Dragons Forever
Dragons Forever (Chinese: 飛龍猛將) is a 1988 Hong Kong action comedy film directed by Sammo Hung and Corey Yuen. It stars Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao, with Deannie Yip, Pauline Yeung, and Crystal Kwok. It is the last film in which Hung, Chan and Biao all appeared in together, as Chan subsequently focused on his solo film career.[3]
| Dragons Forever | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Traditional | 飛龍猛將 |
| Simplified | 飞龙猛将 |
| Mandarin | Fēi Lóng Měng Jiāng |
| Cantonese | Fei1 Lung4 Maang2 Zeong1 |
| Directed by | Sammo Hung Corey Yuen[1] |
| Produced by | Leonard Ho[2] |
| Screenplay by | Roy Szeto[2] |
| Story by | Gordon Chan Leung Yiu-ming[1] |
| Starring | Jackie Chan Sammo Hung Yuen Biao Deannie Yip Pauline Yeung Crystal Kwok |
| Music by | James Wong Jim[2] |
| Cinematography | Jimmy Leung Joseph Cheung[1] |
| Edited by | Joseph Chiang Peter Cheung[1] |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Golden Harvest |
Release date |
|
Running time | 94 minutes |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Cantonese |
Plot
A fishery is seeking court action against a local chemical factory for polluting the water. The mysterious chemical company hires lawyer Jackie Lung (Jackie Chan) to find information that will discredit the fishery. He employs his arms dealer friend, Wong (Sammo Hung) to woo the fishery owner, Miss Yip (Deannie Yip), to try to convince her to settle out of court. Lung also brings in goofy inventor and professional criminal, Tung (Yuen Biao), to bug her apartment. Unfortunately, Wong and Tung are unaware of each other's roles and soon come into confrontation, whilst Lung tries to maintain the peace.
Wong falls for Miss Yip, whilst Lung woos her cousin, Miss Wen (Pauline Yeung), an environmental scientist who is going to testify on Miss Yip's behalf. The three men inadvertently discover that the chemical company is just a facade for a narcotics empire, ran by Hua Hsien-Wu (Yuen Wah). They soon come up against Hua's thugs, and ultimately infiltrate the factory for a showdown with Hua himself and his henchman - martial arts master (Benny Urquidez).
Versions
There are three distinct versions of the film: the Hong Kong theatrical release (94 minutes), the international theatrical release (94 minutes), and the Japanese theatrical release (98 minutes). Two scenes with Timothy Tung Te-Biao (Yuen Biao) visiting a psychiatrist (played by Lucky Stars veteran, Stanley Fung) were cut from the domestic Hong Kong print of the film, but remain intact in the international version and the Japanese version. These scenes appeared as extras on the Hong Kong Legends DVD of the film, entitled Couch Potato and Mr Kinetic.[4] In the latter, the psychiatrist was in the process of being robbed. So that Tung would not realise a robbery was taking place, one of the robbers, posing as the psychiatrist, gave him advice over the intercom - to "kill the witnesses", which explains why Tung attacks Jackie Lung (Chan) and Ling (Pauline Yeung) in a later scene, wearing a mask and armed with a knife.
Several scenes were slightly trimmed for the international version. The only scene completely omitted shows how Tung Te-Biao leads Jackie and Ling into the chemical factory, having informed them about the danger Wong Fei-Hung (Sammo Hung) was in. They locate a hidden door, leading to where Wong is held captive and the drugs are refined. Ling distracts the guard, allowing Jackie the opportunity to attack. This scene is intact in the Hong Kong and Japanese versions. The Japanese version is the only one that contains all scenes in their complete form, except that it replaces the original end credits crawl of the police arrival at the factory with a different end credits crawl featuring outtakes from the film.
In 2020 a limited edition Blu-ray containing fully restored transfers of all three versions was released by 88 Films.
Cast
- Jackie Chan as Jackie Lung[2]
- Sammo Hung as Wong Fei-hung[2]
- Yuen Biao as Tung Tak-hiao[2]
- Pauline Yeung as Wen Mei-ling[2]
- Deannie Yip as Miss Yip[2]
- Roy Chiao as Judge Lo Chung-wai[2]
- Crystal Kwok as Jackie's Assistant[2]
- Phillip Ko as Unemployed Thug[2]
- Dick Wei as Thug[2]
- Stanley Fung as Tak's Psychiatrist[2]
- Shum Wai as Lawyer[2]
- Benny Urquidez as Thug[2]
- Lau Kar-wing as Thug[2]
- Fung Hark-On as Thug[2]
- Chung Fat as Thug[2]
- Wu Fung as Man, the Attorney[2]
- Lam Wai as Thug[2]
- Billy Chow as Thug[2]
- Tai Po as Head Waiter[2]
- Shing Fui-On as Mao Shih-cheng[2]
- Lo Lieh as Gangster[2]
- Chen Jing as Gun Buyer[2]
- Lee Kar-ting as Thug[2]
- Peter Chan as Thug[2]
Reception
On the Hong Kong Legends DVD release of Dragons Forever, Hong Kong cinema expert Bey Logan offers his opinion on why the film underperformed both in the domestic and Japanese markets. The primary reason cited is that the actors played roles against type. Jackie Chan plays a slick lawyer who chases women, in contrast to the happy-go-lucky everyman characters he usually plays.[5][6] Similarly, Yuen Biao plays an eccentric and possibly mentally disturbed character, rather than the underdog character fans were used to. For Sammo Hung, rather than the timid character that has been described in earlier films, he instead plays like a rascal. Logan explains that in general, the cinema going public in Hong Kong are not as open to such departures of role as, perhaps, Western audiences would be.[5]
Additional reasons cited include the occasional use of coarse language in the film, and the scenes of narcotics production, particularly Hung's character being injected with drugs against his will. The fact that Chan's character has a relationship with a woman may also have had an effect, particularly in the Japanese market, as many female viewers could not accept that their idol was not single. On learning that Chan was in a relationship in real life, one Japanese fan had committed suicide, and another poisoned herself in the offices of Golden Harvest.[5]
Awards
- 1989 Hong Kong Film Awards
- Nomination: Best Action Choreography
See also
- List of Hong Kong films
- Jackie Chan filmography
References
- "Dragons Forever: Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- Charles, John (2000). The Hong Kong Filmography, 1977-1997: A Reference Guide to 1,100 Films Produced by British Hong Kong Studios. United States: McFarland & Company. p. 82. ISBN 978-0-7864-4323-9.
- Project A, Biography (DVD). Hong Kong Legends. 24 June 2002.
- "DVD Times". Dragons Forever. Retrieved 25 February 2008.
- Bey Logan (27 June 2005). Dragons Forever, commentary track (DVD). Hong Kong Legends.
- "The Spinning Image". Dragons Forever. Retrieved 25 February 2008.