Jian dong xiao xiong

A crazed, last-gasp attempt at blockbuster entertainment from the reliable folk at the Shaw Brothers studio, this sees them abandoning the period kung fu film in order to deliver a riotous, blood-drenched contemporary gangster flick heavily indebted to both THE GODFATHER (invariably) and Yakuza flicks.

The tale is a simplistic one, bolstered by elaborate and large-scale action. Shih Kien (the villain Han in ENTER THE DRAGON) is the ageing boss of a crime syndicate who faces trouble from one of his supposedly loyal underlings. A betrayal plot is set in motion, and two loyal and upstanding fighters are caught up in it. One of the men is popular kung fu star Beardy, proving his mettle in contemporary fare, and the other is Norman Chu, possessing the most '80s hairstyle ever.

HONG KONG GODFATHER has a rather slow first half that takes time to set up the characters and put the plot in motion. However, the talk is interspersed with bloody gang fight scenes in which sharp weapons are invariably brought into play. The battles get more and more brutal as the running time progresses, with a shocking act of violence against a kid being one of the more unforgettable images. It all builds up to one of the most insane endings I've seen in a Hong Kong film ever: a climax which leaves the set looking like an abattoir, so extreme it is. It's great stuff, and a fine, late stage effort from the studio.