Dong fang lao hu

(1990) The Cyprus Tigers (In Cantonese With English subtitles) ACTION/ COMEDY

There is no plot to speak about except that it's inspired by the "Lethal Weapon" idea that involves two cops of Simon Yam and Conan Lee trying to retrieve a counterfeit money plate, but like most Hong Kong films made during that era during the 80's and the 90's the action sequences are thought of first before plot! There is of course no CGI, and that it didn't do well at the Hong Kong box office, despite the action sequences being well staged, photographed and creative! The plot is of course is zero stars Action gets 4 stars!

Some of the highlights also includes a memorable fight sequence between Simon Yam and stunt woman/ martial artist Sophia Crawford; the flipping of a glass plane of a table to the bad guy attempting to escape and the chase sequence of a side of the building.

Conan Lee was quit skilled as a martial artist but for some reason has not been in that many movies. On Hong Kong Cinemagic it is stated that this was due to an enormous ego. Wikipedia however mentions he stopped acting so that he could take care of his ailing mother. Whether these claims are true or not fact is that Conan Lee is not the big name he could or should have been. Fortunately for us he is featured in some gems that are well worth your time.

The Cyprus Tigers however is not one of them. In fact it is one of those rare movies so appallingly bad you should stay clear from at all costs. I watched this since it's one of those titles I knew existed but never could get my hands on. Not uncommon for HK action films so it never really occurred to me that there might be other reasons why this one is hard to find. Now I know. It's atrocious. There are no redeeming factors whatsoever. The few action scenes that are present are incredibly short and over before you realize. And whatever there is action wise it's just average. Director Phillip Ko an actor and action director of many Shaw Brother films surely could do better? What about Simon Yam? And Robin Shou? Why were they part of this fiasco? It doesn't really look they wanted to be in this or took it seriously. If I had to guess they tricked some poor investors to shoot the film in Cyprus because they wanted to celebrate their holiday there instead of doing something meaningful with the locale. Since there is nothing in this film that could not have been made in Hong Kong. I would be shocked if it took them more than two or three days to film this. Don't even bother to get into the story. There is none. It's just one goofy moment after another. That typical HK comedy stuff you only can tolerate if it is interchanged with some phenomenal action. Well, this is like it is the other way around. You have some action interchanged with ninety percent goofiness. And not the fun kind in case you were wondering.

Stay clear from this travesty.