Matthew D
Brutal violence alongside lovely ladies and dreamy synth music makes for one hell of a sequel!
Chinese directors Arthur Wong Ngok-Tai and Brandy Yuen Jan-Yeung's Hong Kong martial arts crime thriller In the Line of Duty III (1988) is so exciting and stylized. The machine gun fire and exhilarating martial arts beside huge explosions thrills to no end. Their direction has all the classic hallmarks of 80's cinema with relatable characters, brutal violence, blue and pink neon lighting that's to die for, atmospheric smoke and fog, mesmerizing synth music, slick editing, sweaty sex scenes, and gorgeous ladies who can really fight here. It's a fantastic sequel to Michelle Yeoh's iconic Yes, Madam! and Royal Warriors. Producers Stephen Shin and Dickson Poon really pulled out all the stops for these set pieces.
Taiwanese actress Cynthia Khan is so cute and expressive as heroine Yeung Lai-Ching. Her young policewoman is brave, persistent, cunning, funny, and cool with outstanding martial arts prowess. Her kicks, high speed pursuits, high jumps, and versatile style make for an engaging action heroine. I have to say all the action choreography for Cynthia Khan's crazy martial arts sequences is very impressive. Japanese actor Hiroshi Fujioka is compelling as the vengeful detective Hiroshi Fujioka seeking the killers of his partners. He's very serious and interesting when he shows up.
Japanese actress Michiko Nishiwaki is breathtaking as the violent and forlorn lady crook Michiko Nishiwaki. I found her gorgeous and alluring, but really fearsome. She's sympathetic, but also coldhearted. Hong Kong actor Sai-Kit Yung is vicious and intense as the violent thief Nakamura Genji. Richard Ng is a riot as Neddy the Ninja. Eric Tsang is fun as Neddy's goofy friend. Hong Kong actress Sandra Ng is super pretty and playful as Khan's fellow policewoman. Hong Kong actor Paul Chun is hilarious as the Head Police Inspector Cameron Chuen desperately trying to protect his niece in the force, that's actually Cynthia Khan's Yeung Lai-Ching.
Writers Chan Kiu-Ying, Kim Yip Kwong-Kim, and Law Tai-Man craft a touching narrative of a grieving cop and a new recruit teaming up with their Serious Crimes Police Task Force to catch ruthless jewel thieves, who use machine guns on everyone in sight. Stunt performers Yuen Cheung-Yan, Simon Yuen Yat-Choh, Tony Leung Siu-Hung, Brandy Yuen Jan-Yeung, and Chris Lee Kin-Sang pull off amazing kung fu combat and wild chases. In the Line of Duty III has really expressive cinematography with dazzling action set pieces, sultry sex scenes, hazy jewelry fashion shots, and swift camera panning shots. I love the Hong Kong coastline in the 80s.
Composer Philip Chan Fei-Lit delivers beautiful 80's synth pop creating a heavy atmosphere with a sense of romance to his melodies. I liked hearing the traditional Chinese scales used for the main 80's theme song. I loved the sharp haircuts and colorful outfits. They're a lot of fun. It's a brisk 84 minutes of action, romance, and comedy.
In short, In the Line of Duty III improves the craftsmanship of this remarkable series.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
08/25/23
Full Review
camille l
Si le deuxième opus jouait le côté tag team flic japonais à la Dirty Harry / fliquette experte en arts martiaux plutôt légèrement, In The Line of Duty III y va à fond les ballons, avec un sosie japonais de Columbo qui collabore avec Cynthia Khan (qui remplace ici Michelle Yeoh). Nous sommes ici dans le débile le plus profond, avec clairement aucune envie d'avoir une vraie intrigue (on y parle de révolutionnaires japonais, de leucémie, de vengeance...) mais plutôt un assemblages de combats entre notre duo de héros et un couple de tueurs japonais qui flingue à tour de bras, civils comme flics. In the Line of Duty III est concis, très rythmé et doté de combats d'un vice et d'une brutalité folle, entre la grâce des coups de pieds sautés de Cynthia Khan et la bestialité presque effrayante de Nishiwaki Michiko, future femme fatale très utilisée à HK dans les années 90. En résumé, In the Line of Duty III est un excellent film d'action.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
The movie that gave 80's Hong Kong action heroine Cynthia Khan her debut. A violent Japanese couple are responsible for the death of a policeman in Tokyo. His partner vows revenge and tracks them down to Hong Kong where mayhem ensues on the streets. A rookie female cop is assigned to help the Japanese officer to capture the deadly pair. The action which is typical of the HK action genre is fast, bloody, and brutal. Cynthia Khan and Michicko Nishiwaki are superb and, in addition to being very easy on the eyes, display some great kicks and punches in their fight scenes. The plot is textbook stuff focusing mainly on the 80's favourite revenge storyline, which only acts to give the cast an excuse to kill and chase each other. Many of the fight sequences are powerful and realistic, and there is a good balance between cinematic choreography and outright simple bloodshed. By the end it's clear that anyone could die at any moment: something you'll rarely see in a Western movie (outside the horror genre, at least). A superb movie that no HK action fan should miss.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/20/23
Full Review
Audience Member
The movie that gave 80's Hong Kong action heroine Cynthia Khan her debut. A violent Japanese couple are responsible for the death of a policeman in Tokyo. His partner vows revenge and tracks them down to Hong Kong where mayhem ensues on the streets. A rookie female cop is assigned to help the Japanese officer to capture the deadly pair. The action which is typical of the HK action genre is fast, bloody, and brutal. Cynthia Khan and Michicko Nishiwaki are superb and, in addition to being very easy on the eyes, display some great kicks and punches in their fight scenes. The plot is textbook stuff focusing mainly on the 80â(TM)s favourite revenge storyline, which only acts to give the cast an excuse to kill and chase each other. Many of the fight sequences are powerful and realistic, and there is a good balance between cinematic choreography and outright simple bloodshed. By the end it's clear that anyone could die at any moment: something you'll rarely see in a Western movie (outside the horror genre, at least). A superb movie that no HK action fan should miss.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/19/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Easily the weakest entry in the series. It's missing the star power of Michelle Yeoh of the first movies, and missing Donnie Yen and Woo Ping Yuen's action choreography from the fourth entry. It's just a standard cops vs terrorists plot, with a lot of bombs. Entertaining, but nothing special.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/05/23
Full Review
Audience Member
This entire series of movies is so bad its good. The fight scenes are outstanding and I laughed my face off when a short little asian dude takes on a big, buff, black guy on a rooftop battle at the end of the film and *spoiler* wins.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/18/23
Full Review
Read all reviews
>
