Hunting List

Yen-Ping Chu's "Zhong Ji Lie Sha" aka. "Hunting List" of 1994 is an action-packed and blood-soaked piece of Hong Kong Crime/Action cinema that should not leave anybody bored. A highly atmospheric little film, "Hunting List" delivers pure action and bloody violence, as well as melancholic drama coming along with beautiful local music. The fact that several scenes were stolen from "True Romance" (almost adopted one-to-one) does not downsize this movie's entertainment value. As a matter of fact, it is usually American and European filmmakers who steal ideas from Asian films. Furthermore it must be said that, even though "True Romance" is not a film that scants with violence, the scenes in "Hunting List" are even considerably rougher and more brutal than the original scenes in the American film from Tarantino's pen. The violence in "Hunting List" is brutal and violent scenes are never intended to be funny.

After years of absence, gangster Kit comes back to Hong Kong and meets with his old best friend Cramp, who has in the meanwhile become quite something in the Hong Kong triad society. The two plan to get back into business together...

"Huntig List" may not be one of the most imaginative or best Crime Action movies Hong Kong's film has brought out, but it is certainly an interesting, rough and uncompromising little film about crime, violence, friendship and loyalty. It is unfortunately not easy to get informations about the actors from this movie, which is a shame, especially because I found some of the performances really good. The guy who plays the main character Kit (I suppose that's Jackson Liu, on my DVD he's called Ray Lui) delivers a very good performance. The greatest performance, however, is that of the guy who plays Cramp (supposedly Paul Chu), a personality of multiple aspects who is a loving father and loyal friend as well as an irascible and sadistic killer.The action sequences are very well made, and the score always fits in very well.

"Hunting List" may not be a highlight of Hong Kong Crime Action cinema, but it certainly is an interesting, well acted film that is rough and violent and guarantees 85 highly entertaining minutes. Recommended!

HUNTING LIST is a Category III Hong Kong action thriller modelled on both the heroic bloodshed classics of John Woo and the gritty likes of American cinema, in particular TRUE ROMANCE. This one was filmed in Taiwan and like many Taiwanese-shot movies it has a cheapness of feel to it; the editing is slightly choppy and the plot a bit rough around the edges. On the other hand, it's got a fast pace and is never dull, so it's something of a mixed bag.

Although it's clear that this is a derivative movie, like most Hong Kong thrillers it has plenty going on so the shortcomings aren't always obvious. Ray Lui is a cop-killing gangster who comes back to the mainland to hook up with some childhood buddies, foremost of whom is a crazed guy called Cramp who has a thing for beating and murdering people and then urinating all over their bodies! It's madcap stuff indeed and actor Li-Wen Tan has a ball with the over-the-top role. Various other characters come and go as the main stars engage with the Hong Kong underworld and are also subject to tests of family loyalty and romance.

Regular Jackie Chan film performer Po Tai has a small role as an ally who lost a finger to the mob and the eternally youthful Vivian Hsu plays Cramp's daughter who has a key role in the proceedings. Being a Cat III movie, HUNTING LIST has ramped up scenes of sex and nudity and gratuitous bloody violence. It's a low budget and occasionally sloppy film for sure, but fans of the genre will lap it up regardless.

I have added this movie to my watch list after I read about it at IMDb Hard Boiled forum and had the chance to watch it today.

I wish it would turn out to be an underrated Hong Kong heroic bloodshed gem like Just Heroes but it just wasn't.

The story had bloodshed, brotherhood, betrayal, revenge and even some plot twists but the script felt like a video game with short chapters...

The actors does not deserve any Oscars for their performance in this film and I really hated their unnecessarily exaggerated laughter in almost every scene and excessive smoking. I did not see a scene they weren't laughing or smoking.

I know that this is a CAT III movie but all those sex scenes add nothing to the story except one and the movie would be much better without them.

The version I have watched had dual mono tracks for Cantonese and Mandarin that I really hate as they sound very annoying while playing at the same time. The subtitles had many mistakes but considering the release date of this movie that is acceptable.

If you are looking for a fun past time with good gun fights you can watch it. Just make sure that your kids are not around when watching this

This simple line from an old MANOWAR-track easily sums up what makes this movie. Okay, add a bit of sex and rape and that's about it, because the story and characters are borrowed from STATE OF GRACE. There is really no need to summarize the plot, it is the same. To spice it a little bit up, the makers threw also a bit of TRUE ROMANCE in, or at least one of its coolest scenes.

But fans of HK-Cinema, Exploitation and of course heavy bloodshed will still be pleased. If you don't expect no depth at all, this is some fine entertainment. Phil Joanou and Quentin Tarantino should be pleased to have such dedicated fans in Asia.