| Dragons Forever | |
|---|---|
 Dragons Forever DVD cover |
|
| Directed by | Sammo Hung Corey Yuen |
| Produced by | Raymond Chow Leonard Ho Barney Wu |
| Written by | Gordon Chan Leung Yiu Ming Szeto Chuek Hon |
| Starring | Jackie Chan Sammo Hung Yuen Biao Deannie Yip Pauline Yeung Yuen Wah |
| Music by | James Wong Michael Lai |
| Cinematography | Jimmy Leung Cheung Yiu Tso |
| Editing by | Peter Cheung Joseph Chiang |
| Distributed by | Golden Harvest Fortune Star |
| Release date(s) | January 10, 1988 (HK) |
| Running time | 90 min. |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Cantonese |
Dragons Forever (飛龍猛將; Fei lung maang jeung) is a 1988 Hong Kong action film. It features Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao. The three actors, known colloquially as the Three Brothers, had attended the famous China Drama Academy together, and became members of the Seven Little Fortunes. This is the last film to date that all three have appeared in together.[1]
It was directed by Sammo Hung and another former member of the Seven Little Fortunes, Corey Yuen (aka Yuen Kwai). Yet another classmate, Yuen Wah, plays the film's main villain, while legendary kickboxer Benny Urquidez plays his right hand man. Dragons Forever was filmed between September and November 1987.
Contents |
Synopsis
A fishery is seeking court action against a local chemical factory for polluting the water. The mysterious chemical company hires lawyer Jackie Lung (Jackie Chan) to find information that will discredit the fishery. He employs his arms dealer friend, Wong (Sammo Hung) to woo the fishery owner, Miss Yip (Deannie Yip), to try and convince her to settle out of court. Lung also brings in crackpot inventor and professional criminal, Tung (Yuen Biao), to bug her apartment. Unfortunately, Wong and Tung are unaware of each others' roles and soon come into confrontation, whilst Lung tries to maintain the peace.
Wong falls for Miss Yip, whilst Lung woos her friend, Miss Wen (Pauline Yeung), an environmental scientist who is going to testify on Miss Yip's behalf. The three men inadvertently discover that the chemical company is just a facade for a narcotics empire, ran by Hua Hsien-Wu (Yuen Wah). They soon come up against Hua's thugs, and ultimately infiltrate the factory for a showdown with Hua himself and his powerful henchman (Benny Urquidez).
Versions
Two scenes with Timothy Tung Te-Biao (Yuen Biao) visiting a psychiatrist (played by Lucky Stars veteran, Stanley Fung) were cut from the domestic Hong Kong print, and the Japanese print of the film. These scenes appeared as extras on the international DVD of the film, entitled "Couch Potato" and "Mr Kinetic".[2] In the latter, the psychiatrist was in the process of being robbed. So that Timothy wouldn't realise a robbery was taking place, one of the robbers, posing as the psychiatrist, gave him advice over the intercom. His advice was to "kill the witnesses", which explains why Tung attacks Jackie Lung (Chan) and Nancy Lee (Pauline Yeung) in a later scene, wearing a mask and armed with a knife.
Several scenes were slightly trimmed in the US version. The only scene completely omitted shows how Timothy, Jackie and his girlfriend Nancy gain access to the chemical factory. Timothy explains what happened to Luke Wong Fei-Hung (Sammo Hung) and they locate a hidden door, leading to where Luke is held captive and the drugs are made. Jackie's assistant distracts the guard allowing him the opportunity to attack.
Cast includes
- Jackie Chan - Jackie Lung
- Sammo Hung - Wong Fei-Hung / Luke Wang
- Yuen Biao - Tung Te-Biao / Timothy
- Pauline Yeung - Wen Mei-Ling / Nancy Lee
- Yuen Wah - Hua Hsien-Wu / Boss Wah
- Chang Ling - Jackie's assistant/scenes edited out
- Chan Lung - Thug
- Chen Jing - Arms buyer
- Roy Chiao - Judge Lo Chun-Wai
- Chin Kar Lok - Thug
- Billy Chow - Thug
- Chung Fat - Thug
- Fung Hark-On - Thug
- Fung Shui-Fan - Psychiatrist
- Lay Kah
- Phillip Ko - Thug (credited as Fai Ko)
- Kuen Chan Fu
- Crystal Kwok - Jackie's Assistant
- Lam Wai - Thug
- Lee Ka Ding - Thug
- Liu Chia Yung - Thug
- Lo Lieh - Gangster
- Lung Kong - Arms buyer
- Shing Fui-On - Mao Shih-Cheng
- Shum Wai - Jackie's boss
- James Tien - Head of Security
- Benny Urquidez - Thug (Scary Leader)
- Sam Wai
- Wan Wong Yu
- Dick Wei - Thug
- Woo Fung - Man, the Attorney
- Wu Ma
- Deannie Yip - Miss Yip
- Lau Chau Sang - (uncredited)
Reception
On the Hong Kong Legends DVD release of Dragons Forever, Hong Kong cinema expert Bey Logan offers his opinion of why the film underperformed both in the domestic and Japanese markets. The primary reason cited is that the actors played roles against type. Jackie Chan plays a slick lawyer who chases women, in contrast to the happy-go-lucky everyman characters he usually plays.[3][4] Similarly, Yuen Biao plays an eccentric and possibly mentally disturbed character, rather than the underdog character fans were used to. Logan explains that in general, the cinema going public in Hong Kong are not as open to such departures of role as, perhaps, the public in the West would be.[3]
Additional reasons cited include the occasional use of coarse language in the film, and the scenes of narcotics production, particularly Hung's character being injected with drugs against his will. The fact that Chan's character has a relationship with a woman may also have had an effect, particularly in the Japanese market, as many female viewers couldn't accept that their idol wasn't single. On learning that Chan was in a relationship in real life, one Japanese fan had committed suicide and another poisoned herself in the offices of Golden Harvest.[3]
Box office
Dragons Forever grossed HK $33,578,920 in its Hong Kong theatrical run. Whilst the domestic gross wasn't poor, to Golden Harvest it was comparatively weak for a Chinese New Year release, considering it featured the three biggest stars of Hong Kong action cinema. Box office returns in other parts of Asia were also lower than expected.[4]
Awards and nominations
- 1989 Hong Kong Film Awards
- Nomination: Best Action Choreography
See also
References
- ^ Project A, Biography. [DVD]. Hong Kong Legends.
- ^ "DVD Times". Dragons Forever. http://www.dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=57537. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
- ^ a b c Bey Logan.. Dragons Forever, commentary track. [DVD]. Hong Kong Legends.
- ^ a b "The Spinning Image". Dragons Forever. http://www.thespinningimage.co.uk/cultfilms/displaycultfilm.asp?reviewid=1326. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
External links
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