Hak mau

Black Cat (1991) was an unofficial remake of the international French hit "Nikita". Unlike the first film, Black Cat has everything you thought Nikita had (hardcore violence and gritty realism). The film follows a young female drifter (Jade Leung) who gets into trouble whilst in Canada. She's deemed uncontrollable and unfit for society. After a speedy trial she's condemned for life. That's until a suave C.I.A. agent (Simon Yam) gives her a second chance at life, but with brutal consequences.

A dark and dreary film with no light at the end of the tunnel. Jade Leung (a former glamor model) is perfect as the Black Cat. A hit man who has no feelings or emotions, just a tool for the government. But like all machines they break down, will she give into her emotions or will she go through her missions like a good slave? Check out Black Cat!

Highly recommended.

Followed by Black Cat 2: The Assassination of Boris Yeltsin.

I'd read several reviews that this was an excellent HK film before I watched it, claiming it was better than the films that inspired it. Well, I have to say, if it is, then I don't want to watch them. The acting was terrible. The pace was slow (compared to what it should have been). The ending was abrupt and I felt like I'd been cheated out of at least 30 minutes more

Black Cat is directed by Stephen Shin and it stars Jade Leung, in her first feature role. This is the Hong Kong "remake" of Luc Besson's classic La Femme Nikita, which is one of the greatest action pieces in the world of cinema. Black Cat fails to be great even though it is made in Hong Kong, where action films are usually unmatchable. Erika/Catherine/Black Cat is a violent young female who goes to jail and has the same offer as in Nikita: to become an assassin to the government. She starts the training and once she's ready and skilled enough, the killings may start. What follows is tired scenes and nothing special in the whole movie.

The action scenes are okay and stylish at times (especially during the credits) but they are so few and can't save the whole film. There is absolutely no depth in the characters (Leung, Simon Yam or others) and the film is pretty irritating to watch because it offers nothing more than just gun fires and action, which are nothing special considered this is made in the land of Woo, Lam, Mak and other great directors.

So I can't recommend this too much but Hong Kong fans will want to check it out and so did I. This could have been far far worse and due to the few stylish scenes and images in the film, it is not too impossible to sit through, and in fact, I've watched this two times now.

4/10

This flick would qualify as the first remake of the 1990 French classic, before Hollywood and American television picked up the idea. The early scenes in this Hong Kong crime actioner are a little rough around the edges, causing me to fear a "Tokyo Shock"-style schlockfest. But I persevered and was rewarded. There is violence and action aplenty along with the melodramatic and romantic elements that we've come to love and expect in this kind of film.

What really makes the flick stand out is Jade Leung's performance. She is feral and dangerous in the beginning, like a sort of creature. In the course of the film she metamorphoses into someone beautiful and sexy, while retaining her dangerous quality. The actress deserves credit for the way she pulls that off.

Oh, and the closing credits music is a spare, crisp example of late-80s/early 90s urban setting film music. Well done!

Stephen Shin's "Black Cat" is a watchable Hong Kong effort,but also a total rip-off of Luc Besson's "Nikita"(1989).So we have here a female killing machine(Jade Leung),who kills so many men that it has to be seen to be believed.Nice performance by Simon Yam(more known as a necrophiliac killer in "Dr Lamb")is another reason to see this movie.Check it out.