Ng See Yuen Movies
"Once upon a time in distant China, there were three sisters. One loved money, one loved power, and one loved her country." So opens this historical, melodramatic chronicle of the influential lives of three daughters from one of pre-Communist China's wealthiest families. Two of the Soong sisters married important figures in 20th-century Chinese history. Soong Ching-ling married Sun Yat-sen, the founder of the Chinese Republic while her sister May-ling married Sun's successor, the famed Chian Kai-shek. The oldest daughter Ai-ling married industrialist H.H. Kung, a wealthy and powerful man who eventually became Hong Kong's finance minister. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Snakes and special effects abound as human and mythical worlds collide in this lavish variation of an old Chinese fable about a learned man who falls under the spell of two snake women. After 1,000 years of practice, White Snake is finally able to take on a completely human form. Hsu Hsien, the scholar, falls in love with the lovely White Snake. Her sister, Green Snake, is not as adept at shape-shifting as she has only practiced for 500 years. She is human above the waist only. The serpentine sisters are hunted by a Buddhist monk who is almost to nirvana, and a Taoist monk determined to rid the area of all snakes. When the two forces finally meet, Hsu stands by as a secular witness. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maggie Cheung, Joey Wong, (more)
International action star Jackie Chan stars opposite knockabout comedy sensation Jackie Chan in this story about identical twins separated in childhood who are unexpectedly reunited years later. While on the run from a Hong Kong hospital, an escaped convict takes an infant hostage, leaving the baby's identical twin brother behind. While the criminal is soon back behind bars, the police can't find the baby, who was hidden in the woods. The child is found by a well-meaning but hard-drinking woman who raises him on her own, while his brother moves to the United States with his parents. Years later, the brother raised in America, John (Jackie Chan), is a world-renowned classical musician, while the other, Boomer (Chan again), is a rough-and-tumble auto mechanic who likes to race cars and start fights. When Boomer's best friend hatches a dubious scheme to win the freedom of a nightclub singer (Maggie Cheung) in dutch with gangsters, he finds himself involved and in danger, just in time for John to arrive in Hong Kong for a concert appearance. The two brothers soon meet by accident, and suddenly finds themselves mistaken for each other. On one hand, both are pleased with the romantic possibilities, as John takes a shine to the nightclub chanteuse and Boomer discovers John's girlfriend is turned on by his more physical personality. On the other hand, John finds people are shooting at him, while Boomer is now expected to conduct an orchestra. Two of Hong Kong's leading directors, Ringo Lam and Tsui Hark, teamed for this action comedy, which was a major hit in Hong Kong in 1992, but didn't receive a wide theatrical release in the United States until seven years later. The 1999 American release was dubbed into English (with Chan doing his own voice) and trimmed to 89 minutes from the original running time of 100 minutes. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jackie Chan, Maggie Cheung, (more)
- 1991
- R
In this martial arts actioner, two estranged brothers reunite and work together to see that the terrorists who killed their father comes to final justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1991
- R
A Thai "snuff film" ring is the target of an American undercover detective in search of the men who killed his brother. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
This low-budget knockoff of God of Gamblers succeeds primarily due to an exuberant star-making turn from Stephen Chiau as Shing, a rube from the Chinese mainland who comes to Hong Kong to visit his uncle, Blackie Tat (Ng Man-tat). Blackie isn't thrilled about his nephew's visit until he learns that Shing has the ability to see through things, a sort of X-ray vision. As a gambler, it doesn't take Blackie long to realize that Shing's abilities could make him a great deal of money, but news travels quickly and Shing is soon torn between two powerful gamblers who want him to be their proxy in a big competition. Taiwanese kingpin Chan Chung gets Shing first, so his Hong Kong rival, Hung Kong (Paul Chun), tries to kill him. Shing survives the attempt, but Hung manages to stop him from competing by kidnapping Chan's pretty bodyguard, Yee-mong (Sharla Cheung), who has won the young man's heart. The film is filled with action as well as humorous takeoffs on everything from Fist of Fury to A Better Tomorrow. In an amusing twist of fate, this knockoff actually made more money than its model, and was followed by a sequel audaciously titled God of Gamblers II. Sandra Ng co-stars with co-director Corey Yuen and Sheila Chan. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Chow, Ng Man Tat, (more)
- 1989
- R
In this loose sequel to the earlier film No Retreat, No Surrender, young martial artist Scott (Loren Avedon) now living in Thailand, he has a Vietnamese girlfriend whose wealthy father would strongly disapprove of their liaison. When she is kidnapped after one of their dates, Scott seeks to rescue her. Enlisting the aid of his arms-dealing buddy Mac (Max Thayer) and pilot friend Terri (Cynthia Rothrock), he sets off into the jungles of Southeast Asia to confront the kidnappers. He confronts renegade Soviet front man Yuri (Matthias Hues), and the bad guys get their comeuppance in the usual scenes of martial arts mayhem, spiced with plenty of machine gun fire and explosions. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Loren Avedon, Max Thayer, (more)
- 1986
- PG
This film is a kind of David meets Goliath story told in martial arts terms. Young Jason Stillwell (Kurt McKinney) moves with his parents to Seattle, where local bullies harass them without mercy. Jason's father Tom (Tim Baker) does not believe in violence, so the family takes it on the chin. One day Jason enrolls in a martial arts class and quietly rises in rank to be a major contender. His mettle is tested in an international match against Ivan, a Russian champion (Jean-Claude Van Damme), expanding the "enemy" beyond Seattle's borders. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kurt McKinney, Jean-Claude Van Damme, (more)
- 1985
This melodramatic tearjerker is about an orphan boy in Hong Kong who grows up to attend law school in England and then decides to go back to the business capital of Asia to work. The young man's girlfriend comes from an influential family, and she is able to get him set up in one of Hong Kong's best law firms. As he is settling in and adjusting to his good fortune, circumstances lead him to take on the defense of an elderly prostitute accused of murder. After he meets the woman, he is convinced she is innocent -- and little does he know then where this particular case will take him. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yip Tak Han, Nam Kit-Ying, (more)
- 1982
Ng See Yuen directs Chen Hsing in the marital arts action film The Rage of Wind. Hsing plays a Chinese kung fu expert who has sworn off violence ever since he caused the accidental death of a friend. He returns to his hometown, which is occupied by Japanese forces led by a cruel officer (Irene Ryder Kurate). Hsing's pacifism is thrown aside after troops kidnap his wife and torture innocent citizens. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 1982
Yuen Kwei directed this hard-hitting Hong Kong action film under the pseudonym "Corey Yuen." Genre veteran Hiroyuki Sanada stars in a rare heroic performance, battling a fascist religious cult with the aide of sidekick Conan Lee. The most unusual aspect of this well-done martial arts entry is its uncommonly charitable portrayal of Japanese characters, who are normally presented in such films as either villains or buffoons. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Conan Lee, Hiroyuki Sanada, (more)
- 1981
Graphic violence and several extended fight sequences would at first seem to place Without a Promised Land in the same genre as other Hong Kong action films. Yet this film was banned by the censors because of its political content, and in fact, the excessive violence is accompanied by a close look at the situation of Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong. In this action film, the Vietnamese boat people are not portrayed as the usual stereotype - that is, basically evil in nature. The film focuses on a group of Vietnamese as they arrive, and follows them through harrowing situations, with sequences showing a compassionate and gentle side to some of the characters without eradicating their imperfections. There are other, more harmless kinds of stereotypes though, such as the prostitute with a heart of gold (Tsui Tse) who suffers abuse and gang rape, and the hard-nosed yet ultimately vulnerable ex-soldier/hero from North Vietnam (Wong Wei). A young boy (Tong Sun) has a sympathetic and pivotal role in the film as well. This is the first film for all three of these actors. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- 1981
Ng See Yuen directs Bruce Lee and Tang Lung in the martial arts film Tower of Death. Jim Koo's funeral service takes an unexpected turn when his coffin is stolen by a helicopter. His best friend falls to his death after grabbing onto the helicopter as it flies off. The best friend's brother tracks the bad guys down to the Tower of Death, a fortress for an evil drug ring. The identity of the drug ring's leader comes as quite a surprise to the brother. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Lee
Following up on his debut outing Butterfly Killers, Tsui Hark spins this gory and controversial cannibal crime flick. The film opens with Agent #999 (Norman Tsui Siu-keung) being sent to a remote island to apprehend wanted criminal Rolex (Melvin Wong Kam-sum). Of course, the island is largely inhabited by crazed, blood-thirsty man-eaters who want little more than to gnaw on human bones and devour human brains. 999 barely escapes with his life after a foolhardy jaunt to the local slaughterhouse. Meanwhile, Rolex is desperate to leave the island himself but cannot because of the tribe's deranged boss known only as "the Chief" (Eddy Ko Hung). The criminal eventually finds the cop assigned to arrest him, hoping to join forces and escape this hell of half-eaten corpses. When Rolex gets felled by the Chief, 999 must figure out how to escape by himself. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Han Kuo Tsai
One of the earliest major films starring Jackie Chan, this 1978 Hong Kong offering highlights the relationship between a student and his martial arts master. This theme would dominate the American martial arts genre for years to come, as evidenced by The Karate Kid and many films to follow. Wong Fei-hong, played by Chan, is a 19th-century folk hero in Chinese culture and cinema, a kung fu master who fights injustice in the time of British colonialism. This character would later be portrayed by Jet Li in the more serious Once Upon a Time in China. Drunken Master finds Wong in his early years as a troublesome youth who is sent to receive discipline and martial arts instruction from his uncle (Siu Tien Yuen), the hard-drinking title character. Wong runs away, but runs afoul of some local villains. Beaten badly, he returns to his uncle, who trains him in "drunken-style" kung fu. The martial arts showcased by Chan in this film are important in the development of his career; the staggering, inebriated techniques allow for a looser, more flowing style, but more importantly, they contribute to the elaborate martial-arts slapstick that have become Chan's trademark and have made him an international star. ~ Jonathan E. Laxamana, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jackie Chan, Simon Yuen, (more)
Shangkuan I-yun (Hwang Jang-li) has developed the deadly eagle claw style to devastating effect on the follower of the Snake Fist technique, killing all except the group's dithering leader Pai Chang-tien (Simon Yuen Siu-tien). When harried orphan Chien Fu (Jackie Chan) saves Pai's life, the master teaches the youth some of the finer points of the Snake Fist style. When Chien nurses Pai back to health following an ambush by two of Shangkuan's followers, Pai teaches the lad everything he knows. Later, Chien watches with amazement as his pet cat kills a cobra, giving him the beginning of a new deadlier technique that eventually defeats the evil Shangkuan. This film helped created Jackie Chan's winning screen persona as a put-upon everyman and kung-fu comedian. This film proved to be so popular that director Yuen Woo-ping, Simon Yuen, and Chan went on to make the smash hit Drunken Master later that year. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
The martial arts sequel Crash Masters: Secret Rivals 2 continues the story from the first film by having the brother of the defeated Silver Fox swear revenge upon Northern Leg and Southern Fist. Gold Fox can only track down the brother of Southern Fist who is promptly rescued by Northern Leg. Gold Fox puts together a personal security crew and soon the duo of Leg and Fist must team up again to take out their newest enemy. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
This biography of famed martial arts actor Bruce Lee begins as Lee is leaving Hong Kong for America, to fulfill his mother's wishes. The story follows him to San Francisco, where he first settled, and to the University of Washington in Seattle, where he established his first martial-arts classes. Scenes from such Bruce Lee films as The Big Boss are re-created. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Li, Caryn White, (more)
In this martial arts feature, an upright general has been sent out by the Emperor of China to discipline one of the Chinese overlords of Korea who has been stealing silver. The general sends his trusted agent Shen In-hua (Liu Chung-liang) to infiltrate the evil lord's household. Shen joins forces with a martial artist who is out to avenge his parent's death. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wang Tao
- 1975
Martial arts star Bruce Liang (aka Hsiao Liang) headlines this action drama, in which a group of Japanese mobsters call on Liang after an attack on the Pearl of the Orient fails. Liang makes it his business to find out who is behind this evil plan, and to stop them in their tracks. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Leung
Yuen Woo Ping, who would in time become one of the world's leading martial arts choreographers, blocked the fight scenes for this Kung Fu action extravaganza. A small Chinese town is being torn apart by a conflict between local farmers and Japanese soldiers of fortune, who have been brought to town to liberate supplies of a rare Chinese herb. A martial arts expert gifted in both Chinese and Japanese fighting disciplines passes through town, and takes it upon himself to settle the feud. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chen Sing
