Tiger On The Beat

Sep 032012

Chow Yun-fat recovers after a night womanzing

Tiger On The Beat (1988) Chinese Movie Information

Title in Chinese –老虎出差
Title in Pinyin – Lao Hu Chu Cha

Genre – Action comedy

Subject/theme – A seasoned cop and a rookie are paired together to solve a drug case

Language – Cantonese

Region – Hong Kong, China

Release date
Hong Kong – 19 March 1988
Germany – June 1989

Movie Runtime – 88 minutes

Director – Liu Chia-liang

Cast & Role Played
Chow Yun-fat – Sergeant Francis Li
Conan Lee – Police offier Michael Tso
Nina Li-chi – Marie-Donna, beautiful drug courier
Shirley Ng – Mimi, Francis’s sister
Norman Chu – Poison Snake Ping
Gordan Liu – Fai, hitman
Philip Ko – drug dealer
Ti Lung – Loong, bar owner

Story
Chow Yun-fat plays Francis, a lazy cop who spends all his time womanizing and avoiding work. One morning after running from a married woman’s bed, Francis is caught up in a robbery and used as a hostage. Michael is a young dedicated cop who bluffs the robber and rescues Frnacis who was so scared, he wet himself.

Back at the station, the chief pairs Francis up with Michael so the two opposites can work on a drug case. The two of them gradually overcome their personal differences and set of on the trail of a bunch of ruthless drug runners. Michael starts to fall for Francis’s sister Mimi while Francis is given the mission of seducing a beautiful drug courier Marie-Donna. The body count starts to mount and the two heroes end up facing the drug gang head on.

Editor’s Review of Tiger On The Beat – 7/8
This is a typical Chow Yun-fat late 80’s movie with plenty of action and humour thrown in together to create a standard enjoyable movie. Chow is charming as a rogue ladies man cop who tries to do as little work as possible. Conan Li is ok but comes across as a wannabe Jacky Chan with similar looks and fighting roles. He lacks Chow’s onscreen charisma but makes a good counterpoint in this movie. The action is typical of Chow’s movies with John Woo with Chow sticking to his guns blazing role and letting Conan do all the hand to hand fighting.

Tiger On The Beat Links
IMDb Movie Database for Tiger On The Beat
Youtube Trailer for Tiger On The Beat

Tiger On The Beat Movie Posters

Let the Bullets Fly

Mar 192012

Chow Yun Fat and other stars

Let the Bullets Fly (2010) Chinese Movie Information

Title in Chinese – 让子弹飞
Title in Pinyin – Rang Zi Dan Fei

Genre – Action comedy

Subject/theme – Bandits take over a small Sichuan town during the 1920’s

Language – Mandarin

Region – China

Release Dates
China – 16 December 2010
Hong Kong – 13 January 2011
Switzerland – 4 August 2011

Movie runtime – 132 minutes

Director – Jiang Wen

Cast & Role Played
Jiang Wen – “Pocky” Zhang Mazi, bandit leader
Ge You – Tang, conman
Chow Yun Fat – A local mobster
Carina Lau – Ms Ma, Governer’s wife
Kun Chen – Hu Wan
Wu Jiang – Master Wu

Story
During China’s chaotic warring 20’s a bandit Zhang replaces conman Tang as a small town’s governor. A local mobster Huang who had a financial arrangement with the original governor immediately opposes Zhang’s governorship. Zhang is not to be cheated out of his new found wealth so the plot develops around the struggle between Zhang and Huang.

Editor's Review of Let the Bullets Fly – 8/10
A dry satirical comedy and outstanding peformances by screen legends Chow Yun-fat, Ge You and Carina Lau and Jiang Wen in particular as the lead make Let the Bullets Fly an excellent movie and very enjoyable to watch. A very refreshing movie after the shallow slapstick comedy found in so many recent Chinese movies. Carina Lau as the veteran prostitute and Ge You as a shifty conman were brilliantly cast in their roles.

Let the Bullets Fly Links

Movie Poster One
Movie Poster Two
Movie Poster Three

IMDb Movie Database for Let the Bullets Fly