REVIEW: Once Upon a Time in Hong Kong (2021)
It's taken me two years to track down a copy of this film and watch it. But I wonder if it was worth the wait? Starring some of my favourite actors, this should be an easy win, right?
When the trailer for Wong Jing’s “Money Empire” was released in 2021, the Hong Kong movie fan scene was abuzz with excitement. After a year of limited to no releases thanks to COVID, we were finally starting to see the return of the big budget, big name blockbuster.
It got even more exciting when it was revealed this would be a follow up to Jing’s 2009 epic action thriller I Corrupt All Cops, a tale about the creation of the ICAC and it’s takedown of the corrupt forces within Hong Kong during the 70s.
But then something happened. Something that always happens in China. The movie was retitled, now given the generic moniker of Once Upon A Time in Hong Kong, which is about as original as calling a movie The Monkey King.
A stellar cast, a familiar storyline. But was it going to be any good, especially considering all the investment money was coming courtesy of the mainland?
Plot
The movie follows the creation of the ICAC (Independent Commission Against Corruption) and the hunting down of their first big target: Chui Lok, the head of the Hong Kong police force.
Lok, alongside Crippled Ho – the head of the four brothers criminal syndicate – controls the drug trade in Hong Kong, where massive bribes are paid to the police to look the other way.
Hank Chan and Nash Pak, the two men at the head of the ICAC, form a specialist team to go after all the corruption and bring down Hong Kong’s massive criminal organisation – it’s police force.
For my full thoughts on this movie, please check out the video review below and leave a comment with your thoughts as well:
Genre Action Crime
Director Wong Jing, Xu Yueming
Starring Louis Koo, Gordon Lam, Tony Leung, Francis Ng
Original Title 金錢帝國:追虎擒龍
Alternative Titles Money Empire, I Corrupt All Cops 2
Country of Origin China
Release Date April 29 2021