The Tong Man

Although this film was made in 1919, don't let that fool you. There is plenty of action in this film that seems unbelievable for the time it took place (personal favorite: hatchet to one baddie's face).

There is a simple story here about a man involved with a Chinese Mafia-like organization and his attempt to remove himself from it when he falls in love with a young Chinese woman (played by a caucasian), the very daughter of the man he is assigned to kill. Great story progress, no real bumps, although the ending seems a bit contrived.

In the heart of San Francisco's Chinatown, the secretive "Bo Sing Tong" society blackmails, assassinates, and smuggles opium. Sessue Hayakawa (as Luk Chan) is the Chinese gang's most feared hatchet-man. After falling in love with Helen Jerome Eddy (as Sen Chee), Mr. Hayakawa desires to trade in his life of crime and become a merchant prince. To do this, he must not only save some money, but also avoid being shot by the San Francisco police. Then, an assignment complicates matters considerably: Hayakawa is ordered to drive a hatchet through the skull of his beloved China doll's father, Toyo Fujita (as Louis Toy), by "Bo Sing Tong" leader Marc Robbins (as Ming Tai). Mr. Robbins, who runs the gambling and "hop" joint "The Royal Pekin Club", wants young Ms. Eddy for himself. Standard fare from Hayakawa and company; understandably, "The Tong-Man" failed to amuse actual Chinese people.

*** The Tong-Man (12/14/19) William Worthington ~ Sessue Hayakawa, Helen Jerome Eddy, Marc Robbins

Sessue Hayakawa, the guy who ran the camp in The Bridge on the River Kwai, is a kind of loose cannon in the Tong group. They are a gang that runs an extortion ring in Chinatown, San Francisco. An opium dealer who won't pay up and who is getting richer and richer refuses to pay the Tong. So a hit is put out on him. He really seems rather stupid. I mean, it would be so easy to kill him. And yet he is willing to risk everything, including his innocent young daughter, to get his hands on more dope. It is rather slow moving with some chases and a little romance. Hayakawa is a handsome young guy who wants out. The police are buffoons. Racism abounds, even though it is pretty tame.

Amazingly, his role here as the vicious, two-timing leader of the tong, seems to be the only movie appearance of Marc Roberts, who manages to steal the film from its seasoned players with his dominating and utterly convincing performance. Not that Sessue Hayakawa and company are in any way lacking in expertise. The impassive Hayakawa is absolutely just right as the assassin, and Toyo Fujita is likewise totally lifelike as the curiously unconcerned merchant who dares to oppose the tong and seems quite certain he can get away with it. Very adroitly, the actor works against our instant dislike for his character (he's a drug-runner who preys on his fellow Chinese) to win over sympathy. When he quietly and firmly, without any histrionics at all, defies the tong, you can almost hear the audience cheering him on.

Also worthy of applause is the sensitive study of Sen Chee by the lovely Helen Jerome Eddy. Although obviously not Asian, she manages to convict us of her impersonation by the sheer force of her on-screen charisma. Yutake Abe (who later became an award-winning director in Japan) also impresses as the murderous Lascar sailor that Toy decides to help.

William Worthington's static but extremely skillful direction is aided immeasurably by the astonishingly atmospheric, moodily noirish photography of Frank D. Williams.