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Starring
:
Donnie
Yen
Rosamund
Kwan
David
Ng
Robin
Shou
Cynthia
Khan
Michael
Woods
John
Salvitti
Lo
Lieh
Action
:
Yuen
Clan
Donnie
Yen
Producer
:
Stephen
Shin
Director
:
Yuen
Woo Ping
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TIGER
CAGE 2 (1990)
A.K.A.
- Tiger Cage II
Reviewed
by Tony Ryan
Any
sequel to a HK film throughout the history of the industry,
have generally been hugely rushed, inferior copies of the
original, made for a quick cash-in. While the original was no
great cinematic masterpiece, it was an action fans dream with
powerful fight scenes and good performances all round. This
pseudo-sequel, while not a true follow up to part 1, makes a
refreshing change and actually exceeds the original where it
really matters. Namely with breathtaking, bloody and stylised
fight sequences.
As
can be seen, I have given this movie 5 stars. That is not to
say it incorporates the cinematography of 'Crouching
Tiger, Hidden Dragon' or the emotional content of 'Seven
Samurai', instead it delivers to its target audience what they
want in a way that has not been seen since. As the film goes
on, we are treated to numerous fist-to-fist set pieces, each
more powerful, well choreographed and impressive than the
last. Donnie Yen really did strike gold in the late 80's when
he met Michael Woods, as the two have given us some of the
best ever one on one fights, the likes of which we are
unlikely to witness again.
The
plot, as it is exists, is a fairly generic drugs caper, much
like any other. What stands it apart from the rest is the fact
that the director, a certain Yuen Woo Ping, does not get
caught up in a real dramatic exercise, instead moving along at
breakneck speed to impress us with what we paid money for.
Donnie Yen is never better than when working with the Yuen
Clan and this is another fine example of what makes him
possibly the greatest screen fighter of his generation.
Rosamund Kwan does little except run around after Donnie,
Cynthia Khan reprises her role from 'In
The Line Of Duty 4' but is not on-screen for too long,
while the villains are perfectly cast as Michael Woods, the
wild John Salvitti and 'Mortal
Kombat's Robin Shou all give their evil best, and deliver
in each of their brutal encounters showcasing various styles
including wrestling, swordplay and kickboxing.
All
said and done, this really isn't a truly great cinematic
'film', but one which moves at a frenetic, action-packed pace
while fittingly bringing an end to the fabulous 80's style
action and is a golden reminder of what we struggle to find in
any film, HK or otherwise, today.
Rating:
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