City War (Sing Si Jin Jaang (Yi Daam Hung Sun), 1988)
This is a rather run-of-the-mill cop drama, with all the classic elements (one reckless cop, one by-the-books cop, bad guys out for revenge, the cops eventually going beyond the law to get justice, yadda yadda yadda). It's not particularly stylish or cool, either, but for slash fans you get Chow Yun Fat and Ti Lung together. They're not quite as combustible here as they were in "A Better Tomorrow", but they still share some fabulous moments. Their performances and chemistry make the film watchable.
This time the guys are fighting on the good side of the law as cops. Ti Lung is the hot-headed Ken, and Chow Yun Fat is the cool mediator Dick, Ken's friend even if their mindsets are very different. Ken finally gets pushed over the edge when a drug dealer he imprisoned years ago is released and murder's Ken's former partner. Dick tries to keep him in line, until Ken's family is targeted as well and he joins his friend in an all-out attempt to seek justice.
Fairly standard stuff, elevated by the solid performances of the two leads and I'm always happy to watch them working together in any film.
SUMMARY:
Overall rating: B- Not a great film, but definitely worth watching for CYF and Ti Lung fans.
Droolworthiness: A- I've seen both guys look better, but still,
Slashiness: A- Classic adversaries-turned-friends dynamics with plenty of subtext to spare.
Action: A The John Woo bullet ballet may be a cliche by now, but he still does it best.
