Rebellion (2009) @ 同門

At a glance:
Delayed HK release, from last year. If you take away lead pair Shawn Yue and Chapton To, the flick is pretty consistent example of a low-cost but effective Herman Yau piece, like his The First 7th Night earlier this year. Told like a one-night-only gangland epic, Shawn Yue plays fighting ace Po, the unwillin temporary triad boss of the five-gang strong East District. Chaos is the order of the day due to a hit on the big boss and Po must hold the fort until First Lady / Big Sister Cheong Wah (special appearance by TVB's Ada Choi) returns from abroad with further instructions. However, a guessin game takes place within the organisation and everyone from gang leaders to restaurant waitresses joins the chase to protect or destroy the person who did the hit. Chapman To's character, Blackie, wants an all-out war anyway but the cops want in on the game as well.
Bad news on the doorstep:
Only two complaints from me - one is the terribly simple climax and the other is the lazy movie poster. Still, if the money saved on that somehow goes into Yau's pocket, good on you.
Perennial wonderment:
Has Herman Yau gone soft? If anyone thinks his tame Laughing Gor: Turning Point is indeed a turnin point of some sort for a director who is best known for CAT III classics Ebola Virus and Untold Story, they might not be wrong. However, despite a CAT III ratin, Rebellion is actually a story-driven movie which landed the label not because of gore or sex but rather its government's stand on depiction of gangland affairs, if anythin.
Reminds me of:
The time some coppers camped outside my hotel in Causeway Bay because this drunk guy was havin a go at another drunk guy durin a weddin. Nope, Ekin Cheng didn't show up.
Watch out for:
This Jun Kung Shek Leung, who plays a particularly charismatic mob head named Brother Sand. All this actions and words seem totally improvised, as even a Canto-retard friend of mine can point out. Completely entertainin. Turns out he's Portuguese-Chinese and his birth name is Joventino Couto Remotigue Jr. Reminiscent of Anthony Wong as Tai Fei in the Young And Dangerous days, I guess.
Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?
Well they could've thrown in some Ada Choi skin, since Elanne Kwong is just too borin as the tag-along chick. Who doesn't want some of that Miss HK '91 skin, crowfeet eyes or not? Shawn Yue's turn is standard while Chapman To's scene-stealin prowess gets another showcase. All characters seem necessary enough. Solid three-star movie for me.

Edmond (2005)

Mena Suvari, the essential whore.
Always with directions to the closest ATM.

At a glance:
Somewhat a more twisted revisit of Michael Douglas in Falling Down (1993), this time its all about gettin laid and nobody does a less convincin job that the character actor William H. Macy (pic) in his role as a look-what-you-made-me-do Edmond Burke. Chronicled in the course of one long night, our fumblin anti-hero leaves his wife abruptly and goes downtown on a mission to wet his wick but the bizarre and surreal soon drives him to murder, although you don't really think it's anyone's fault. Seems like that's the message - an ordinary middle-class man carryin his white man burden to Trouble Town.

William H Macy talks money with Bai Ling.

Bad news on the doorstep:
It's just a little short of bein a thinkin man's horror movie. Meanin, it's for film students.
Reminds me of:
American Psycho (2000) and those Lynch movies. William H. Macy's bedroom scenes still bring back the horrors of havin caught a glimpse of his unsightly knob in The Cooler (2003). Not a pleasant experience.
Watch out for:
Mena Suvari (pic) as a whore, Bai Ling as a stripper and Julia Stiles as a waitress whom Edmond takes home.
Most memorable line:
William H. Macy goes "that's too much" every time he hears the price for a score. It's an amusin refrain because his character has principles, just like the protagonists in Herman Yau movies.
Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?
If I do get it, which I think I do, then it's gotta be ★★ stars because there's gotta be a neater and cleaner way to present this. If I don't get it, it's ★★★★ alright!

Taxi Hunter (1993) @ 的士判官

At a glance:
Decent CAT II Herman Yau exploitation flick about mild-mannered office guy (played by his favourite actor Anthony Wong, pic) whose pregnant wife dies due to a bastard taxi driver. He turns into a nutjob and goes all out to eliminate all shortchangin, overchargin, non-complyin taximen. Apparently inspired by a real taxi strike in Hong Kong.
Perennial wonderment:
How the beautiful (well maybe not so much pre-ops) Athena Chu and the Ambassador of Ugly Mr. Ng Man Tat can play father and daughter in a movie. Rank.
Reminds me of:
The highly effective Michael Douglas-starrer Falling Down, also about a troubled anti-hero who goes off the handle. Just look at the poster. Released in the same year even. Also, the other Herman Yau-Anthony Wong classic Ebola Syndrome, an exceedingly exploitative and enjoyable CAT III feature usin the same stressed-good-guy-goes-nuts formula.
Watch out for:
The pregnant wife freak accident scene. Gilababi.
Most memorable line:
You are also a good whore.
Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?The second layer to this story is how the deranged cabbie killer remains a nice guy in every other way thoughout the movie. Give Herman ★★★1/2 for such an entertainin watch despite it not bein a CAT III. Wotta man.