Operation Condor 2: The Armour of the Gods
by Tsang, Eric
from Dimension
When martial arts wizard Jackie Chan is in top form, no movie star on earth is more fun to watch. Armour of God never achieves the beautiful, smooth flow of continuous movement that distinguishes Project A--Part 2. In fact, it feels like a botched international coproduction, short on common sense and plot momentum, long on Eastern European scenery and huggermugger intrigue. The wispy premise is the first danger sign: all the segments of an ancient suit of armor have to be located and reassembled, so that the suit can be used to pay the ransom on a kidnapped girl--Jackie's old flame. (He competes for her affections with a chum played by heartthrob pop star Alan Tam.) The creepy Aryan bad guys are hiding out in a mountain retreat in Yugoslavia, which is stormed with gusto. A long second-act interlude of door-slamming bedroom farce is a dreary drag, but there's some good body-slamming action toward the end--especially when Jackie squares off with a trio of black female body builders in S/M leather. With the dashing Rosamund Kwan (the glamorous revolutionary of Project A) as Laura Lai. --David Chute
This fast, entertaining adventure -- directed by and starring the world's number one action superstar, Jackie Chan (RUSH HOUR, OPERATION CONDOR, SUPERCOP) -- is the must-see "prequel" to the crowd-pleasing hit OPERATION CONDOR! Jackie is back and hotter than ever as a hard-hitting fortune hunter whose ex-girlfriend is kidnapped and held for ransom by an evil cult! Then things really kick into high gear when her fiance, an old friend of Jackie's, turns to him for help in finding and delivering the kidnappers' lone demand: the priceless Armour Of The Gods! Performing his own death-defying stunts, there's no stopping Jackie as he -- with the help of a sexy woman and a hilarious sidekick -- attacks his mission with a lethal mix of pulse-pounding action and sidesplitting humor!
Rich and Famous
by Taylor Wong
from Tai Seng
Chow Yun-fat in his smooth, controlled Better Tomorrow mode as a charismatic gang lord. It's a derivative mob chronicle, enjoyable but flat-footed to the point of incoherence (most of the visual and character transitions are bungled). Basically it's about two young brothers who get into crime in the '50s, after the super-cool "nice" gang boss, Chai (Chow), shields them from a nasty older gangster with a shaved head. Eventually one of the brothers, Yung (Alex Man Chi-lung), betrays Chai, strangles a lovable fat Thai drug smuggler, and goes into business for himself. The second, good brother emigrates to Malaysia to open a seafood restaurant. The movie makes no sense morally: Chow's character is a drug smuggler, but he's romanticized because he rewards loyalty and loves puppies. The tangled undergrowth of brother-love, father-love, boss-love, and he-manly loyalty--almost none of it thought through or sorted out--would be far too rich an emotional stew for most American films. The sequel, Tragic Hero, is actually a better movie. --David Chute
Men Suddenly in Black
by Ho-Cheung Pang
from Tai Seng
In this very funny black comedy that is also a parody of the popular triad/gangster action films, four married men decide to cheat on their wives while they're away on a trip to Thailand. But their plan seriously backfires when their spouses somehow knew about it and took revenge on them by countering their every move in secret. Thinking that there is a traitor among them, the four men must find out who the betrayer is, but this doesn't stop them from making sure that their adultery plan will succeed no matter what!
97 Aces Go Places
by Kar Lok Chin
from Tai Seng
The popular ACES GO PLACES saga returns in this delightful action comedy! When a reluctant gangster's son (Alan Tam) is summoned home to avenge his father's death, he enlists his always-drunk bodyguard (Tony Leung Chiu-wei from IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE and HERO) to help him out. Co-stars CHRISTY CHUNG (The Bride With White Hair 2) as a con woman who may or may not be the killer.
The Last Blood
by Jing Wong
from Tai Seng Entertainment
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