheng, Fennie Yuen, Mark Cheng, Roy Cheung and Lam Chung. |
Quick Takes:
