Old School HK gangster action - The Exiled

Johnny To continues to deliver, on a high level. The Exiled takes place in Macau, in 1998 before the handover to China (a topic similarly used as a backdrop in Isabella) where a triad leader, Boss Fay (Simon Yam), wants a hit on a hitman Wo (Nick Cheung). To his house comes two paris of hitmen -- one, led by Blaze (Anthony Wong), and the other led by Tai (Francis Ng). Observing this is a policeman who is hours away from retirement, and Wo's wife, Jin (Josie Ho). Tai wants to let Wo live, as he did him a favor some time ago, and there is a job that Wo has to finish. Blaze though has his orders, and there is a terrific gunfight in the apartment, though amazingly, no one is hurt. Even more amazingly, all of them proceed to clean up the place, repair the damaged doors and furniture, cook a meal and sit down together! As hitmen they all have a common background, and we see a sense of comraderie that separate themselves from the triad. They head on over to a contact man, in a hotel/brothel where he gives them possible work for assassinating various figures. But they want something local, quick and big. He has a job for them: stealing a gold shipment from the government. Meanwhile, Boss Fay is angry that Blaze has not yet killed Wo, and goes to confront them. A shootout ensues, and both Fay and Wo are injured. The others manage to escape and take Wo to a private doctor, who attends to his wound. But Boss Fay and his men come, seeking the same medical treatment! The others hide while the gang is in the same room, although it is not long before Wo is discovered. Another shootout ensues, and Wo is killed. They escape and tell Jin, who is distraught. As they leave she takes one of the guns and straps her child to her back, seeking vengeance. The others go out into the countryside to do the ambush on the armored truck; however, their car beaks down. They fall upon a bit of luck when after a long hike they come across a main road where the truck is driving down. They ambush the truck, and not wanting to hurt any one, split the money among everyone present. Returning back to the hotel, they produce the money. Boss Fay is there with his men, as is Jin. Realizing that they are trapped, they engage in one final shootout in which all are killed, except Jin and her child.

Exiled is another standout film by Johnny To. It recalls the glory years of the late 80's and early 90's gangster films, but with a much more mature and highly skilled sensibility, that all those years of directing have provided. The fight scenes recall John Woo with the slow motion balladry. The acting is cool and reserved, except for the Jin character. For those seeking HK action, this is a well worth pick up.

Mitchum and Takakura - The Yakuza

The Yakuza is a 70's classic. A hybrid of Eastern and Western genres, the hard boiled mystery and the yakuza film, director Sydney Pollock created a film that shows the similarities and differences between the cultures. Robert Mitchum and Ken Takakura star in the best roles of either man's careers as surviving ex-World War II soldiers from opposite side. Harry once saved the life of Ken's sister Eiko, for that he owes the American an obligation, one that tears him apart for twenty years, for he served on the losing side. Harry receives a call from an old war buddy, Tanner, who runs an import/export shipping business. Apparently he had been dealing with Japanese yakuza for gun running, and they thought he welched on their deal, as he had not supplied them with arms. So they went and kidnapped his daughter. Not wanting to deal with the police, Tanner wants Harry to go to Japan and recover his daughter, using some of his old connections. Harry goes, along with his Tanner's son who will provide backup, and they stay at a mutual friend's house. Before anything can start, Harry pays a call to Eiko, his old flame from when he was stationed in Japan. She was still running the bar that Harry had raised the money to start for her. In spite of the years, there is still a love for each other. Her daughter, now grown to a beautiful young woman, is reunited with him as well. Harry asks Eiko where her brother is, and she tells him that he is no longer in the gangster world, having withdrawn from it and is now a martial arts teacher in Kyoto. He goes there and meets Ken at his school. Harry calls in on the old obligation, and along with Tanner's son, they find out where the daughter is and rescue her. Unfortunately, they kill two men in the process, and the boss of that gang wants retribution. Ken goes into hiding. Harry, having done his job, says goodbye to Eiko and is about to leave the country, but realizes that he has left Ken in a tough position. He feels that he has an obligation to Ken to help him out. Meanwhile, the yakuza boss and Tanner have a meeting. The boss wants to know what happened to the money, and Tanner admits to stealing it and using it for his own personal interests. The funds were invested and wasted. As both sides still need each other to do business, the yakuza boss decides that he is willing to overlook the matter if only Tanner can do one thing: eliminate his friend Harry. Gangsters storm the house where Harry is staying, and Tanner's son and Eiko's daughter are killed. Ken and Harry flee. They find out that Tanner and the yakuza have made an arrangement, and they decide to take action. Harry finds Tanner at his foreign office branch and kills him and a bunch of his men. Ken, armed with a sword, along with Harry, invade the yakuza boss' den and proceed to wipe out the whole gang, in a long fierce fight scene. The men survive, debts paid, grudges dissolved, and they part with a new found friendship and respect for one another.

Mitchum enjoyed a resurgence in his career in the 70's. Films like The Long Goodbye and this one brought Mitchum back to the screen as an older, wiser, and more explosive hard boiled actor than in the 40's and 50's. Good scripts helped, and Paul Schraeder (who did the screenplay for Taxi Driver) wrote a fine tale of an older generation still struggling to survive their past. Pollock used a Japanese cast and crew to do the movie, with only a few American actors, and the result was a finely crafted, meditative work that delivered punches at all the right moments. The two major fight scenes -- one at the guest house, where the children of the main characters are killed, and the final battle at the yakuza house -- are excellent, with fast cuts and lots of movement. Ken Takakura was a major star in Japan, a la Clint Eastwood, and here you can see why -- he is Mitchum's equal in screen presence and acting, a tough, brooding, silent man who as the character Ken is still after 20 year past the war tormented by obligations that conflict with his values. Apparently there is a longer version that came out (though not on dvd), but really, this 114 minute edition is tight. I don't see how the 123 minute version could be better, but of course, in this day of restoration and completeness, there are a few who are disappointed in the release. I believe Pollock must have had some say in this version -- he gave the audio commentary. This may be one of those times where less is more -- there are a few films where I wish they left well enough alone. A great 70's film, one that finally is released on dvd. Highly recommended!