Xiao sha xing (1970)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Cheh Chang

Writers:

Kang Chien Chiu (writer)
Kuang Ni (writer)

Release Date:

22 December 1970 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Musical | Romance | Thriller

Plot:

David Chiang plays Johnny, a reformed criminal turned pop headliner at a hip club in Hong Kong. His past isn't exactly common knowledge...

Cast

David Chiang	...	'Johnny' Chiang-yi
Ping Wang	...	Susan
Tina Fei Chin	...	Ho Man
Lung Ti	...	Chen Hsun
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Sing Chen	...	Feng Chin-yao
Hak On Fung
Shui-Fan Fung
Pei Chi Huang
Feng Ku	...	Da-Ge - 'Big Brother'
Wei Lieh Lan
Sau Kei Lee
Kang Liu	...	Dai Tou Yung - 'Jug Head'
Wai Lo
Yen-ching Ou	...	A-Man
Chia Wen Pao
Dean Shek	...	'Fairy' (as Shih Tien)
Chiang Wang
Chung Wang	...	'Razor Blade'
Chih-Ching Yang	...	Jeweler Tse Ping
Pao Chin Yeh
Woo-ping Yuen

Also Known As:

Siu sat sing (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
The Little Killer
The Singing Killer (Hong Kong: English title)

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Shaw Brothers

No comparison to Seijun Suzuki's Tokyo Drifter

The successful night club singer Johnny [ David Chiang ] is blackmailed by his former criminal friends into working with them again. They want rob a jewellery store and need him for disguise. Starting the robbery Johnny see's his lost love Lily [ Wang Ping ] working there, then fights against the gang and gets shot by the security. Now he's wanted by the police and his former colleagues....

Apart from 5 songs performed by David Chiang a completely "common" thriller, not a musical or pistol opera, as worried before. The background music also takes places at the very beginning or end of the movie, and is only held at concerts of Johnny, not during the movie, he didn't start singing in the middle of action. The OK mandopop songs written by Chang Cheh are rather funny also, not only because of the silly lyrics, but also the choreographed gig, the costumes of the dancers and especially the petrified David Chiang and the cameo of Ti Lung as guitarist and drummer.

The story begins well, Johnny [ his artist name is the "Narcissus" and hell, he looks like one ] gets a fictitious letter , leading him to the old accommodation , where the criminals try to get control over him. Their plan is well thought and the ways before the robbery - which is in the middle of movie - are quite suspenseful and clever. Then it's slowing down, not only because of Johnny's injuries. Speed is lacking, the big love story doesn't work, the played emotions are too played, they simply overegg the pudding.

In contrast to that the determination work of the police is boring, the audience knows the truth already. The chase of the gang is little boring also, because there really isn't any, except 2 thugs "visiting" once. Anyway the film is quite good, if there's speed, but there are simply too less moments of it. The armed robbery is adrenaline pumping, the later foot chase in the underground also, sporting some good action sequences. The showdown is also dealing with guns, next to few fight choreographies of Lau Kar Leung and Tang Chia, film is also mildly bloody.

I wouldn't recommend the movie, it's quite interesting the first half, then it gets worse and little boring. No comparison to Seijun Suzuki's TOKYO DRIFTER.