AN EYE FOR AN EYE
(Hong Kong 1990)
Original Title: Wai Ngoh Duk Juen 血洗洪花亭 (aka) Triad Raiders
Directed by O Sing Pui Produced by Eddy Chan Action by Benz Kong, Poon Kin Kwan Starring: Joey Wong, Max Mok, Wilson Lam, Jimmy Lee, John Ching, Ricky Yi, Leung Gam San, Melvin Wong, Lo Hung, Angela Fong Reviewing: Vinegar Syndrome US Blu-ray Release Genres: Triad / Action / Drama
Rating: 3.7 / 5
Vinegar Syndrome US Blu-ray Synopsis: Fung is the daughter of an aging Triad boss attempting to turn his criminal enterprise into a more legitimate business. After her father is arrested by her cop boyfriend, Fung is left in charge and continues her father's mission of ridding the organization of its criminal dealings. Meanwhile, some of the other members of the gang are not happy with Fung's leadership and plan a hostile takeover. Cheong, the second in command, wants to maintain the group's violent reign and sets out to strip Fung of her power by viciously assaulting and blackmailing her. Fung's boyfriend vows to take revenge on Cheong and the organization while simultaneously dealing with his jealous partner, who also has eyes for Fung. Tensions soon boil over, and violence erupts in the streets as warring factions attempt to maintain their power. Heavily censored in Hong Kong upon its initial release, AN EYE FOR AN EYE received a Category III rating, partly thanks to its controversial portrayal of Triad traditions and graphic outbursts of violence. Newly restored from a director-approved studio-supplied master, Vinegar Syndrome is proud to present the director's cut of this gangster opus for the first time of Blu-ray, featuring of its bloodshed intact and culminating in an epic knife fight that literally leaves blood flowing in the streets. (93 Mins)
Views: Opening with a credit sequence that sees simple text appear over a background of moving water that shimmers with a red glow as it reflects the city lights above it, this little-seen 1990 triad thriller immediately catches the viewers attention with it's rich colour palette and polished score. An Eye For An Eye tells the tale of Fung, an innocent young woman whose cop boyfriend, Tats, puts her supposedly-reformed triad father behind bars. Determined to rid his businesses and organisations of their criminal connections, Fung sets to work trying to put things right in order to get her father released. Naturally, tensions between her and Tats start to breakdown while his partner Chung – who has been a long-time friend of Fung's and secretly in love with her – tries to keep the peace and support her. At the same time, Cheong (one her fathers right-hand-men) is determined to take over as the new boss, and soon starts creating problems for Fung that pulls her into a living nightmare. If it wasn't for the wonderful guys at Vinegar Syndrome restoring and putting this little gem out on Blu-ray, I don't think I'd ever have gotten round to seeing it. And I'm sure glad that they did! An Eye For An Eye was a very fun experience, not to mention a fantastically made and often brutal triad-thriller!
The film, which bears a number of similarities to the 1965 Hong Kong production of the same name (aka The Blood Debt) from prolific director Ng Wui, was the fourth feature of actor-turned-director O Sing Pui who made his debut in 1986 with The Story Behind The Concert, before going onto direct the 1987 remake of Golden Swallow and Frankie Chan's Dream Of Desire. But prior to that, Sing Pui cut his teeth behind the scenes working as the assistant director on films such as Tsui Hark's Dangerous Encounter Of The First Kind (1980), All The Wrong Clues (1981), Plain Jane To The Rescue (1982), Aces Go Places 1 & 2 (1982/83), Teppanyaki (1984), and Armour Of God (1986). And while he would direct four more movies after An Eye For An Eye; namely Amy Yip's Easy Money and Sammo Hung's very fun My Flying Wife in 1991, the little seen Island Fear in '94, and then Comic King in 2001 which would be his last to date. Keeping himself busy in between projects, O Sing Pui would serve as the DOP or cinematographer on films such as Made In Hong Kong (1997), Naked Ambition (2003), The Pye-Dog (2007), Ip Man (2008), Gallants (2010), Fairy Tale Killer (2012), Chasing The Dragon (2017), and others. Sing Pui possibly delivers his best work with An Eye For An Eye featuring some brilliant direction along with great performances from all involved, and some slick cinematography by Abdul Rumjahn; the same man who lensed films such as Sing Pui's own Easy Money (1991), Jet Li's Dragon Fight (1989), Aces Go Places 2 (1983), Rich & Famous (1987), Tragic Hero (1987), Mr. Vampire Saga 4 (1988), and many more...
Joey Wong heads up the cast as Wong Fung Yee, the beautiful daughter of the triad boss who ends up behind bars – himself played by actor Foo Wang Tat, seen in films such as Casino Raiders (1989), A Better Tomorrow 3 (1989), Killer's Romance (1990), Godfather's Daughter Mafia Blues (1991), Love Among The Triad (1993), and Never Say Regret (1990). Having made her feature film debut in the mid-90s, Wong had already starred in over 30 films before starring in An Eye For An Eye, gaining a huge fan base after starring in films such as A Chinese Ghost Story (1987), The Legend Of Wisely (1987), Diary Of A Big Man (1988), My Heart Is That Eternal Rose (1989), Reincarnation Of Golden Lotus (1989), God Of Gamblers (1989) and others. Throughout 1990, Joey would star in no-less than 11 features with An Eye For An Eye being one of the first. While she delivers a decent performance (in a role she has played a number of times throughout her career), Joey Wong is over-shadowed by that of her male co-stars although still holds her own as one of the very few female stars of the show. In fact, the little known Angela Fong Hiu Hung – who can also be seen in films like Inspector Pink Dragon (1991), Handsome Siblings (1992), and On Parole 1 & 2 (1993) – is the only other actress who springs to mind, starring here as the unfortunate girlfriend of hot-headed cop Chung.
Playing Chung is the handsome and always entertaining Max Mok, another busy actor who starred in a crazy 10 productions that year and had already been entertaining film fans for a good seven years already in titles such as The Lady Assassin (1983), Holy Flame Of The Martial World (1983), Magic Crystal (1986), Last Eunuch In China (1987), The Dragon Family (1988), Pedicab Driver (1989), Seven Warriors (1989) and so much more. I've always been a huge fan of Mok's and his performance here in An Eye For An Eye just confirms it! Painfully hiding his true love for Wong, Chung suffers an emotional blow from all sides as he tries to keep his friends safe, repress his feelings, and watch those around him fall. While he delivers a few laughs along the way, Max flexes his dramatic chops for the most part throughout the film and gets to partake in an exciting nightclub shoot-out when he goes after the villainous Ho. This is one of my favourite scenes of the film, offering a beautifully shot and highly stylised action piece that eventually turns into a chase scene, resulting in an incredible stunt that leaves Chung paralysed. It's pretty damn impressive! Completing the trio alongside Wong and Chung, is Detective Lui – boyfriend of the former and partner of the latter. Lui is played by the equally busy (at the time) Wilson Lam; a man who doesn't excite me at all and has often confused me as to why so many directors/producers have cast him as their leading man. Prior to this, Lam had just made his feature film debut only two years earlier in Wong Jing's How To Pick Girls Up! (1988) before first starring alongside Joey Wong in Law Or Justice? (1988) and again in Reincarnation Of Golden Lotus (1989). That same year he would share the screen with Max Mok in the brilliant Path Of Glory (1989) which was followed by Whampoa Blues and The Fortune Code before this in 1990. The same year would see the trio star together again in Norman Law's intense Family Honor – another fantastic piece worth checking out and a great companion piece to An Eye For An Eye. While I find no appeal in Wilson Lam at all, it's only fair to say that he does a good job in his role as the cop who has to arrest his girlfriends father. Obviously, this puts a strain on their relationship which is only made worse by the love triangle of the three friends, and constant abuse by the evil and twisted Ho Sai Cheong – played with glee by the prolific Lung Fong; probably better known to many as Jimmy Lee.
Starting off in the industry as a bit player and extra in the early 1970s in films such as The Bloody Fists (1972), Black Panther (1973), Gold Snatchers (1973), and The Shaolin Kids (1975) among many more, Fong soon found himself in bigger roles towards the latter half of the decade as well as being drafted to help choreograph the fight action on classics such as The Hot, The Cool, & The Vicious (1976), Scorching Sun, Fierce Winds, Wild Fire (1977), Phantom Kung Fu (1978), Shaolin Invincible Sticks (1978), and Shaolin Red Master (1979) to name but a few. But even with impressive roles in the aforementioned titles as well as films such as the brilliant Big Boss Of Shanghai (1979) and The Rebellious Reign (1980), Lung Fong just wasn't the leading man studios had hoped for – although he did have something! After disappearing from the film scene for a while (and possibly working in television), Fong soon came back with a vengeance as a regular villain of modern Hong Kong action movies; often leaving as big an impression in films such as Casino Raiders (1989), God Of Gamblers (1989) and God Of Gamblers 3: Back To Shanghai (1991), The Fortune Code (1990), Dragon In Jail (1990), Lee Rock (1991), and Moon Lee titles such as Secret Police (1991), Kickboxer's Tears (1992), Angel's Project (1993), and Angel Force (1991) alongside Wilson Lam once again. Of course, his role here in An Eye For An Eye is one such highlight that sees him deliver a character you just love to hate while proving to be the perfect protagonist. All are backed by a fantastic supporting cast including the great John Ching, who would go onto share the screen with Lung Fong in many of the aforementioned titles from the early 90s as well as films like Tricky Brains (1991), Best Of The Best (1992), Pom Pom & Hot Hot (1992), Burning Paradise (1994), The Saint Of Gamblers (1995) and many more. The little seen Angela Fong plays Mok's unfortunate girlfriend Audrey, while popular character actor (who has shared the screen many times with his co-stars) Ricky Yi appears as one of Joey Wong's enforcers. The prolific Leung Gam San delivers another turn as a triad boss, with the popular Melvin Wong appears in an guest role as a police chief. The recognisable Lo Hung stars as another high-ranking triad member, alongside Chris Yeung Wan King, and Yu Man Bing, with Lam Kai Wing, Jameson Lam, Wan Seung Lam, Jack Wong, and So Hon Sang also appearing.
Initially cut by Hong Kong censors due to it's very real reveals of triad actions, hand-signals, gang rituals, and violence, An Eye For An Eye has enough strength to challenge titles of a similar theme from acclaimed directors such as Johnnie To and Wong Jing. Beautifully shot by cinematographer Abdul M. Rumjahn; the man behind the lens of Hong Kong classics such as Aces Go Places 2 (1983), Rich & Famous (1987), Mr. Vampire Saga 4 (1988), First Shot (1993) and more – the film offers some stunningly brutal and fantastic action scenes courtesy of the brilliant Benz Kong; bit player in many classics from Knockabout (1979) to The Great Magician (2012), director of the flawed by fun Twins Mission (2007), and action-choreographer of many greats such as Magnificent Warriors (1987), Black Cat (1991), Best Of The Best (1992), (Ninja) Vampire Buster (1989), Fox Hunter (1995), Seven Warriors (1989), An Eternal Combat (1991), and most recently on the fantastic Stuntman (2024) alongside his long-time friend and collaborator, Stephen Tung Wai. He is aided here by the talented Poon Kin Kwan, a bit-player and choreographer who has worked with him for many years on most of the same projects. Together, they produce a range of intense action moments from stylised nightclub shoot-outs to pain-inducing stunts, and violent gang fights to tight one-on-one brawls, accompanied by some 'edge of your seat' moments that will have you grabbing for the rewind button. Written by Chan Kiu Ying who was behind the scripts for classics such as Cops & Robbers (1979), The Postman Strike Back (1982), The Bund (1983), In The Line Of Duty 3 (1988), and Gen-Y Cops (2000) among others, the film is a hugely enjoyable (if not dark and harrowing) piece that comes from a period of Hong Kong cinema that we'll never get back. And while it may not be wholly perfect or seem fresh by today's standards among the catalogue of triad-related sub-genre of Hong Kong cinema, An Eye For An Eye is still well worth checking out and will hopefully find a brand new audience with it's recent re-release on Blu-ray almost 35 years later!
Overall: Beautifully made and brutally entertaining, An Eye For An Eye is a triad thriller that deserves to be seen and won't disappoint!
Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray Extras: Audio Commentary with Kenny B & Phil Gillon, Interviews with O Sing Pui & Benz Kong, Cat.3 Video Essay by Sam Deighan
Watch my unboxing video for this Vinegar Syndrome release HERE
