Which of these are good films? Please browse and comment!

[rarnom]

Hi everyone. I registered here this summer, but haven't really used the forums much before today. I mostly have been using the regular site for movie reviews, anyway, here is my query:

A while ago I aquired a massive collection of Hong Kong films and I am curious to know which of these films are good or classic or must-see fims, etc... also it would be good to know which films basically suck.

I have spent lots of time on various websites checking reviews, but it is also nice to get more opinions about what is good and bad.

I know this is a HUGE list, but if any of you kind souls can give me some ideas about what is good on this list please let me know. (I will note the films I have already viewed.) THANKS!!!!!

and just to let everyone know that I am NOT listing these for sale or trade...

OK here we go!!! :
VCD'S:
Against All
All men are Brothers-Blood of the Leopard
Armageddon
Ashes of Time *viewed*
Beast Cops *viewed*
A Better Tomorrow *viewed*
A Better Tomorrow II *viewed*
A Better Tomorrow III
The Big Heat
The Blade *viewed*
Blade of Fury *viewed*
Bullet in the Head *viewed*
Bullets of Love
Bullets over Summer
Butterfly and Sword *viewed*
Casino Raiders
Casino Raiders II
Century of the Dragon
Chinese Heroes
Cold War
Conman in Tokyo
Days of Tomorrow
Double Tap
Downtown Torpedoes
Dragon in Jail
Dragon Inn
Eastern Condors
Expect the Unexpected
A Fighter's Blues
First Option
Fist of Legend *viewed*
Flying Dagger *viewed*
Friday Bloody Friday *viewed*
Full Contact
Full Throttle
Full Time Killer
God of Gamblers *viewed*
God of Gamblers Returns
Goodbye Mr. Cool
Gun of Dragon
Gunmen
Hard-Boiled *viewed*
Hero (different one)
Hero (jet li) *viewed*
A Hero Never Dies
Hitman
Holy Weapon
Infernal Affairs *viewed*
Infernal Affairs II *viewed*
Infernal Affairs III *viewed*
Intruder
Iron Monkey
The Killer (Chow Yun Fat) *viewed*
Killer (different one)
The King of Debt Collecting Agent
Last Hurrah for Chivalry
The Legend of Speed
The Legend of Zu
Legendary Couple
Long Arm of the Law
The Longest Nite
Love, Gun & Glass
A Man Called Hero
Man Wanted
Man Wanted III
The Masked Prosecutor
Mean Street Story
The Mission *viewed*
A Moment of Romance
Mongkok Story
The Moon Warriors
Never Compromise
No risk No gain: Casino Raiders the Sequel
Older master Cute
Older master Cute pt. 2
Older master Cute pt. 3
Once upon a time in Triad Society
One Nite in Mongkok *viewed*
Operation Billionaires *viewed*
Partners
The Plot
The Postman Fights Back
The Prince of Temple Street
The Princess Blade *viewed*
Prison on Fire
Prison on Fire II
THE Professionals
Proud of You (Karaoke VCD)
PTU
Return to a Better Tomorrow
Returner
Rich and Famous
Righting Wrongs
Roaring Wheels
The Romance of Book and Sword
The Rules of the Game
Running on Karma *viewed*
Running out of Time
Saviour of the Soul
Saviour of the Soul II
School on Fire
Sexy and Dangerous
Shanghai Grand
She Shoots Straight
Sleepless Town
Somebody up there likes me
The Stormriders
Story of Ricky *viewed*
Super Car Criminals
The Suspect
Swordsman
Sworn Brothers
A Taste of Killing and Romance
Throwdown *viewed*
To Where He Belongs
Tragic Hero
Treasure Hunt
Triads the inside story
Unbeatables
A True Mob Story
Walk on Fire
A War Named Desire
Wasabi
What Price Survival? *viewed*
Young and Dangerous
Young and Dangerous II
Young and Dangerous III
Young and Dangerous the Prequel
The Young Ones
ZU warriors from the magic mountain

DVD's:
Born Wild
Casino *viewed*
Hard Boiled *viewed*
Jiang Hu *viewed*
Killer's Romance
King of Robbery
The Last Blood
Lifeline
Long Arm of the Law II
Musa the Warrior
No More Love No More Death
The Odd One Dies
Run and Kill *viewed*
Street of Fury
The Tragic Fantasy "Tiger of Wan Chai"
The Wall
With or Without You
'Martial Arts Action Pack' featuring:
Fist of Fear
Screaming Ninja
Rage of the Master
Snake Crane Secret
'The Warriors Art' featuring:
Macho Man
Swordsman with an Umbrella
Monkey Fist Floating Snake
Lightning Kung Fu
'Dragon Lee' featuring:
Champ Against Champ
Rage of the Dragon
Dragon on Fire
Golden Dragon, Silver Snake

[PAUL MARTINEZ]

Well there's too many too list all. Here are some that stand out for me.

Swordsman
Iron Monkey
Zu: WFTMM
Stormriders
Savior Of The Soul
Running out Of Time
Prison On Fire
Full Throttle
The Big Heat

Stay away From

A Man Called Hero
Legend Of Zu
Savior Of The Soul II

[MrBooth]

***Excellent

Ashes of Time *viewed*
Beast Cops *viewed*
A Better Tomorrow *viewed*
The Blade *viewed*
Blade of Fury *viewed*
Bullet in the Head *viewed*
Bullets over Summer
Dragon Inn
Fist of Legend *viewed*
Full Contact
Hard-Boiled *viewed*
Hero (jet li) *viewed*
A Hero Never Dies
Infernal Affairs *viewed*
Iron Monkey
The Killer (Chow Yun Fat) *viewed*
The Mission *viewed*
The Moon Warriors
Once upon a time in Triad Society
Righting Wrongs
Running on Karma *viewed*
Running out of Time
The Stormriders
ZU warriors from the magic mountain
Hard Boiled *viewed*
Musa the Warrior

***Good

All men are Brothers-Blood of the Leopard
A Better Tomorrow III
Butterfly and Sword *viewed*
Conman in Tokyo
Eastern Condors
Expect the Unexpected
First Option
Flying Dagger *viewed*
Full Time Killer
God of Gamblers *viewed*
Hero (different one)
Holy Weapon
Infernal Affairs II *viewed*
Infernal Affairs III *viewed*
Last Hurrah for Chivalry
The Longest Nite
Throwdown *viewed*
One Nite in Mongkok *viewed*
The Postman Fights Back
Prison on Fire
Prison on Fire II
Rich and Famous
Tragic Hero
Saviour of the Soul
Swordsman
A Taste of Killing and Romance
Triads the inside story
A War Named Desire
Treasure Hunt
What Price Survival? *viewed*
Jiang Hu *viewed*
The Last Blood
The Odd One Dies

***OK

A Better Tomorrow II *viewed*
The Big Heat
Bullets of Love
Casino Raiders
Casino Raiders II
Century of the Dragon
Double Tap
Downtown Torpedoes
A Fighter's Blues
Full Throttle
God of Gamblers Returns
Goodbye Mr. Cool
Hitman
The Legend of Zu
Mongkok Story
PTU
Return to a Better Tomorrow
Sexy and Dangerous
Story of Ricky *viewed*
Young and Dangerous
Young and Dangerous II
Lifeline

***Poor

Gunmen
The Legend of Speed
A Man Called Hero
The Princess Blade *viewed*
THE Professionals
Returner
The Rules of the Game
Saviour of the Soul II
She Shoots Straight
Somebody up there likes me
Sworn Brothers
Born Wild


***Haven't seen (or don't remember)

Armageddon
Chinese Heroes
Cold War
Days of Tomorrow
Dragon in Jail
Friday Bloody Friday *viewed*
Gun of Dragon
Killer (different one)
The King of Debt Collecting Agent
Legendary Couple
Long Arm of the Law
Love, Gun & Glass
Man Wanted
Man Wanted III
The Masked Prosecutor
Mean Street Story
A Moment of Romance
Never Compromise
No risk No gain: Casino Raiders the Sequel
Older master Cute
Older master Cute pt. 2
Older master Cute pt. 3
Operation Billionaires *viewed*
Partners
The Plot
The Prince of Temple Street
Proud of You (Karaoke VCD)
Roaring Wheels
The Romance of Book and Sword
School on Fire
Intruder
Shanghai Grand
Sleepless Town
Super Car Criminals
The Suspect
To Where He Belongs
Unbeatables
A True Mob Story
Walk on Fire
Wasabi
Young and Dangerous III
Young and Dangerous the Prequel
The Young Ones
Casino *viewed*
Killer's Romance
King of Robbery
Long Arm of the Law II
No More Love No More Death
Run and Kill *viewed*
Street of Fury
The Tragic Fantasy "Tiger of Wan Chai"
The Wall
With or Without You
'Martial Arts Action Pack' featuring:
Fist of Fear
Screaming Ninja
Rage of the Master
Snake Crane Secret
'The Warriors Art' featuring:
Macho Man
Swordsman with an Umbrella
Monkey Fist Floating Snake
Lightning Kung Fu
'Dragon Lee' featuring:
Champ Against Champ
Rage of the Dragon
Dragon on Fire
Golden Dragon, Silver Snake

[rarnom]

Just wanted to say a big thanks to Paul and especially to MrBooth. This really helps me sort out what stuff I need to watch next. If anyone else has any suggestions they are always appreciated.

[ciakmull]

Good:
Ashes of Time *viewed*
A Better Tomorrow *viewed*
A Better Tomorrow II *viewed*
A Better Tomorrow III
The Big Heat
The Blade *viewed*
Blade of Fury *viewed*
Bullet in the Head *viewed*
Bullets over Summer
Dragon Inn
Expect the Unexpected
Hard-Boiled *viewed*
A Hero Never Dies
Infernal Affairs *viewed*
Infernal Affairs II *viewed*
Infernal Affairs III *viewed*
Intruder
The Killer (Chow Yun Fat) *viewed*
Long Arm of the Law
The Longest Nite
The Mission *viewed*
A Moment of Romance
Mongkok Story
The Moon Warriors
Once upon a time in Triad Society
Prison on Fire
PTU
Return to a Better Tomorrow
The Rules of the Game
Saviour of the Soul
Swordsman
Treasure Hunt
A War Named Desire
Young and Dangerous
Young and Dangerous III
Young and Dangerous the Prequel
ZU warriors from the magic mountain
Lifeline
Long Arm of the Law II
The Odd One Dies
Jiang Hu *viewed*

Enjoyable:
Against All
Casino Raiders
Casino Raiders II
Century of the Dragon
Downtown Torpedoes
Eastern Condors
Full Contact
Full Throttle
Full Time Killer
God of Gamblers *viewed*
Goodbye Mr. Cool
Gunmen
Hero (different one)
Killer (different one)
The Legend of Zu
Man Wanted
The Masked Prosecutor
Mean Street Story
One Nite in Mongkok *viewed*
The Prince of Temple Street
The Princess Blade *viewed*
Prison on Fire II
Rich and Famous
The Romance of Book and Sword
Running on Karma *viewed*
Running out of Time
School on Fire
Sexy and Dangerous
She Shoots Straight
Sleepless Town
Somebody up there likes me
The Stormriders
Story of Ricky *viewed*
Sworn Brothers
Triads the inside story
A True Mob Story
Young and Dangerous II
The Young Ones
Casino *viewed*
The Last Blood
Run and Kill *viewed*
Street of Fury
The Tragic Fantasy "Tiger of Wan Chai"

Bad:
Armageddon
Beast Cops *viewed*
Bullets of Love
A Fighter's Blues
First Option
The Legend of Speed
A Man Called Hero
Super Car Criminals
The Suspect
Born Wild
Musa the Warrior
The Wall
With or Without You

[cpardo]

I can give quick reviewson these movies:

VCD'S:

All men are Brothers-Blood of the Leopard--good period piece wuxia film with interesting story

Armageddon--Sort of a HK X-files with Andy Lau and Anthony Wong. Different, but decent thriller although the ending falls apart.

A Better Tomorrow III--decent prequel directed by Tsui Hark, although some folks didn't buy Mark's (Chow Yun-fat) back story.

The Big Heat--If you thought Hard Boiled was violent.... shockingly amazing "heroic bloodshed" Knock off.

Bullets of Love--Highly underrated action drama in the spirit of John Woo. With a good cast.

Casino Raiders--a good serious thriller from comedy king Wong Jing featuring gambling, Andy Lau and Alan Tam

Century of the Dragon--Decent triad drama with good cast

Days of Tomorrow--okay tragic drama centered around HK movie stars in the 60's

Downtown Torpedoes--pretty cool Mission Impossible-like thriller

Dragon Inn--One of my favorite period piece wuxia films--great cast

Eastern Condors--classic one of Sammo's trilogy of that time. Serious but exciting war flick

Expect the Unexpected--cops and robbers--good with an "unexpected" ending

A Fighter's Blues--okay Andy Lau tragic boxer drama
First Option--decent sequel to Final Option-Gigi Leung--yes!

Full Contact--another favorite with Chow. More violent heights are reached. This Ringo Lam film isn't as gritty and realistic like his others, but still memorable.

Full Throttle--One of Andy Lau's best dramas--about Motorcycle racing--Gigi Leung's first film

Full Time Killer--Andy again--decent flick about assassins--one a Japanese actor. That makes it a little different

God of Gamblers Returns--not as good as the original with a lot of wacky moments but the serious portion isn't bad.

Hero (different one)--an attempt by Shaw Brothers to get back in the film market. A remake of the classic Boxer from Shantung, with a cool cast, and bloody action. I liked it.

A Hero Never Dies--It's a pretty good triad rivalry flick that's low key but I liked it

Hitman--Jet Li what more can you say. Good mix of fighting and comedy with Eric Tsang and Gigi again. Oh and it's sync sound too.

Holy Weapon--wire-fu period piece with Michelle yeoh it's okay

Intruder--don't watch this at night. Grim and creepy. My favorite actress Wu Chien-lien is the star, but even she creeped me out. good though.

Iron Monkey--classic period kung fu flick by Yuen Woo-ping with Donnie Yen--another Wong Fei-hung tale, but this time he's a young boy.

Killer (different one)--you must mean the one with Jordan Chan. Assassin flick it's okay.

Last Hurrah for Chivalry--early John Woo swordplay flick, it's great!

The Legend of Speed--you like cars Initial D? then you might like this.

Legendary Couple--a pair of lovers/criminals so so

Long Arm of the Law--innovative crime drama from the 80's. must see.

The Longest Nite--film noir crime drama in Macau. Different.

A Man Called Hero--if you liked Storm Riders with the special effects, you'll like this. Also based on a Meng-hua

Man Wanted--so-so revenge thriller I thought it'd be better.

Mean Street Story--pretty good triad drama. Wu Chien-lien is in it!

A Moment of Romance--classic triad romance movie with hunky Andy and Wu Chien-lien again!

Mongkok Story--Another triad drama with interesting story--Roy Cheung stars

The Moon Warriors--decent period piece with good cast, directed by Sammo Hung

No risk No gain: Casino Raiders the Sequel--sort of sequel but not really with more emphasis on wacky humor--somewhat of a minus but watchable

Older master Cute--I haven't seen these but this is a cherished cartoon in china and Hong kong

Once upon a time in Triad Society--Triad story with Francis Ng. Not bad but sequel is better.

The Postman Fights Back--Period piece from '82 with Yuen clan style fighting and supporting role for Chow Yun-fat. not bad.

Prison on Fire--one of the best performances by Chow Yun-fat as a convict.

Prison on Fire II--continuing the story with Chow. pretty good

Returner--Japanese action/sci-fit thriller with Takeshi Kaneshiro. good story and effects and great villain.

Rich and Famous--Chow Yun-fat as a godfather-type don to Andy and Alex Man. Tragic and action oriented--good.

Righting Wrongs--good Yuen Biao vehicle as a lawyer unleashing his own brand of justice on murderers. Cindy Rothrock is in it too!

Running out of Time--a cat and mouse thriller which got Andy an acting award

Saviour of the Soul--once described as Manga in Motion since it's so stylized and of it's photography and art design. recommended.

Saviour of the Soul II--disappointing sequel.

School on Fire--highly political-filled thriller on Hong Kong school system. violent and grim but interesting.

Sexy and Dangerous--the female Young and Dangerous. female triads. Not bad but could have been better.

Shanghai Grand--a movie version of classic HK TV series the Bund. Not bad

She Shoots Straight--good action/martial arts flick starring Sammo's wife Joyce Godenzi.

Somebody up there likes me--another boxing drama starring photogenic Aaron Kwok. pretty good

The Stormriders--innovative special effects laden fantasy martial arts film based on a Meng-hua

Super Car Criminals--so so car robber and cops flick

The Suspect--political thriller by Ringo Lam. okay

Swordsman--Swordplay epic by several directors. good but the second is better.

A Taste of Killing and Romance--low key assassin/romance flick

Tragic Hero--good sequel to Rich and Famous

Treasure Hunt--chow yun-fat in an absurd comedy fantasy thriller but it works, wu Chien-lien again!

Triads the inside story-Chow vehicle in a triad drama pretty good

A True Mob Story--great performance by Andy in a triad drama

Walk on Fire--cop protects pretty witness and falls in love--good

A War Named Desire--decent but short triad film in Thailand. Gigi plays a killer too!

Young and Dangerous--classic and hip story about triads in HK
Young and Dangerous II--the cool stuff continues
Young and Dangerous III--not as good but it has it's moments
Young and Dangerous the Prequel--many didn't like it, but I did. new cast and stuff

ZU warriors from the magic mountain--classic special effects fantasy extravaganza from '83. pretty cool like a comic book. See it before you see the remake legend of zu

DVD's:

Lifeline--the HK Backdraft, much better than that movie

No More Love No More Death--pretty good but kind of strange prequel to With or Without you

The Odd One Dies--artsy crime flick with humor. Good.

The Tragic Fantasy "Tiger of Wan Chai"--okay triad flick.

With or Without You--Good cop falls in love with a girl, then her crazed killer boyfriend comes back. What can I say? I loved it!