Synopsis: Action superstar Chow Yun Fat portrays real-life gangster Chen Daqi as he rises to the upper echelons of power, finding himself torn between the love of two women, the murderous plots of the secret service, and the looming threat of war. (119 Mins)

 

Views: I actually can't believe it has taken me a good decade to finally see this film! The Last Tycoon takes superstar Chow Yun Fat back to his days on The Bund, as it tells the story of Cheng Daqi and his journey to becoming one of Shanghai's most respected gang leaders. Of course, life isn't quite as simple as that, and soon Daqi is facing many major issues in his life from Japanese invaders and secret service plots, as well as being torn between the two loves of his life. The Last Tycoon is a beautifully made blockbuster movie, directed by the incredibly busy and hugely inspiring Wong Jing – a Hong Kong director who, for the last 5 decades, has delivered some of Asia's most memorable films; starring in almost 100, writing almost 200, producing over 160, and directing over 100. There is literally no Hollywood film-maker who can come close to having such an impressive filmography behind them, and while many of them can be hit-and-miss at times, it's fair to say that Wong has delivered some genuine classics over the years!

 

The handsome Huang Xiao Ming does a fantastic job as the younger version of Chow Yun Fat and, at times, actually looks identical to the legendary star. This was a great casting choice by Wong, with Huang proving once again just what a strong actor he really is. After a small role in Bright Heart at the turn-of-the-century, Huang gained the role of Sammo Hung's son in the poorly received Legend Of The Dragon before starring as General Yin in Feng Xiao Gang's epic film, The Banquet the following year. Since then, he has went on to star in hits such as The Sniper, Sacrifice, Ip Man 2, and The Guillotines, before his role here as the young Cheng Daqi. Since then, Xiao Ming has become a name to watch for with roles in Badges Of Fury, Crimes Of Passion, The White-Haired Witch Of Lunar Kingdom, The Crossing 1 & 2, League Of Gods, Mission Milano, and the epic Chinese war movie The Eight Hundred – among many others. Interestingly enough, Huang re-joined Sammo in the aforementioned Ip Man 2 before joining him once again in The Last Tycoon, with the big man stepping back from the action and focus more on the drama. While it may seem slightly disappointing to some that we don't get to see Sammo fight, he still makes quite the impression as Master Hung - Daqi's boss and powerhouse of Shanghai - and more than made up for it by kicking-ass the very same year in the fun Naked Soldier before continuing to do it again in Princess & The Seven Kung Fu Masters, Once Upon A Time In Shanghai, Rise Of The Legend, and his self-directed action-drama, The Bodyguard. Prolific actor Francis Ng stars as Mao Zai, the scene stealing double-crossing soldier who meets Daqi in a cell. Upon helping himself escape, Mao goes on to both look after the young hero and manipulate him; forcing him into making his first kill and sticking close by over the years. I've always enjoyed seeing Francis on-screen, and more often than not portraying a villain that I just love to hate. Since he burst onto the screen in the mid-to-late 80s, Ng has went onto star in almost 160 films including Final Run, Devil Hunters, The Bride With White Hair, Kung Fu Cult Master, Satan Returns, Full Alert, A Man Called Hero, Bullets Over Summer, Colour Of The Truth, Exiled, A Home With A View, and so much more – rarely disappointing and always leaving an impression. But for me, it has to be the awesome Chow Yun Fat who returns to familiar ground, delivering a strong and emotional performance right through to the end. I first fell in love with Chow after seeing him in the amazing Hard Boiled back in the early 90s, quickly followed by God Of Gamblers, Tiger On The Beat, and The Killer; before going on to search for everything and anything that he starred in. I often felt that his career choices seemed a little unsure with his departure from Hong Kong cinema in the mid-90s, but after a few years in Hollywood (with a handful of decent movies behind him) he soon came back with a bang in the Oscar winning Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon before taking on the new century with roles in films such as Curse Of The Golden Flower, The Children Of Huang Shi, Shanghai, Confucius, Let The Bullets Fly, The Assassins, and The Monkey King – as well as reprising his infamous role as the God of Gamblers in the Wong Jing trilogy, From Vegas To Macau. It's also worth noting the worthy performances from Gao Hu as Daqi's bodyguard and close friend Lin Huai, as well as Yolanda Yuan, Monica Mok, and Kimmy Tong who play his love interests – with the latter playing a younger version of Monica's character, Bao – and it was nice to see the great Yasuaki Kurata appear briefly as Major General Nishino, although (much like Sammo) doesn't get to bust a move which is a pity...

 

Actor and choreographer Lee Tat Chiu delivers some brilliantly crafted action scenes that are often delivered in slow motion, capturing the beauty of the destruction and violence on offer. From gang fights to shoot-outs, and a wonderful knife attack in the rain that sees the character of Lin Huai take down a gang of men as their umbrellas tumble through the air. Starting into the industry in the early 90s, Lee would appear in films such as God Of Gamblers 2, Bury Me High, City Hunter, The Bare-Footed Kid, Holy Weapon and Future Cops, going on to play more action roles in The Bodyguard From Beijing, Fist Of Legend, The Blade, Legend Of The Wolf, Storm Riders, and more. The mid-to-late 90s would see him double-up as an action-choreographer through to the turn-of-the-century on films like Sixty Million Dollar Man, Big Bullet, Storm Riders, Sunshine Cops, Born To Be King, and more before continuing his work on modern hits like Colour Of The Truth, Moving Targets, and Bodyguards & Assassins. The scenes set during the Japanese attack in Shanghai during WWII are pretty cool too, with some serious explosions on display as the city crumbles around the people. It's an intense sequence that brings more and more devastation on a massive scale, closing with a bittersweet moment that reveals the painful love triangle of Daqi, Zhiqiu and her husband. I actually didn't expect such an explosive scale of action, but it was hugely impressive and, once again, showed that Wong Jing can deliver a serious piece of film when he wants to. The grand finale begins when a Peking Opera Show is put-on for the Japanese officials which allows Daqi and his men to attack their base, and save his masters wife along with many others. It's a dark, emotional, and action-packed closure to the film that just confirms why Chow Yun Fat is one of the greatest actors to ever come out of Hong Kong!

 

While it may be far from perfect and suffer from a slightly flawed script, The Last Tycoon still proves to be slickly directed with Wong Jing adding nods to films like Ip Man 2, The Grandmaster, The Killer, In The Mood For Love, and The Godfather respectively. The film also benefits from plenty of gorgeous cinematography courtesy of Andrew Lau and Jason Kwan, with the Infernal Affairs director also serving as the films producer, accompanied by a wonderful score from composer Comfort Chan, along with a theme song from Jacky Cheung and beautiful closing number by Joanna Wang. And while both Andrew Lau and Comfort Chan would be nominated for their work at the 32nd Hong Kong Film Awards, Jacky Cheung (and co) would take away the award for Best Original Film Song. It's also worth mentioning that the Chinese release was cut by about 10 minutes upon release...

 

Overall: Gorgeously shot, well acted, and beautifully directed, The Last Tycoon is a brilliant piece of modern Hong Kong cinema that's well worth the watch!