El ojo del tigre

Sitting down in 2022 to watch the 1990 crime action movie "Sai Hak Chin" (aka "Tiger Gate 2") for the first time. I had actually never heard about this movie from writers Chi-Ho Fong, Kwong-Kim Yip and Yeuk-Kwong Yuen before I had the opportunity to watch it.

But I figured since the movie was a crime action and had Donnie Yen, Rosamund Kwan and Robin Shou on the cast list, then I would be in for something watchable and enjoyable. So I sat down to watch "Sai Hak Chin", and I must say that director Woo-Ping Yuen did manage to put the script and storyline onto the screen in an enjoyable and entertaining manner.

The storyline in Woo-Ping Yuen's movie was pretty straight forward, if not actually somewhat generic for an early 1990s crime action movie. But hey, the formula worked then and still works today, and that makes "Sai Hak Chin" an enjoyable and watchable movie. There is a good combination of the genres, that being crime, drama and martial arts.

The cast ensemble in "Sai Hak Chin" was also good, and needless to say that it was definitely pure joy to watch the young Donnie Yen, Rosamund Kwan and Robin Shou in the movie.

There is a good amount of martial arts and action throughout the course of "Sai Hak Chin", which should provide more than sufficient to keep most viewers happy.

My rating of "Sai Hak Chin" lands on a well-deserved six out of ten stars.

There's only one good reason to watch this movie and it's to see Donnie Yen's fight scenes. The last 20 minutes of this film include some of Donnie Yen's best. The rest of the movie up until that point is mind numbingly bad. Cheesy music, bad dialogue, corny humor, and a razor thin plot. In fact, I don't think there was a screenplay written for this thing. I think Yuen Woo Ping just started filming fight scenes and the story was written on napkins in between takes. That being said, your kung fu movie collection will not be complete without the last three fight scenes in this movie. They are classic and almost worth the wait. Just skip ahead to that last 20 minutes and I promise you won't be missing anything.

The plot is shallow and frankly quite tiresome (Donnie Yen and Rosamund Kwan spend most of the running time being chased by the police and the bad guys headed by Robin Shou, until they pick up some friends and decide to fight back), but the fight scenes are often creative (in one, Yen has to fight with only one hand because his other is cuffed to Kwan, so he ends up using her as a weapon as well; another fight takes place on a moving double-decker bus), and some of the moves and stunts are awesome (like when Yen jumps and delivers three kicks in mid-air before landing down, without the help of wires I think). As usual, the best stuff is saved for last, with Yen going one-on-one against firstly John Salvitti in a swordfight, then against Michael Woods (who could be described as a Black Hulk), and finally against Robin Shou (a brief but very fast fight). Rosamund Kwan falls somewhere between shrill and adorable, but mostly on the adorable side; I had seen her in a couple of other films, but I had never noticed before what a beautiful, expressive face she has. Oh, and Cynthia Khan pops up briefly, playing (presumably) the same character as in the "In The Line Of Duty" series (Inspector Yeung), but her part is essentially a cameo. (**1/2)

Reviewed by FilmMining101:

The sequel to "Tiger Cage" (1988) elevates Donnie Yen into the main lead status and brings back some of the same actors into different roles with a few "wink wink" cameos for a good measure. The uniquely named... "Tiger Cage II" has nothing to separate itself from the action Hong Kong flicks of the 80s except being more humorous than its predecessor shaping it towards an R-rated Jackie Chan vehicle.

Donnie Yen carries the film on his shoulders showing a charismatic presence that will be perfected in the years to come taking your breath away when he is fighting well-known martial artists. Yet, perhaps from a western perspective, what elevates "Tiger Cage II" is seeing the beloved Liu Kang/Robin Shou shine in a truly villainous role flexing with martial art prowess when his American transition put some limits on; an office fight with David Wu's ... David is visceral and expertly shot featuring dazzling athletic stuntwork that demolishes the average US film.

While it might lack the lavish production values that Hollywood offers, 80s and early 90s Hong Kong cinema was notorious for its on-screen death defying and pain inducing stunts and "Tiger Cage II", a product of its time is no exception; people fly through wind screens, fall on side walks and staircases, enjoy contact style choreography, leap and twirl in the air like human kites using gravity to their advantage in spectacular fashion.

Yuen Woo-ping does a solid job as a director even if the paper thin story cannot keep up with the A+ kung fu fighting. From the get go, it is quite obvious who the bad buy is and the film becomes more of a collection of mini segments that are linked with the barest of information populated with glaring product placement which will make even Michael Bay blush. To be fair though, back then Hong Kong filmmakers only cared to demonstrate their ability to craft innovative action moments by attempting to outdo what had come previously through the addition of more outrageous and dangerous stunts.

Despite a running time of ninety something minutes (Hong Kong cut), "Tiger Cage II" is quite entertaining, a stark reminder of a bygone era filled with visceral, if not occasionally funny and pain inducing, thrills. Fans of martial arts flicks will eat this up and will enjoy the OTT (western) villain portrayals while patiently nodding their heads at the stunning but overblown damsel in distress that Rosamund Kwan plays. The uninitiated might have a problem but if you stay for the action, you won't be disappointed for sure.

A sequel in name only to the action-packed TIGER CAGE, TIGER CAGE 2 marks a real highlight of the Hong Kong comedy cop/action sub-genre. Directed by Yuen Woo Ping - undoubtedly one of the best of the Chinese directors and martial arts choreographers - this sequel turns out to be better than the original and indeed might well be the best of its kind.

The film features an intensely likable Donnie Yen and an at-her-most-gorgeous Rosamund Kwan as a mismatched couple (a cop and a lawyer, respectively) who run foul of some sinister money launderers who use murder to keep their business private. The end up on the run being pursued by gangsters. Of course, what this inevitably leads to is an incredible amount of expertly-choreographed action and fight sequences. There are the requisite car chases and shoot-outs here, but the majority of the action is hand-to-hand combat, and boy is it blistering.

Yen is on top form as a physical fight and his bouts with various opponents are fast and furious. The plot is occasionally slightly muddled (and the dodgy subtitles on the Hong Kong blu-ray I watched hardly helped) but it doesn't matter as this is visual, visceral entertainment throughout. Michael Woods makes his third (and best) appearance in a Chinese film, the creepy John Salvitti is back from IN THE LINE OF DUTY 4, and Robin Shou makes a decent antagonist. Watch out for a surprisingly fine David Wu in support and a cameo from veteran star Lo Lieh as a gangster.