Tragic hero

When I sat down in 2021 to watch the 1987 Hong Kong action crime drama "Gong woo ching" (aka "Rich and Famous"), I must admit that I was expecting somewhat more from writers Stephen Shiu and Manfred Wong, especially since the movie had the likes of Andy Lau and Chow Yun-Fat on the cast list.

The storyline told in the movie, as written by Stephen Shiu and Manfred Wong, just failed to capture my interest, and the movie felt very chaotic and disharmonic. I must admit that most of the time I wasn't really sure why the narrative was at that particular point or place in the story.

Now, you would expect that a movie with the likes of Chow Yun-Fat, Andy Lau and Carina Lau on the cast list, that you would be in for something grander. But the movie turned out to be rather boring and mundane for my liking. So "Rich and Famous" made for a pretty lousy movie experience for me.

I managed to endure halfway through the ordeal, then I just gave up on the storyline, given the fact that it never appealed to me, and I was bored throughout the prolonged first part of the movie. So I just simply quit on the movie, never to return to watch the rest.

I am rating "Rich and Famous" a three out of ten stars. This was by no means a glorious or outstanding moment in Hong Kong cinematic history.

Gong Woo Ching/Rich & Famous(1987) fills some requirements for the epic genre with scenes of grandeur and emotional dramatic content. The epic quality of this picture helps make it one of the top Hong Kong features of the late 1980s. Although not an epic in the usual sense because of its duration of 106 minutes, Rich & Famous(1987) still uses the epic form on a few aspects. The scenes move along on an epic pace. For a lowbudget movie, the film sure looks lavish.

Although Chow Yun Fat on the cover of the video is said to be the leading actor, he really isn't. One of the few co starring roles for Chow Yun Fat in his post A Better Tomorrow(1986) career. He giveas a very good performance as Li Ah Chai. Early in the picture Li Ah-Chai is an arrogant person but towards the end he becomes more humaine. Li Ah- Chai is the Hong Kong equivalent of Don Vito Corleone.

The main actors of the film are Andy Lau and Alex Man. The story of Rich & Famous(1987) revolves around two brothers who join an organize crime group in Hong Kong led by Li Ah-Chai. About how the two brothers evolve thoughout the feature and go their own separate paths. Andy Lau is cool as the honorable and loyal Kwok. Alex Man does an ok job as the overly ambitious and power hungry brother, Tang Kat Yung.

A Tale of Two Brothers is a more apprropriate title for this film. The personalities of Kwok and Yung are like water and fire in comparison to one another. At the beginning they have a close relationship but by the end they grow apart. Kwok is someone who would risks his life for people he cares for. Yung is someone who always gets himself and others into deep trouble.

Gong Woo Ching/Rich and Famous(1987) was part of a giant craze in the gangster genre for Hong Kong cinema. Rich and Famous(1987) and its sequel Tragic Hero(1987) are two of the top twenty five films of the Heroic Bloodshed sub genre. Some of the cast members had appeared in countless Heroic Bloodshed pictures. Overshadowed by the more flashier flicks of the popular sub genre in HK cinema. Only recently has this film begun to get noticed with the continued success of Chow Yun Fat in the cinema.

More of a dramatic piece than an action crime thriller. The action is spriinkled throughout Gong Woo Ching(1987) in small portions except in a couple of sequences. Its sequel, Tragic Hero(1987) is a more action and gun battle orientated motion picture. Gong Woo Ching(1987) should be watched with plenty of patience because there are more slow moments than fast. The dramatic content is what makes it into a Godfather inspired pic.

The big action scene comes in the middle of the flick. The moment when Chow Yun Fat comes out shooting with an Uzi in each hand does he remind viewers of his action antics in A Better Tomorrow(1986). This sequence is one of three highlight scenes for Rich & Famous(1987). Starts out slow and ends with a bang. Its not a flamboyant or flashy action scene like in some Heroic Bloodshed pictures.

The tragic hero of this story is Mak Ying Hung played by Alan Tam. This character is greatly misjudged by Li Ah-Chai in the first half. Mak Ying Hung is played with heart and pathos by Alan Tam. He proves himself to be a hero by sacrificing himself to save his friends. The two best acting performances goes to Alan Tam and Andy Lau.

The direction is average which prevents Rich & Famous(1987) from being a masterpiece. Weddings in Hong Kong films appears to be synonymous with death. Carina Lau gives a very good performance as the beautiful and strong willed Lau Po Yee. Danny Lee is memorable in his sterotypical role of the honest and relentless Policeman. Would have benefited from having more scenes with Danny Lee because his performance is really good.

One of a handful of very good and substancial films done by the prolific and average film maker, Taylor Wong. Its nice to see Shing Fui On in a non villainous role in a Hong Kong film for a change. An underrated motion picture it is does not mean its a great film. The flawed areas are overcomed by the good parts of the film. Gong Woo Ching/Rich & Famous(1987) features some low key and strong performances by most of the actors.

This is a particularly dire early Chow Yun Fat Hong Kong gangster movie that occasionally flirts with competence without ever going all the way. It's the usual good brother/bad brother plot, but it's rarely been done as shoddily as this. Danny Lee has little to do, Andy Lau isn't on top form here and only an underused Chow Yun Fat gets by on charisma alone. The film looks like it's been shot in a hurry (the first fight in the betting shop looks as convincing as a schoolgirl pillow fight) by people who'd rather be somewhere else.

No surprises, badly staged and pretty amateurish all round except for a last reel wedding shootout, its hard to believe this was a big enough local hit for a sequel, Tragic Hero. Even more surprising is that Tragic Hero is actually GOOD, focusing on Chow Yun Fat's fall from power as he is abandoned and betrayed - that one has style, flair and a bit of weight to it, as well as much better action scenes. But Rich and Famous is just a waste of your time.

While much better then the sequel, this is still by no means a great movie. Every once in a while it approaches greatness, but one thing or another keeps it from achieving it. The character development is better then usual, and Alex Man gives a very good performance as the ambitious, bumbling brother. The two action sequences are excellent, and the surprisingly low body count finale actually has some feeling and emotion in it.

Despite the negative reviews I really liked this one, I thought it did the job very nicely. Made at a time when the heroic bloodshed genre was just taking off and with Andy Lau and Chow Yun-Fat as the stars it's impossible to dislike it. The story starts off a little confusing but soon boils down into a tale of rivalry between gangsters, and the cast, which includes Danny Lee and the great Alex Man, is excellent. Plus the vibrant action sequences have a sadistic edge which appeals; the ending in particular is spectacular. A sequel, TRAGIC HERO, followed.