Tragic Fantasy: Tiger of Wanchai (1994)

Director: Steven Lau Kit Shing

Producer: Steven Lau Kit Shing

Cast: Simon Yam Tat-Wah, Lau Ching-Wan, Charine Chan Ka-Ling, Vincent Wan Yeung-Ming, Roy Cheung Yiu-Yeung, Mariane Chan Miu-Ying, Yvonne Yung Hung, Chik King-Man

Running Time: 105 min.

Plot: Simon Yam stars in this gritty gangster drama as a triad parking attendant whose only dream is to race and win the Macau Grand Prix. His ambition leads to trouble as he gains notoriety during illegal midnight races on the streets of Hong Kong.

MIGHTY PEKING MAN'S REVIEW: Steven Lau Kit Shing 's Tragic Fantasy: Tiger of Wanchai is nothing special. It's pretty much your average story of rags to riches in the "triad" world, only this time, it's based on a true story. Like many Hong Kong films of the early 90's, it's got that low-budget, rushed feel to it. Everything seemed to be done with one or two takes, not to mention a shit load of bad actors for crucial parts. The only one that seemed to give a damn about effort and quality was the film's star, Simon Yam - who gives a satisfactory performance. It was also nice to see Lau Ching-Wan in a role that he definitely wasn't born to play. The whole time he wears a ridiculous flipped-back baseball cap. His character can't fight, could barely shoot, and most of the time, he runs from the enemy instead of fighting - he was obviously thrown in for comic relief.

The film is filled with some detailed violence and gore (which explains it's Category III rating). Much of the action is overlapped by Hong Kong pop tunes which do nothing but give it a cheezy, music video touch. At one point, Simon Yam sings karaoke to his girlfriend then all of the sudden we're watching a fucking music video...a bad music video. And whats up with Roy Cheung's fruity hairstyle, it goes great with those sleeveless muscle shirts. Get a haircut boy!

MIGHTY PEKING MAN'S RATING: 5.5/10