88 Films Blu-ray Synopsis: Return to the mean streets of the 1980s for a pair of ghetto real crime dramas that redefined Hong Kong cop movies. Based on real events in the then Crown Colony, the Long Arm Of The Law films depict the threat posed by former Mainland Chinese soldiers crossing the border to stage hyper violent crimes in broad daylight. These films are a stunning blend of cinema verite with bone-crunching Hong Kong stunt sequences. Long Arm Of The Law 1 & 2 left local audiences shell-shocked when first released, and still retain their impact today. Don't miss the chance to see a double bill torn from the most savage era in reel and real Hong Kong history! In the early 1980s, a band of former Mainland Chinese soldiers decide to rob the rich pickings of neighbouring Hong Kong. The streets of the British colony echo with gunfire as the local cops contend with these heavily armed crime tourists. A cast of unknowns deliver stunning performances in this true crime tale. Finally, the gang cannot escape the long arm of the law,leading to a fierce showdown within the Kowloon Walled City. In this gritty change of pace for producer Sammo Hung, neophyte director Johnny Mak delivers a crime saga of bloody brotherhood with a real visceral impact. (106 Mins)

 

Views: Often ranked in the top ten of Hong Kong cinema's top 100 movies, Long Arm Of The Law is a gritty, no-nonsense thriller that racked up 9 nominations at the 1985 Hong Kong film awards in many categories, and despite only winning 2 of them, has continued to be a firm favourite for many over the decades. One such nomination was for Best Screenplay based on the script written by Philip Chan, a policeman turned actor who also wrote and directed hits such as Night Caller, Inspector Chocolate, Front Page, as well as penning Long Arm Of The Law 2 – the first of three sequels for this film. Aside from these, Chan would also direct titles such as Simon Yam's long forgotten Tongs: A Chinatown Story, the Sammo Hung's Return Of Pom Pom, From Here To Prosperity, and the brilliant Where's Officer Tuba? featuring the big man himself. It's clear that both he and Sammo had a great working relationship over the years, with Chan popping up in numerous Sammo Hung films over the years from Owl Vs Bumbo to the Pom Pom series and more, with the martial-arts movie legend producing Long Arm Of The Law for him under the Bo Ho Films banner – one of the first from his company in 1984 alongside the first Pom Pom movie, Chow Yun Fat's serious war-drama Hong Kong 1941, and the fun Lam Ching Ying horror-comedy, Hocus Pocus. Joining him would be prolific producer Johnny Mak, also making his directional debut here which would also be his last, ironically. Although he was greeted with much praise and support for what he delivered with Long Arm Of The Law, Johnny would go on to only help write and produce its three sequels, with his brother Michael taking over directional duties respectively. While the film tells the simple tale of mainlanders coming to Hong Kong to get rich quick by forming a criminal gang and robbing jewelery stores, it would be the tense situations and repercussions that unfold afterwards that starts to reshape things. From gripping chase scenes through the neon-lit streets of Hong Kong to the ballistic shoot-outs inside the claustrophobic Walled City, Long Arm Of The Law fast becomes a story of self-destruction and desperation that sees its wanna-be gangsters strive to survive through gun-fights, police chases, foiled robbery attempts, and unrequited love!

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In 1979 Johnny Mak made his first foray into the industry when he produced the popular television shows Dragon Strikes, Reincarnated, and Ten Sensational Cases. His first film production was with David Lai's Crimson Street, an action-thriller from 1982 that starred Sally Yeh and Kenny Bee. After putting a few more features behind him, Mak arrived at Long Arm Of The Law, his groundbreaking crime-thriller that saw him take on directorial duties for the one and only time in his career. From there, Mak focused on writing and producing, going on to deliver titles such as the Long Arm Of The Law sequels, Rich & Famous, Tragic Hero, The Iceman Cometh, Spiritual Love, To Be Number One, Lord Of The East China Sea, Sex & Zen, Island Of Greed, and many more. Here, he does quite a fantastic job in the directors chair, with the film going on to bring in over $10 million HKD in its opening week. It stands tall as one of the finest movies of its time, with Mak bringing Chan's fantastic script to life with a gritty realism that would go onto inspire a generation. Intensely captured by cinematographer Johnny Koo – who would also helm many of Mak's aforementioned works as well as titles such as Aces Go Places 2, Haunted Cop Shop 2, As Tears Go By, Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars, and Stage Door Johnny – and backed by a great score courtesy of Lam Miu Tak, Long Arm Of The Law is one Hong Kong movie that deserves to be seen, especially for anyone that's a fan of Alex Cheung's Cops & Robbers or The Big Heat from Johnnie To and Andrew Kam.

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Although Hung and Mak opt to use many unknown faces for the main cast, Hong Kong film fans will still recognise a number of stars on screen such as the brilliant David Lam Wai, a Shaw Brothers actor who used his role here as a stepping stone into modern action cinema after becoming a huge star overnight from its success. Aside from his bit roles in hits such as Five Element Ninjas, Buddha's Palm, Holy Flame Of The Martial World, and 8 Diagram Pole Fighter, fans will know Lam for his roles in Jackie Chan's Project A 2, A Chinese Ghost Story, Dragons Forever, King Of Beggars, and many more with over 160 film credits to his name today. Chan Ging, from films such as Yes Madam, Royal Warriors, Tiger Cage, and Magnificent Warriors, also appears and gives one of the stronger performances of his career – returning for a brief role in Long Arm Of The Law 2 although as a completely different character (like many of the actors in this movie). The prolific Shum Wai, who had only appeared in 4 or 5 movies before this, stars as a small-time criminal and police snitch who finds himself in the path of vengeance with the criminal gang, going on to meet his demise while wearing a tight pink tracksuit – which will never leave my mind. Of course, since then, Wai went onto star in around 100 features with every major Hong Kong star, and even tried his hand at directing with Spiritually A Cop starring Stanley Fung, Yukari Oshima, and Mang Hoi, as well as Chow Sing Chi's Triad Story and Master's Necklace with Ray Lui. Eagle eyed viewers should enjoy the scene that sees Shum Wai getting interrogated by a young Tommy Wong, and Jackie Chan Stunt Team member Ben Lam who appears a Hong Kong policeman, returning for a bigger role in the sequel along with the great Alex Ng Hong Ling who plays his usual bad-guy right-hand-man role here. It's also worth noting how impressive Ng Hoi Tin was as Inspector Li, here making his debut performance which also saw him return for the sequel in a similar role. Between that, Hoi Tin would appear in films such as Philip Chan's Night Caller, Yes Madam, Seven Angels, and Rich & Famous/Tragic Hero (which would see him co-star with Alex Ng yet again). While his role was even more impressive in the sequel and he often proved to deliver a solid performance, Ng's acting career would only last 5 years with a returning role as a judge in Andy Lau's crime-drama, The Truth – Final Episode, being his last to date.

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Of course, one of the big highlights of Long Arm Of The Law for many is the gritty action on offer. From ballistic and violent shoot-outs to pain inducing stunts – including one incredibly brave (or stupid) stunt featuring Yuen Mo that sees him hit the ice hard after falling from a great height! While hardcore action fans may complain about the length of time between each action piece, its fair to say that they will be greatly rewarded for their patience. Choreographed by the popular Billy Chan – brother of actor Peter Chan, both of whom were long time members of the Sammo Hung Stunt Team – the actor/producer/choreographer/director leads his big brothers team into a world of realism and brutality, swapping the stylised martial-arts ways for street-fights and bullets. From its opening prison break to the impressive shoot-out and chase in the busy shopping streets of Hong Kong – a scene that used up to 8 cameras with disguised cameramen hiding in plain sight, ready to capture what was about to unfold and making the local bystanders think it was real. But this was quite typical for Hong Kong productions of this era – it was a very different time for HK film-makers, a lot of what you see is real. There was no CGI and that's what helps make the action moments even more impressive. The explosions are big and very real, and what Chan manages to craft for the final showdown in the Walled City is just incredible. I'm surprised that they got away with what they did, but you can definitely see the influences here of what was to come from future directors of the heroic bloodshed genre. In fact, Long Arm Of The Law has often been regarded as one of the first heroic bloodshed movies which, of course, was soon popularised by John Woo with the A Better Tomorrow Trilogy, The Killer, Bullet In The Head, among many others.

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With a grittiness and rawness that allows for a realistic look at the underbelly of the Hong Kong crime scene, there's no denying that such a movie inspired much of what was to come from the genre over the next few decades and saw its first sequel get its release a lengthy three years later, with part 3 following in 1989 and part 4 – also known as Underground Express – just a year after that. Connected by name only, each chapter follows the same basic storyline of criminal Chinese mainlanders fighting against Hong Kong cops, and although not as highly regarded as the first, all still deserve to be seen as exciting thrillers from Hong Kong cinema's heyday and has never looked better than it does today in this stunning new 2K restoration from 88 Films!

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Overall: Still as impressive and important today as it was upon release, Long Arm Of The Law is an intense crime-thriller with heart that deserves to be seen!

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88 Films Blu-ray Extras: 2K Restoration of both Hong Kong Cut & Export Cut, Audio Commentary with Frank Djeng (HK Cut), Interviews with Michael Mak, Johnny Mak, & Philip Chan, Conversation with Billy Chan & Philip Chan, Theatrical Trailer

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Get your copy HERE

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Watch my unboxing video for this 88 Films Blu-ray release HERE