Tiger Cage
This action packed cops and robber’s film does
not have the intricate and clever choreography that one might expect from
a film directed by Yuen Woo Ping but is instead surprisingly basic and
brutal. Looking back it feels almost like 90 minutes of people bashing
one another into bloody pulps. What makes the film work though is that
it steadily increases the intensity with the ferociousness of the fights
until the viewer is exhausted.
Even though in many ways this is a typical modern
action film (produced from D&B films) without a lot of time spent on
developing the characters, it does have an intriguing premise that pulls
you in and a number of sudden and unexpected deaths that keep the adrenaline
flowing. A tight knit group of anti-narcotic cops (comprised of Simon Yam,
Jacky Cheung, Do Do Cheng, Ng Man Tat, Donnie Yen and Leung Kar Yin) are
after drug kingpin Johnny Wang. The film begins with a blast as they have
a bloody and lengthy shoot-out through the streets of HK. They capture
the drugs but Wang gets away.
Afterwards they all get together to celebrate
the upcoming marriage between Leung and Do Do and the scene also attempts
to establish the camaraderie of this group. Unfortunately, this scene is
poorly written and creates more of a frat boy atmosphere than one of professionals
bound together by the fact that their lives are dependent on the skills
and teamwork of the group and the trust that they have for one another.
Soon this group begins to fall apart at the seams and an extra amount of
character development would have made it all the more tragic. It is still
quite intense though.
The bad guy Wang kills one of the six cops in
cold blood and the rest of the group relentlessly hunts him down - often
brutally beating witnesses until they talk. They capture Wang, but Jacky
overhears something that makes him suspect that something is not right
in the group. He investigates further and concludes that one of the members
is involved in drug trafficking. Soon accusations of corruption are flying
back and forth and Jacky is framed and on the run. Soon they begin killing
each other. It's basic but at the same time it is pretty good stuff.
Also appearing are Irene Wan as Jacky's girlfriend
and muscleman Michael Woods as one of the bad guys who of course mixes
it up with Donnie Yen.
My rating for this film: 7.5
DVD Information:
Distributed by Universe
The transfer is very good.
Letterboxed
Cantonese and Mandarin language tracks
Subtitles: Chinese , English, Japanese,
Thai, Bahasa Indonesia, Bahasa Malaysia, Korean, Vietnamese
8 Chapters
It includes it's own trailer plus The Master,
Easy Money and Tower of Death.
The sub-titles are easy to read.
Star Files - Do Do Cheng, Simon Yam, Yuen Woo
Ping.