On May Day in 2024, a Hong Kong-made action film called "The Siege of the Kowloon Walled City" has landed in theaters across the country, not only achieving outstanding box office results, but also winning a high reputation among audiences and film critics. The film is directed by Zheng Baorui, and gathers a group of powerful actors such as Louis Koo, Sammo Hung , Ren Xianqi , Lin Feng , etc., bringing us a double feast of vision and emotion.
Bloody comics
The story of the film is set in the Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong in the 80s of the last century, which is a chaotic area known as the "three regardless", where gangsters are entrenched and dangers are everywhere. But it is precisely this environment that has given birth to countless heroic and fearless heroes. The protagonist in the film, Chen Luojun (played by Lin Feng), was originally a hot-blooded young man, but unfortunately he was framed and chased by the big boss of the legion. After being seriously injured, he was rescued by Wei Shui and fled into the Kowloon Walled City, where he began his legendary journey.
The residents of the Kowloon Walled City, although they seem to be ordinary people on the surface, are actually hidden masters. Among them, a group of people led by Tornado (played by Louis Koo) are not only strong in martial arts, but also have firm beliefs and deep brotherhood. After Chen Luojun joined, they united to fight the big boss to the death and swore to defend their homeland.
The long-lost Hong Kong film style
The action scenes in the film can be called classics, fists to the flesh, and the tension and excitement of cold weapons clashes make people's blood boil. Especially those climactic fight scenes, not only show the superb acting skills of the actors, but also make the audience feel as if they are in that era full of danger and passion. Louis Koo and Lin Feng's rivalry is even more sparkling, and the brotherhood and life-and-death struggle between the two are touching.
In addition to the action scenes, the film also has a profound depiction of emotions.
From the beginning, Chen Luojun evaded the pursuit of homeless and down-and-out households, and plunged headlong into the Kowloon Walled City. At first, he was just trying to avoid being chased from the outside and hoping to find a bite to eat, but as he lived in the walled city for more time, Chen Luojun established a deep bond with the residents of the Kowloon Walled City, and the mutual help and sacrifice between them was touching.
Especially when Chen Luojun had to break with his former friend Di in order to defend his homeland, the inner struggle and pain were empathetic. The female characters in the film also have their own characteristics, they are brave, wise, or gentle, which adds a lot of color to the film. But in general, I still adhere to a point of view, if this movie is not a romance movie, there is really no need to increase the ink on this aspect without catering to the audience, not only will it not be icing on the cake, but it is easy to add to it.
Distant memories
In the movie "Kowloon Walled City", I once again saw the long-lost style of Hong Kong films. The so-called Hong Kong film style in my understanding is intense and real action scenes, intense and real emotional collisions. In recent years, Hong Kong films have gradually distanced themselves from this style in order to cater to the mainland market.
In the overall pursuit of traffic, there is not much creative space left for the style of old Hong Kong films. Speaking of which, the last one made my eyes shine, and at first glance, I knew that it was a Hong Kong movie or the movie "Wushuang" co-starring Chow Yun-fat and Aaron Kwok.
In Hong Kong, there is also a shortage of film actors, and it now looks even worse than in the mainland. In this movie, we are still more pleased to see that Lin Feng and others seem to be able to take over the inheritance. This feeling was also felt in the Hong Kong movie "Dragon Tiger Gate" back then, but it's a pity that many years have passed since this moment, and Donnie Yen can't even beat it.
The film also does a good job in narrative techniques and rhythm control. The plot is progressive, the logic is clear, and the relationship and background of the main characters are explained through just the right editing techniques and narrative methods. Of course, the overall narrative of this film is still relatively old-fashioned, but the film incorporates elements of Hong Kong's history and culture, allowing the audience to feel the unique charm of Hong Kong while enjoying the action scenes.
"The Siege of the Kowloon Walled City" is a Hong Kong-made action movie worth watching. It was not only a success at the box office, but also won high praise from audiences and critics in word-of-mouth. This film allows us to see the rekindled fire of Hong Kong action films, and it also makes us full of expectations for the future of Hong Kong films.