A Hero Never Dies
Director: Johnnie To
Year: 1998
Rating: 9.0
This is absolutely
one of the best Hong Kong films of the nineties. It swept me along like a
rip tide from the opening scene to the bullet-ridden finale. It is a triad
morality tale of loyalty, betrayal and revenge but as is usually the case
with a Milkyway production it twists around our expectations and turns them
upside down. Like corporate America or cold war enemies, the modern day triads
extend no loyalty to the workers and warriors who fought their battles, who
sacrificed their lives. Loyalty is a convenience - easily discarded when
circumstances have changed. People are expendable when they have outlived
their usefulness.
The film creates an incredible feeling
of nervous tension that permeates the air. There is always a constant sense
of foreboding and expectancy; of something dangerous, of something violent,
of something lethal ready to burst upon the screen. The narrative of the
film is dynamic and always driving forward - not a moment to relax - until
bang - the bloody shoot-out - but no - that is only the setup for the next
half of the film when it really kicks in. There are so many wonderfully shot
scenes that just felt like a perfect cinematic experience. The shoot-out
in the hotel is brilliantly staged, the duel of the wine glasses is filled
with underlying fatalism, the hospital assassination attempt- derived a bit
from the Godfather - but with a stunning difference, the finale - almost
comical and yet unbelievably heroic and powerful.
Lau Ching-wan and Leon Lai are both the
right hand men for their boss in rival triads. The two gangs have been fighting
over turf for nearly a year and both sides have been badly decimated. The
possibility of an old friendship between Lau and Lai is never revealed, but
there is clearly great respect between the two. At one point, Lau has an
open clean shot to kill Lai, but declines to take it. Face to face is the
only honorable way. Though there is respect between one another - loyalty
to their gang brothers and to their boss is paramount - and as Lau's girlfriend,
Fiona Leung, says to Lai's girl, Yo Yo Mung, "we can never be friends because
one day one of them will be killed by the other".
Lai plays his part sleek, cool, quiet and
efficient while Lau rides herd on the screen - dressed in a white 10-gallon
cowboy hat and cowboy boots. His performance is charismatic and brilliant
as he hits both the heroic and tragic notes perfectly. Finally Lau gets orders
to end it once and for all - kill the other boss. He tracks him down in Thailand
and in the hotel shoot-out both Lai and Lau are badly wounded. Afterwards
the bosses decide to work together and now view both Lai and Lau as an embarrassment
of the past and a reminder of their own weakness. So they become expendable
- left deserted and helpless by their brothers in Thailand. Only their girlfriends
stick by their side. Both Fiona and Yo Yo give searing performances as they
show themselves to be stronger and more honorable than anyone else. Other
tragic events lead Lai and Lau to come back to HK for justice and revenge.
Once again, I was simply mesmerized by
this film. It is terrific film making from the story to the acting, to the
wonderful soundtrack, to the direction by Johnnie To. If released properly,
this film could be an international hit and Lau Ching-wan should become an
international star in the same way that Belmondo did with Breathless. Why
isn't the foreign film circuit picking up films like this? I can't help but
believe that there is an inherent prejudice against HK films in certain film
circles. HK film is still viewed as low brow chop-socky films and nothing
more. It's time someone opened their eyes and their minds and started realizing
that some of the most innovative and interesting film making being done in
the film world today is coming out of HK.
