Reviews (4)

Far above "The Untouchables"
Unfairly accused of being a shameless HK "The Untouchables" clone, First Shot rises far above the almost comic book feel of its supposed source material.

The story of the fight against widespread corruption in the Hong Kong police hierarchy in the 1970's, this film stars the estimable Ti Lung as "Tamerlane", an unflinchingly honest cop. Tamerlane is shot in the neck by one of his own men for his refusal to overlook the corruption of his colleagues.

After his release from the hospital, he is approached by Maggie Chung's Annie Ma who has been deputized to pursue and prosecute corrupt cops on the HK police force.

Assembling a group of fellow "incorruptibles"--including, paradoxically the very officer that shot him (Simon Yam's Sam Mok)--repentant and reformed Tamerlane and his secret squad go after "Faucet" (Waise Lee Chi Hung)--the triad boss who is the financial source of the widespread bribery, murder and mayhem.

The cast is universally excellent--Ti Lung is a strong, dignified--yet haunted Tamerlane. Maggie Chung is a strong female presence, the focal point who holds the group together when tragedy and treachery threaten its existence. Simon Yam has never been more appealing as the tormented but ultimately heroic Sam and Waise Lee Chi Hung plays the evil Faucet to chilling perfection.

For a compelling look into an anti-corruption squad with a story every bit as compelling as Ness's crew--forgo the big screen "Untouchables" and give "First Shot" a watch. You won't be disappointed.

Funny , action-packed HK flick
Ti Lung does it again with a terrific performance as a cop who
is wronged by corruption. The actor who protrayed the main crime boss is the kind of guy you love to hate (I think he was Sheng from A Better Tomorrow Part 1).
Anyway , on to the technical aspect. The subtitling is built into the picture and is a so-so legible quality. Half the time , some of subtitles are outside the viewable area , so I just zoomed out using my dvd remote. The subtitles are also replete with spelling and grammatical errors.
The sound quality is okay (though mono). It's better than some fake 5.1 mixes i've seen. The picture quality shows its age but is workable. For people who can speak Mandarin , there is a Mandarin dub.
The extras are rather lousy. They have a trailer for First Shot and some other flick. There's also some bios but nothing too fancy.
Bottom line , definetly worth a rental if you like HK action movies or Ti Lung. The main theme alone is worth a listen.

Solid, if unspectacular HK cop movie
Not electrifying by any means, but definitely a solid picture of police corruption in HK circa 1970. Ti Lung can do no wrong, literally, in his starring role. Simon Yam is fine as the bad-turned-good savior. Waise Lee comes through as the evil kingpin, and Ti Lung's 2 sidekicks turn in admirable roles, each with some flavor (one a Bruce Lee devotee, the other a vain gunman.) Yes, it is a very familiar Untouchables story, but told well, and with no plot holes or ridiculous moments. Well, one scene in a gay bar really pushes the boundaries of good taste, but it's over quick enough, and acts as decent comic relief. Though the film is formulaic, it will hold your attention throughout. There is some gunplay, some martial arts combat, and plenty of fast-paced action throughout. It keeps up a brisk pace, with some wry comedic bits (some of which are actually funny) and ends how it begins: predictably solid. Not an A, but a solid B of an HK cop movie.

Unoriginal, but action filled
Like much modern Hong Kong cinema, this film is wildly unoriginal, but has just enough action to keep you watching to the end. An accomplished cast makes the ride easier, but you have to wonder why so much talent appears in a film that cannot be described as anything more than mediocre. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The world as it was before Honk Kong went back to China
This action film is packed with unforeseen developments. Police work is a real adventure, even if the cops succeed in Taiwan without causing too much damage around them. It is rather clean for the passers-by, the on-lookers. What's more it is more a comedy than a drama : it is full of humor and fun. Those actors are able to bleed and smile at the same time. That's reassuring, even if unrealistic, about cops. We would like to see such cops more often... The subject of the film is banal. Drug traffickers are using all means they can to transfer their cocain and their dollars, even diplomatic immunity of course. They also bring together South America, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. That was before 1999. I guess the Chinese have already cleaned up the plate in Hong Kong a little bit. But this vision of Asians being the strongest and most powerful drug dealers in the world is in a way funny. This maffia is not very clean, but neither are the North American or European maffias. But, well, you cannot always entertain and educate at the same time. It's fun though to think that in twenty years China will be the first economic power in the world. Will we still dare to show such films or will they have died a long time before ?

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Worth the purchase price for the "sleeping disciple" scenes.
This is the only Stephen Chow (spelled Chiau on the box) film that I've ever seen, but I am determined to see more of them. Not only is he a physically talented comedic actor and convincing as a kung fu master, he is also quite pleasing to look at. The plot is silly, but it works well with the comic delivery. I particularly enjoyed the scenes where Chow's character uses "sleeping disciple" kung fu, in which he seemingly yawns and stretches while hitting his opponent in the face, etc. Well-done special effects, just this side of cheesy, show the sorcery and magical kung fu moves.

Since Amazon hasn't given you a summary, here's mine: Young ne'er-do-well Su Chan (Chow) falls in love with a courtesan. In order to win her hand in marriage, he signs up for an imperial examination to become a military officer. For reasons partially attributable to Tin Li Jiao, an evil Taoist sorcerer and martial artist, and partially attributable to Su Chan's own laziness and his father's dishonesty, Su Chan winds up a beggar. He uses kung fu to rescue his ladylove and the Emperor when they fall into the clutches of Tin Li Jiao.

The version I have (didn't buy it from Amazon, but looks like the same one) is in Cantonese and Mandarin with subtitles in traditional characters and English. The subtitle translations are just bad enough to be amusing, but not so bad as to be confusing. Because the English subtitles are plain white, they are hard to read against a light background. Fortunately, the plot of the film isn't so subtle that reading every subtitle is critical.

I thought the film was entertaining and funny. Not a masterpiece, perhaps, but better than many action/comedy films out there. I'll definitely watch it again.

one of the funniest h/k movie!
get this dvd if u like hong kong movies and stephen chow,it's really funny.i cant stop laughing when i watched it.even if it is not as good as hail the judge(stephen chow's best) ... Read more