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Richard James Havis

To be successful in the 1990s, Hong Kong film directors had to balance their creative aspirations with the demands of their producers and audience.
Gordon Chan Kar-seung proved highly adept at this balancing act, working across all genres to make superior commercial hits.
Chan directed Stephen Chow Sing-chi in a trio of slapstick mo lei tau comedies, Jet Li Lianjie in the martial arts film Fist of Legend, and also made two top-notch police films – the drama-focused Final Option, and its action-packed sequel First Option.
Among his best films is Beast Cops, an unusual 1998 drama which focused on a trio of police officers in Mong Kok who were so close to their triad adversaries they became indistinguishable from them.
I wanted to bring some interesting people together, and then give them problems
Gordon Chan
It was a critical success, and won five prizes – including best film, best director and best screenplay – at the 1999 Hong Kong Film Awards.
Anthony Wong Chau-sang, who was named best actor for his role in the film as a cop who is so relaxed while patrolling that when a robbery occurs, he thinks it is a film shoot.


This does not go down well with his new boss, played by Michael Wong Man-tak.
But then he, too, loses himself in the world of crime, bedding a triad boss’ girlfriend and hanging out at sleazy clubs. So which side of the law are the cops really on?
The following interview with Chan was conducted by this writer just before Beast Cops’ release in 1998.
With Brigitte Lin in gender-neutral role, this Tsui Hark comedy’s aged well
Beast Cops is much more of a character-driven film than the action-packed First Option.
Yes, although the producers still asked me to include a certain amount of action. We do not have enough money to shoot a lot of action scenes these days – the market for Hong Kong films has deteriorated alarmingly, so I wanted to make a film that was a little cheaper.
I hoped this would allow me to focus more on the characters than the action. I have been wanting – begging! – to shoot this kind of film for some time, but everyone wanted me to make a big-budget film.

Working with Anthony Wong – who broke off his drama studies in Britain to take up the role – Michael Wong and Sam Lee [Chan-sam] must have been a lot of fun.
Yes, we had a lot of fun on the set, talking about guy stuff and men’s problems. We improvised a lot. We were very relaxed, and I think this shows up in the film.
You see a bunch of guys really enjoying themselves. That was the idea. I wanted to bring some interesting people together, and then give them problems.
The idea was to push the violence so far that viewers would feel disgusted by it
Gordon Chan
The film has a very local feel.
It is full of Hong Kong characters. I have tried to give the audience something very familiar. They will understand the characters’ problems and feel for them – and hopefully enjoy watching them sort their problems out.
How does working with these stars compare to working with Jackie Chan (in Thunderbolt) and Jet Li (in Fist of Legend)?
Well, with Jackie you have to compromise. He is so charismatic, you cannot really avoid doing that. I compromised a lot – sometimes I even left the set and let him get on with it. I was not happy about that, but I knew that Jackie was doing the best for the movie.
Jet Li trusted me a lot on Fist of Legend. The shoot was relatively short, so he had to do less fighting. He appreciated that.

You have directed some “nonsense” comedies with Stephen Chow, but the humour in Beast Cops is more situational.
The fun is in seeing how everyone faces their problems and takes care of each other. Instead of writing gags and jokes, I tried to go a bit deeper. The clash of attitudes and ideologies is what makes it funny. If you put people with very different attitudes together, you generate humour.
There is humour, but the core of the film is very dark. There is some nasty triad violence on the streets of Mong Kok, for instance.
The violence in the film is meant to make people realise that they are actually looking at something very dark. The action scenes happen very fast, and that makes them realistic. This is how I saw it happening in the real world, when I did my research. Real violence starts and finishes quickly.

One night, in a club, I saw a couple of guys get beaten up – I almost missed it, as it was so quick. There is no set-up for violence in real life, like you see in movies.
The blood-drenched finale, directed by your co-director Dante Lam Chiu-yin, is not realistic like the rest of the film. Why the difference?
When we got to the ending, I had to make a difficult decision. If I did the action finale in a quick and realistic way, the producers would have been disappointed. They would have complained that it was bad for business. So I decided to do something different, but still give them some more action.
The idea was to push the violence so far that viewers would feel disgusted by it. It is actually a statement against violence.

Some of the triads are reduced to cowering in fear underneath wicker baskets.
I wanted to make them look scared. You should not glorify violence. It should never look like it is fun.
You are known for your meticulous research. Did you research triad life for Beast Cops?
It was a challenge for me to write about triads. It is not really my thing. When I started my research, I quickly discovered that real triads were different to the ones you see in the movies. I started to wonder about them. How do they operate? What do they do at night?
One of the clubs I did my research in was actually used as a location in the film. The triads I saw all sat at different tables, like in the film. They all stared at each other, trying to show that they were the biggest bosses in the room.

Wasn’t it risky to do your research in places like that?
Well, once I sat at a table that was usually used by a gang without knowing it. When the gang turned up, they recognised me, and did not know what to do. They decided not to beat me up.
Instead they sat down and started telling me stories! Some of these were probably untrue – they were great stories about how they beat other guys up. But I still learned a lot.
Anthony Wong’s cop character is quite sleazy – he is almost a gangster himself.
He might act like a triad, but he always comes down on the side of the law in the end. He is neither completely black nor completely white. He is quite a realistic person.

The film was shot in Mong Kok, which has a lot of triad activity. Was that difficult?
It was not difficult – it was actually quite exciting. We drew a lot of local onlookers, and I noticed they were having a good time. That convinced me that I was making the right movie. I got a lot of inspiration from the onlookers. It is a film about them – a film for them.
In this regular feature series on the best of Hong Kong cinema, we examine the legacy of classic films, re-evaluate the careers of its greatest stars, and revisit some of the lesser-known aspects of the beloved industry.
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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

A change from Jackie Chan and Jet Li – Beast Cops’ Gordon Chan on how directing the Hong Kong gangs vs police film was not like his previous work

A still from Beast Cops. Photo: Handout

(From left) Sam Lee, Anthony Wong and Michael Wong in a still from Beast Cops, a Mong Kok-set gangs vs police action drama directed by Gordon Chan.

Best actress Sandra Ng Kwan-yu (left) and best actor Anthony Wong Chau-sang with their awards at the 18th annual Hong Kong Film Awards in 1999. Ng starred in Portland Street Blues and Wong in Beast Cops. Photo: SCMP

Jet Li in a still from Fist of Legend, the 1994 film directed by Gordon Chan.

Michael Wong (front) in a still from Beast Cops.

Directors Gordon Chan (left) and Dante Lam, pictured in 2006. Photo: SCMP

(From left) Anthony Wong, Kathy Chow and Michael Wong in a still from Beast Cops.

Anthony Wong in a still from Beast Cops.

Likened to Hollywood hit Love Story, this film beat Jackie Chan, Jet Li at the Hong Kong box office in 1993

Anita Yuen (left) and Lau Ching-wan in a still from C’est La Vie, Mon Cheri.

Anita Yuen (left) and Lau Ching-wan in a still from C’est la Vie, Mon Cheri. It beat films starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li to become a box-office hit in 1993. Photo: courtesy of LCSD 

Film director Derek Yee Tung-sing giving a thank-you speech after being awarded the best director prize at the 13th Hong Kong Film Awards for his film, “C’est La Vie, Mon Cheri”. Photo: SCMP

Lau Ching-wan (left) and Anita Yuen in a still from C’est La Vie, Mon Cheri.

Winners at the 13th Hong Kong Film Awards pose for a group picture. From left in the first row are best supporting actor Paul Chun Pui, best actor Anthony Wong Chau-sang, best actress Anita Yuen Wing-yee, best supporting actress Fung Bo-bo and best director Derek Yee Tung-shing. With the exception of Wong, all the others worked on C’est La Vie, Mon Cheri. Photo: SCMP

How Running Out of Time, starring Andy Lau and Lau Ching-wan, helped shape the ‘Johnnie To Cinematic Universe’

Andy Lau in a still from Johnnie To’s Running Out of Time (1999).

Andy Lau, pictured with Helena Law at the 19th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2000, where he was named best actor for his role in Running Out of Time. Photo: SCMP

A still from The Mission (1999).

Lau Ching-wan (left) and Andy Lau in a still from Running Out of Time (1999).

Johnnie To in his Kwun Tong office in 1999. Photo: SCMP

Ekin Cheng in a still from Running Out of Time 2.

Fallen Angels: Wong Kar-wai on casting Leon Lai, Michele Reis, Charlie Yeung and Karen Mok against type in 1995 film

Michele Reis and Takeshi Kaneshiro in a still from Wong Kar-wai’s Fallen Angels. Photo: Block 2 Pictures and Jet Tone Contents

Leon Lai in a still from Wong Kar-wai’s Fallen Angels, the 1995 film that was almost part of Chungking Express.

Wong Kar-wai in front of a promotional poster for Fallen Angels in 1995. Photo: SCMP

Takeshi Kaneshiro in a still from Fallen Angels.

Leon Lai (left) and Michele Reis in a still from Fallen Angels.

Michele Reis in a still from Fallen Angels.

(Clockwise from top left) Charlie Yeung, Michele Reis, Leon Lai and Takeshi Kaneshiro in a still from Fallen Angels.

Leon Lai plays a hitman in a still from Fallen Angels.

Peter Chan’s early films, featuring the two Tony Leungs and Maggie Cheung, were a breath of fresh air in Hong Kong

Anita Yuen (left) and Leslie Cheung in a still from He’s a Woman, She’s a Man (1994).

A promotional image of He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Father (1993), starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai (first from right) and Tony Leung Ka-fai (second from right). Peter Chan Ho-sun’s early films “have an international, almost placeless feel” despite their local issues and references.

Film director Peter Chan Ho-sun in 1995. Photo: SCMP

Eric Tsang (left) and Leslie Cheung in a still from He’s a Woman, She’s a Man, the 1994 film directed by Peter Chan.

Maggie Cheung in her own words, on Wong Kar-wai and In the Mood for Love, marrying Olivier Assayas and being an actress, not just a film star

Interview with award-winning actress Maggie Cheung Man-yuk at Grand Hyatt Hotel.

Maggie Cheung at an interview with the Post in 2001. Photo: SCMP.

Maggie Cheung (left) and Cherie Chung in a still from Prince Charming (1984).

Maggie Cheung (left) and Andy Lau in a still from As Tears Go By (1988).

Maggie Cheung in a still from the 1996 film Irma Vep.

Maggie Cheung (left) and Tony Leung in a still from In the Mood for Love (2000).

Lifestyle

Entertainment

Arts

Culture

Film & TV

Classic Hong Kong cinema

Classic Hong Kong cinema: John Woo on action, violence, influences, growing up in poverty and working in Hollywood in 1997 interview

Legendary Hong Kong action film director John Woo in 1990. Photo: SCMP

Famous Hong Kong action film director John Woo talks about his life and work in a 1997 interview. Photo: SCMP

John Travolta (top) and Nicolas Cage in a still from Face/Off.

John Woo during an interview in 1996. Photo: SCMP

Tony Leung (left) and Chow Yun-fat in a still from Hard Boiled (1991), directed by Woo.

Woo (left) shakes hands with actor Tom Cruise at a photo call in Tsim Sha Tsui in 2000.

Danny Lee (left) and Chow Yun-fat in a still from The Killer, a 1989 film directed by John Woo.

Woo in his office in 1993. Photo: SCMP

Woo on the set of Red Cliff, with actor Takeshi Kaneshiro.

How Ringo Lam crime thriller Full Alert mixed realistic action on Hong Kong streets with premonition of 1997 handover

Lau Ching-wan in a still from Full Alert.

Lau Ching-wan hunting down an escaped robber in the mean streets (Bird Street) of Mong Kok in Ringo Lam’s 1997 movie Full Alert.

Ringo Lam, pictured in 1995. Photo: SCMP

Lau Ching-wan (left) and Francis Ng in a still from Full Alert.

Amanda Lee (front) in a still from Full Alert. Photo: Eureka Entertainment

Francis Ng in a still from Full Alert.

Ringo Lam in an interview with the Post in 1997. Photo: SCMP

Hong Kong’s first art-house film, Cecille Tong Shu-shuen’s The Arch, starring Crazy Rich Asians’ Lisa Lu Yan, was ahead of its time

Lisa Lu in a still from Cecille Tong Shu-shuen’s The Arch (1970), considered to be Hong Kong’s first art-house film.

Cecille Tong and members of her staff at Joss, the Chinese restaurant she runs on Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles.

Lisa Lu, who starred in The Arch and The Empress Dowager, poses with her daughter Lucia Hwong in 1978. Photo: SCMP

Lisa Lu in a still from The Arch.

Promotional stills for Sup Sap Bup Dup (1975), directed by Tong.

A scene from the 1974 film China Behind, directed by Tong.

How Bruce Lee’s Way of the Dragon made Chuck Norris a star with their fight in Rome’s Colosseum, and what the film showed about Lee’s directing

Bruce Lee in a still from The Way of the Dragon (1972). Photo: Criterion Collection

Bruce Lee in a still from The Way of the Dragon (1972), which he starred in and directed. Photo: Criterion Collection

Bruce Lee as Ah Lung (front) and Nora Miao as Chen Ching Hua in a still from The Way of the Dragon. Photo: Golden Harvest

Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee in a still from The Way of the Dragon. Photo: LCSD

Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris in a still from The Way of the Dragon. Photo: Criterion Collection

Brigitte Lin’s first gender-neutral role, Sally Yeh’s butch Beijing Opera performer make Tsui Hark’s 1986 period comedy Peking Opera Blues highly enjoyable

Peking Opera Blues starring Brigitte Lin remains an enjoyable tale of espionage, Chinese opera and gender bending. Mark Cheng (left) and Brigitte Lin in a still from Peking Opera Blues. Photo: Peking Opera Blues

Playwright Raymond To Kwok-wai, pictured in 1994, was the screenwriter behind both Shanghai Blues and Peking Opera Blues. Photo: SCMP

Sally Yeh (left) in a still from Shanghai Blues, which was released two years before Peking Opera Blues. Photo: Hong Kong Film Archive

(From left) Brigitte Lin, Cherie Chung and Sally Yeh in a still from Peking Opera Blues. Photo: Peking Opera Blues

Tsui Hark, posing beside the poster for another of his movies, A Better Tomorrow III, in 1989. Photo: SCMP

Brigitte Lin (right) in a still from Peking Opera Blues. Photo: Peking Opera Blues

Romance meets ghost story in Hong Kong movie masterpiece Rouge, starring Anita Mui and Leslie Cheung and directed by Stanley Kwan

Anita Mui and Leslie Cheung in a still from Rouge.

Leslie Cheung and Anita in a still from Rouge (1988), directed by Stanley Kwan, in which she plays a 1930s courtesan who returns 50 years later as a ghost seeking her lover, played by Cheung.

Anita Mui (centre) alongside Alex Man (left) and Elaine Chu in a still from Rouge.

Stanley Kwan in an interview with the Post in 1988. Photo: SCMP.

Anita Mui and Leslie Cheung in Rouge.

Made in Hong Kong, Fruit Chan’s take on grim reality of 1997 for many in the city, and how the groundbreaking independent film was conceived

Sam Lee in a still from Made in Hong Kong. Photo: Focus Films Limited

Sam Lee in a still from Made in Hong Kong, Fruit Chan’s 1997 film about the grim reality of life for many people in Hong Kong. Photo: Golden Scene

(From left) Wenders Li, Sam Lee and Neiky Yim in a still from Made in Hong Kong.

Fruit Chan (centre), winner of Best Director and Best Picture at the 3rd Golden Bauhinia Awards Ceremony, alongside actors Neiky Yim (left) and Sam Lee, in 1998. Photo: SCMP

Sam Lee and Neiky Yim in a still from Made in Hong Kong. Photo: Golden Scene

Sam Lee and Neiky Yim in Made in Hong Kong. Photo: Nicetop Independent

Why Boat People, starring Andy Lau and George Lam, Ann Hui’s hit film about post-war Vietnam, displeased the Chinese and French authorities

Andy Lau as To Minh in a still from Boat People (1982). Ann Hui intended the film to tell a human story that explained why refugees were fleeing Vietnam. Hong Kong film-goers saw it as an allegory of the city’s future under Chinese rule. Photo: Bluebird Film Company

George Lam (left) and Season Ma in a still from Boat People. Photo: Bluebird Film Company

Ann Hui won the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 77th Venice Film Festival in 2020. Photo: Reuters

A still from Boat People showing Vietnamese military personnel in the streets.

Andy Lau as To Minh (left) and George Lam as Akutagawa in a still from Boat People.

Andy Lau as To Minh in a still from Boat People.

What they said about In the Mood For Love: director Wong Kar-wai and stars Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung on filming the romantic drama

Maggie Cheung in a still from In The Mood For Love. Photo: Jet Tone Films

Maggie Cheung Man-yuk and Tony Leung Chiu-wai in a still from In the Mood for Love, directed by Wong Kar-wai. Photo: Jet Tone Films

Tony Leung (left), Maggie Cheung and director Wong Kar-wai during the promotion for In the Mood For Love in Cannes, in 2000. Photo: AFP/Jack Guez

Maggie Cheung in a still from In the Mood For Love. Photo: Jet Tone Films

Tony Leung in a still from In The Mood For Love. Photo: Jet Tone Films

Tony Leung (left) and Zhang Ziyi in a still from 2046. Photo: Block 2 Pictures and Jet Tone Contents

Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung in a still from In the Mood For Love. Photo: Jet Tone Films

Jackie Chan focused on ‘real kung fu’ in Drunken Master II in reaction to shoddy ‘wire fu’ martial arts films of the early 90s

Jackie Chan in a still from Drunken Master II (1994). The movie focused heavily on real kung fu by real martial artists, as an antidote to the slew of shoddy ‘wire fu’ movies in the early 1990s.

Jackie Chan at an interview with the Post in 1994. Photo: SCMP

Jackie Chan in a still from Drunken Master (1978). Photo: Golden Harvest

Jackie Chan (left) on the set of Drunken Master II.

Jackie Chan (right) and Felix Wong in a still from Drunken Master II (1994).

Stephen Chow’s Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle were not the films that made the Hong Kong comedian famous – so which ones did?

Stephen Chow as Trinket in a still from the film Royal Tramp.

Stephen Chow (left) and Ng Man-tat in a still from Royal Tramp. Critics called Chow 
 “the finest Hong Kong comedian of his generation” and “Hong Kong’s hottest actor” of the 1990s.

Stephen Chow at an interview with the Post in 1989. Photo: SCMP

Stephen Chow at a film shoot in 1989. Photo: SCMP

Ng Man-tat (left) and Stephen Chow in a still from All for the Winner.

Stephen Chow (left) and Anita Yuen in a still from From Beijing with Love.

Gong Li (left) and Stephen Chow pose for photographers to promote The Flirting Scholar in 1993. Photo: SCMP

Stephen Chow in a still from Shaolin Soccer.

‘I am not Jackie Chan or Chow Yun-fat’: Hong Kong actor Lau Ching-wan on why Hollywood doesn’t need him, bad guy roles, and The Godfather

Lau Ching-wan during an interview with the Post in 1996. Photo: SCMP

Lau Ching-wan during an interview with the Post in 1996. He reveals why he measures his English comprehension against The Godfather and why Hollywood does not need him. Photo: SCMP.

Leon Lai (left) and Lau Ching-wan in a still from A Hero Never Dies (1998).

Lau Ching-wan in a still from Full Alert (1997).

Lau Ching-wan (left) and Anita Yuen in a still from C’est La Vie, Mon Cheri (1993).

Lau Ching-wan in a still from Too Many Ways to be Number One.

Lau Ching-wan (third from left) in a still from Big Bullet (1996), directed by Benny Chan.

Lau Ching-wan in a still from Lifeline (1997).

Lau Ching-wan and his wife, Amy Kwok, pose for photographers on the red carpet of the 32nd Hong Kong Film Awards at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui in 2013. Photo: SCMP

What they said about The Killer: director John Woo and stars Chow Yun-fat and Sally Yeh on shooting the classic Hong Kong action movie

Chow Yun-fat and Danny Lee in a still from The Killer (1989), directed by John Woo.

Chow Yun-fat (right) as the hitman Ah Jong and Danny Lee as Detective Li Ying in a still from The Killer (1989), directed by John Woo.

Chow Yun-fat plays hitman Ah Jong in a still from The Killer.

John Woo in his Hong Kong office, pictured in 1993. Photo: SCMP.

Sally Yeh as Jennie the nightclub singer and Danny Lee as Detective Li Ying in a still from The Killer.

Chow Yun-fat (left) and Danny Lee in a still from The Killer.

Chow Yun-fat in a still from The Killer.

Hong Kong horror cinema, from kung fu ghost movies to adults-only shockers like the human flesh eaters of The Untold Story

A still from Mr Vampire (1985). Produced by Sammo Hung, the film about reanimated corpses spawned a series of sequels and imitators. Photo: Golden Harvest

A still from Encounter of the Spooky Kind (1980). The Sammo Hung film was one of the first Cantonese-language productions to successfully blend comedy, kung fu and Chinese superstition. Photo: Fortune Star Media

A still from Mr Vampire (1985).

A still from The Enchanting Shadow (1960).

Simon Yam in a still from Dr Lamb (1992).

Martial arts movies, erotica, lavish period dramas – Hong Kong filmmakers Chor Yuen and Li Hanxiang could turn their hand to many genres

Ti Lung (centre) and Lo Lieh (right) in a still from The Magic Blade (1976), directed by Chor Yuen. Like another versatile Shaw Brothers director, Li Hanxiang, he started out making films in a different genre entirely. Photo: Celestial Pictures Limited

Film director Li Hanxiang (centre) pictured in 1972. Photo: SCMP

A still from The Love Eterne (1963). Careful shot composition was a hallmark of Li Hanxiang’s films.

Chor Yuen (left) speaking before receiving a lifetime achievement award at the 37th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2018. Photo: AP

A still from The Great Devotion (1960)

Lily Ho Li-li (left) and Betty Pei Ti in a still from Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan (1972)

Jackie Chan (left) and Chor Yuen in a still from Police Story (1985)

Hong Kong film star Chow Yun-fat on his dislike of violence, favourite actors, John Woo films, and why his wife is ‘amazing’

Chow Yun-fat, pictured in 2003. Photo: SCMP.

Chow Yun-fat, pictured at an interview with the Post in 2003, talks about being a romantic at heart and how he copes with fame. Photo: SCMP

Chow (right), standing next to actress Josephine Siu, speaks at the 1990 Hong Kong Film Awards presentation ceremony after being named best actor for his part in All About Ah-Long. Photo: SCMP

Chow in a still from The Killer (1989).

Chow (centre) with Cherie Chung in a still from An Autumn’s Tale (1987).

Chow, pictured during the shooting of Full Contact, in 1992. Photo: SCMP

Chow (right) and his wife, Jasmine Tan Hui-lian, pictured in 1988. Photo: SCMP

Chow at a press conference for Anna and The King in 1999. Photo: SCMP

Chow (left) and Jodie Foster in a still from Anna and the King (1999).

Chow (left) and Johnny Depp in a still from Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007).

How Hong Kong triad film Young and Dangerous and its sequels, directed by Infernal Affairs’ Andrew Lau, become pop-culture classics

(From left) Jordan Chan, Michael Tse, Ekin Cheng, Jason Chu and Jerry Lamb in a still from Young and Dangerous (1996).

Andrew Lau, director of the Young and Dangerous film series, pictured in 1999. Photo: SCMP

Ekin Cheng in a still from Young and Dangerous.

Manfred Wong, Hong Kong filmmaker and producer, pictured in 1996. Photo: SCMP