Spectrum Films Blu-ray Synopsis: Inspector Fong is on the trail of jewellery trafficking. During a transaction between two mafia clans, the suspect Bing spreads panic and the exchange turns into carnage. This confusion allows Shing to kidnap his boss, "Master Sam," in an attempt to find out where to hide the jewellery. At the same time, the daughter of the mafia boss contacted Fong to suggest that he team up to find her father. Filmed in 1989 and released in France in vhs under the title of Raid for the honour, Devil Hunters is part of the genre Girls With Guns whose matrix is Yes Madam! What strikes most with the vision of Devil Hunters, besides the rhythm and the frenetic action scenes, it is this incredible cast for a film of pure exploitation. Moon Lee (Angel, Mr. Vampire), Sibelle Hu (Fong Sai Yuk, My Lucky Stars), Alex Man (As Tears Go By, Long Arm Of The Law 2), Ray Lui (To Be Number One, The Suspect), Ken Lo (Drunken Master 2, Crime Story) but especially Francis Ng (The Mission, Infernal Affairs 2) who plays here one of his first roles as a bastard. (88 MIns)

 

German (Ultra Force 2) DVD Synopsis: Gangster San, head of the Hong Kong Syndicate, and Chai, handler of the Golden Triangle mafia, have a rough drug deal in an anonymous tip, and Captain Tong of the Hong Kong Police is already in the park. He hopes to catch all the dealers at once, but an unknown girl ruins the action. A deadly shoving begins in the course of which the gangsters can swear. San suspects Chai of tipping the police and orders him to be killed. Chai dies in the arms of his son Rick who swears bloody vengeance. (86 Mins)

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Views: A deranged gangster gathers his own loyal band of men to find his boss's stash of diamonds, killing anyone that gets in the way – even down to the big man himself. But the boss's daughter is onto him, and with the help of his former second-in-command they set out to stop him. Along the way, the daughter joins forces with the Hong Kong police who make a deal with her to save her father and stop his manic minion. Well, that's it in a nutshell I think! But if I'm to be honest, Tony Liu's script and direction gets a little muddled at times, that you soon give-up on the plot and just take in the crazy action that's on offer!

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Shot back-to-back with Moon Lee's Killer Angels – which was released in Germany as Ultra Force and this as Ultra Force 2 – Devil Hunters offers up a few odd moments in its storyline, some rough cinematography, plenty of great fight action, and a lot of doubling for Moon Lee. If anything, I'd say this was a pretty cheap and quick production that delivers a lot of cut-and-paste shots of the femme fatale, re-using obvious clips over-and-over again that become quite obvious during the films opening action scene at the amusement park. The same thing happens again during a shootout later on, with close-up's on Moon's face murmuring one or two words before cutting to a wide shot that only showed her from behind or at an angle. I found it very weird (and more-so during the amusement park scene) since Moon was clearly there and mixing with other cast members during the scene, but her doubling by a man in costume for some kicks and punches was quite obvious, as were the cuts to the same close-up of her falling down. It just threw me as they were for such bizarre moments – unless, of course, she had gotten badly injured early on that it was called for. Regardless, it doesn't really detract from the action too much and fan's get to rejoice later as Moon returns to kick-ass (in full view) a number of times. Personally, I think Moon Lee was the greatest of the femme fatale genre (just edging past Yukari Oshima ever so little). She had only just exploded onto the scene as an action actress a year or two before with her role in the awesome Iron Angels 1 & 2, which was quickly followed by Killer Angels and this in 1989. It would prove to be a busy year for Ms. Lee with an action-packed role in the brilliant Princess Madam, as well as a second sequel in the Iron Angels series. In fact, I'd imagine that she might have managed to squeeze out another 2 or 3 had she not been hospitalised after shooting the explosive ending for this film. In one of the most memorable moments of Hong Kong action cinema, Moon Lee, Ray Lui, and Sibelle Hu attempt to jump from a first story window as Francis Ng blows-up a gas canister from inside. Unfortunately, things went a little awry that saw the three of them engulfed in flames as they jumped out of the window. Although they were rushed to hospital, the actors were out of action for some time although seemingly recovered fine and were soon back in action for their next roles.

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The great Francis Ng seems to get a kick (literally) from playing slimy characters. He does it so well, and in Devil Hunters brilliantly plays the bad guy you just love to hate. One scene sees him torture a young woman who he has tied up naked (except for knickers), after he covers her with crickets before going-on to stab her and rip off her toenails with pliers. This is all before she is brutally raped over a barrel by his men, of course. It's crazy to think that he had only been on the scene for a few years by this stage, with Devil Hunters coming in as his 7th or 8th film at the time. Of course, the actor has since went on to star in a host of great titles and make a name for himself as one of Hong Kong's most prolific actors with over 160 roles to date, and stuck with director Tony Liu for The Dragon Fighter right after this. The infamous Michael Chan Wai Man plays the role of a more subdued ex-gangster for the majority of the film, but manages to get in on the action towards the end of the flick as he tries to take on Ng and his men in an explosive and manic shootout in the hills. Like Ng, Chan has starred in as many titles (only since the early 70s) and is just as famous for his real-life antics as much as his life as an actor. The wonderful Ray Lui, who spends a lot of his time creeping around and hiding on people, gets to go all out as one of the good guys who eventually joins forces with Moon Lee and the cops in finding her father and bringing Francis Ng to justice. I'm a huge fan of Lui Leung Wai and would first have seen him in Jackie Chan's Project A 2. Of course, he had been around since the early 80s and went on to star in some crackers over the years and is still going strong today appearing in films such as Dynasty Warriors and Raging Fire, alongside Donnie Yen. It was great to see him get to kick-ass as much as everyone else, and look great doing it. Alex Man, who was matching his previous years projects with the same amount of films (12) in 1989 including Crocodile Hunter, China White, The Last Duel, and Framed, takes things a little easier as the chief of police. He still gets to join the action here-and-there, but most of his screen time is spent giving orders to Sibelle Hu or making plans with Lee and Lui. Miss Hu, who once again gets artfully doubled for many of her more tricky moves, looks great and still manages to pull off some nice moves during her many action scenes. I've always been a huge fan of Sibelle ever since I saw her in the classic My Lucky Stars and Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars, as well as the Jackie Chan produced Top Squad – better known as The Inspector Wears Skirts – alongside Cynthia Rothrock. She's always been a treat to watch, especially when starring with other action starlets like Moon Lee and Yukari Oshima, and has been in some fantastic titles over the years through to her retirement from the industry in the late 1990s after a role in Yuen Woo Ping's Tai Chi 2/Tai Chi Boxer, and a lesser-known mainland production called The Rising Sun & A Sudden Clap Of Thunder in the year of Hong Kong's handover. It was also great to see the brilliant Ken Lo star as one of Francis Ng's heavies and put his kicks to good use, along with Andy Tai Chi Wai who reminded me of a young Lau Ching Wan at times...

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I must admit, I am a fan of director Tony Liu's work. From his early days at Shaw Brothers with Holy Flame Of The Martial World to Bastard Swordsman and its sequel, and Hwang Jang Lee classics like Hell's Wind Staff and Tiger Over Wall, to his more modern works such as this and Killer Angels, Angel Terminators 2, Dreaming The Reality, Holy Virgin Vs The Evil Dead, The Dragon Fighter, and then some. Of course, Liu had been acting well before his directorial debut of Tough Guy in 1974, starring in films such as The Great Plot, The Inn Of Mercy, and The Invincible Iron Palm. It was probably because of these bit-player roles that Liu decided to start writing and directing his own, giving him the chance to become more of a star and get stuck into the action. His first few films as a director (after Tough Guy) included Trail Of The Dragon, The Black Dragon's Revenge, and Magic Curse while still appearing in other films such as Action Tae Kwon Do, Bruce Lee & I, The Himalayan, Iron Fisted Monk, Broken Oath, Thunder Run alongside Ray Lui, and many more over the years. He is joined by Tsui Fat, the director of 13 Cold Blooded Eagles and actor of over 150 films which range from his days at the Shaw Brothers studios through to many of Tony Liu's directed flicks. Apart from his vast acting career, Fat would also be well known to fans of Hong Kong cinema for his action choreography on many Hong Kong films. This began on early classics such as the awesome Five Superfighters, The Fighting Fool, The Master, Kung Fu Vs. Yoga, and the patchwork Fearless Hyena 2. As the modern age crept in, Tsui continued his work as an action-director for Tony Liu's Killer Angels and Devil Hunters, as well as earlier Donnie Yen vehicles such as Crystal Hunt, Cheetah On Fire, and Holy Virgin Versus The Evil Dead – some of which he also co-directed. Between them both, Liu and Fat present a fast paced and energetic piece with Devil Hunters that boasts a great cast, and some very memorable action scenes!

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Overall: Exciting and packed full of wild action, Devil Hunters has its flaws but still proves to be a highly entertaining piece of late 80s Hong Kong cinema!

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Spectrum Films Blu-ray Extras: Introduction by Arnuad Lanuque, Video Essay by Julien Seveon, Trailer

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German DVD Extras: Trailers

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Watch my unboxing video of this Spectrum Films release HERE