Tiger Cage 3 (1991) [Film Review]

Tiger Cage 3; or, Beware of Femme Fatale
     What have I done? In this world, whoever gets the money also gets the power!
The third part of Tiger Cage is also the final instalment of Yuen Woo-ping’s action thriller trilogy. Interestingly, this particular movie is a sharp breakaway from the style set by the previous pictures. There is more emphasis on drama and economic espionage. Is Tiger Cage 3 a worthy conclusion of the saga about righteous police officers from Hong Kong? Let's see together.

Release Info

Directed by: Yuen Woo-ping Starring: Kwok Leung Cheung, Michael Wong, Sharla Cheung

Language: Cantonese Original Title: 冷面狙擊手 Runtime: 98 min

Synopsis
Inspector James (Kwok Leung Cheung) and his colleague Inspector John (Michael Wong) are investigating a businessman called Lee Siu Bong (Kam-Kong Wong). Thanks to James’ girlfriend, Suki (Sharla Cheung), who works for Lee, the police obtains documents which incriminate the businessman. However, Lee Siu manages to get the papers. He also kidnaps Suki and injures James. In the meantime, John is discharged from the force due to accusations of carrying out blackmail. The friends join forces in an attempt to get even with Lee. However, things do not appear to be as they are…

The Streets Are Hot
After seeing Tiger Cage 1 & 2, I was hopeful that Yuen Woo-ping will deliver yet another action flick with well-made choreography and fast-paced fights. However, Tiger Cage 3 seems to be more like a mash-up between Sam Raimi’s Darkman (1990) and The Bold and The Beautiful (1987) soap opera. Seriously, the main protagonist, Inspector James, ends up getting disfigured by the bad guys due to the documents of his sweetheart (just like in Raimi's film). What is more, the alliances between characters shift more frequently than Windows 10 updates. Towards the third act, you can get pretty confused in the maze of plot twists.

Nevertheless, if you are a fan of Sharla Cheung, then you will find her as the redeeming factor of this story. In fact, Tiger Cage 3 is all about Sharla and her sex appeal. In addition, each scene is an excuse to put her into a new 1980s dress. Honestly, I think that Sharla was doing a much better job in Stephen Chow’s comedies, whereas in Tiger Cage 3 her performance is mediocre at best.

What about the action? Don’t get your hopes, because the fight sequences are scarce. The only confrontations worth nothing are Kwok Leung Cheung vs. John Cheung showdown and the finale at a rooftop of a skyscraper. What is more, Michael Wong is criminally underused in this picture (Yet again, when counting his short appearance in Magnificent Warriors). Michael seems to be the only actor experienced enough to carry this movie, but weak script brings everything down.

That being said, I enjoyed the picturesque panorama of Hong Kong. Tiger Cage 3 is one of the rare movies which show how awesome the city’s downtown area really is. This place is truly one of a kind.

Recommendations
I recommend Tiger Cage 3 only for die-hard fans of Yuen Woo-ping. This movie is the only entry in the trilogy which was made without any solid idea. I guess Yuen must have really liked Darkman when it came out and he wanted to replicate those vigilante vibes. Try to refer to D&B company’s other productions instead, like In the Line of Duty series.

Overall score: 5/10

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All for the Winner (1990) [Film Review]

All for the Winner; or, Stephen Chow's Lucky Streak

     Be serious! Everyone by the gambling table has his own style. This is the armour for the Gambling Saint. That’s right! From now on, your nickname will be the Saint of Gamblers.

The year 1990 was huge for then relatively unknown Stephen Chow. Approximately 11 movies with him, starring in either the leading or supporting roles, were released (talk about market oversaturation!). These were mostly comedies, romance dramas, and action flicks. However, one particular movie really stood out from the bunch, and it is cited by many fans as Stephen Chow’s official breakthrough. I’m talking about All for the Winner, a comedy film directed by Corey Yuen and Jeff Lau.
Release Info

Directed by: Corey Yuen, Jeff Lau Starring: Stephen Chow, Ng Man-tat, Sharla Cheung, Sandra Ng

Language: Cantonese Original Title: 賭聖 Runtime: 100 min

 

Synopsis

Sing (Stephen Chow) is a young, happy-go-lucky mainlander from Guangzhou. He arrives in Hong Kong in order to visit his uncle, Blackie Tat (Ng Man-tat). Tat is a compulsive gambler, playing long rounds of mahjong together with his neighbours. All of a sudden, uncle Tat discovers that Sing has an unusual set of powers. He can see through objects and change the appearance of cards or receipts. Tat decides to use Sing’s skills at gambling. Not long after, the two men are recruited by a powerful businessman, Mr Chan (Jeff Lau), who desires to beat his opponent, cruel Mr Hung (Paul Chun) at the World’s Gambling Contest. Unfortunately, Sing falls in love with Mr Chan's bodyguard, Yee Mong (Sharla Cheung) and his powers go haywire.

 

Poker, Cards, and Ladies

The first thing that should be mentioned about All for the Winner is that this movie is actually a parody of Wong Jing’s God of Gamblers (1989) movie with Chow Yun-fat and Andy Lau in the leading roles. The directors Corey Yuen and Jeff Lau wanted to bring back those gambling vibes and play with the convention. However, All for the Winner became so successful in the box office that it was immediately incorporated into the franchise. Stephen Chow himself went on to reprise his role in three subsequent films: God of Gamblers II (1990), The Top Bet (1991), and God of Gamblers III: Back to Shanghai (1991).

 

“What is the secret of All of the Winner?” you may ask. Well, Stephen Chow himself, of course. He is just hilarious as the lovable idiot with ESP powers. There are lots of great situations where Chow showcases his talent for comedy (for example, confrontation with Mr. Hung or courting Yee Mong). Apart from God of Gamblers references, Chow seems to really like parodying Bruce Lee because he does two such sequences in the film.

 

However, some of the humour seems a bit off, like it was meant to fill up the hole in the storyline. This is especially evident when halfway through the picture, the uncle character tries to evoke Sing’s powers by making his neighbour, Ping (Sandra Ng), to pretend to be Yee Mong.

 

Still, even if some comedic pieces do not work, the movie makes it up with action. Surprisingly, there are a lot of fighting sequences, most of them involving actress Sharla Cheung taking down the bad guys. Evidently, she was replaced by a stunt doubled in some demanding shots, but it is still awesome to see her doing physical stuff. On top of that, her warm smile can melt ice caps.

 

Speaking about performances, Stephen Chow is at the top of his game in this picture. Ng Man-tat gives a very good interpretation of Chow’s comedic sidekick, a sloppy uncle. Sharla Cheung turns out well in the action stuff. In addition, I appreciated the small parts done by Paul Shun (hire him to play a villain in a Bond movie!), Angelina Lo, Sheila Chan, Sandra Ng, and the directors themselves, Corey Yuen and Jeff Lau.

 

Recommendations

I know nothing about gambling, but this movie got me pumped up for some poker showdowns. I recommend All for the Winner if you want to see for yourself Stephen Chow’s acting beginnings. You will certainly have a laugh and get entertained. Other Chow’s films from the God of Gamblers series are fun as well, but they never matched the level of All for the Winner.

Overall score: 8/10