Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily Entertainment GuideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsCannes Film FestivalStar WarsAsian Pacific American Heritage MonthSummer Watch GuideSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

The Eight Immortals Restaurant: The Untold Story

Original title: Bat sin fan dim: Yan yuk cha siu bau
  • 1993
  • Unrated
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
5K
YOUR RATING
The Eight Immortals Restaurant: The Untold Story (1993)
ComedyCrimeHorrorThriller

Macau cops begin to suspect a man running a pork buns restaurant of murder, after tracing the origin of a case full of chopped up human remains that washed ashore, which leads them to him.Macau cops begin to suspect a man running a pork buns restaurant of murder, after tracing the origin of a case full of chopped up human remains that washed ashore, which leads them to him.Macau cops begin to suspect a man running a pork buns restaurant of murder, after tracing the origin of a case full of chopped up human remains that washed ashore, which leads them to him.

  • Directors
    • Danny Lee
    • Herman Yau
  • Writers
    • Wing-Kin Lau
    • Kam-Fai Law
  • Stars
    • Anthony Chau-Sang Wong
    • Danny Lee
    • Emily Kwan
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.8/10
    5K
    YOUR RATING
    • Directors
      • Danny Lee
      • Herman Yau
    • Writers
      • Wing-Kin Lau
      • Kam-Fai Law
    • Stars
      • Anthony Chau-Sang Wong
      • Danny Lee
      • Emily Kwan
    • 70User reviews
    • 43Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win total

    Photos83

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 77
    View Poster

    Top cast26

    Edit
    Anthony Chau-Sang Wong
    Anthony Chau-Sang Wong
    • Wong Chi Hang
    Danny Lee
    Danny Lee
    • Officer Lee
    Emily Kwan
    Emily Kwan
    • Bo
    Julie Lee
    • Pearl
    Shing Fui-On
    Shing Fui-On
    • Cheng Poon
    • (as Fui-On Shing)
    Eric Kei
    Eric Kei
    • Robert
    King-Kong Lam
    King-Kong Lam
    • King Kong
    Parkman Wong
    Parkman Wong
    • Bull
    James Chim-Si Ha
    James Chim-Si Ha
    • Wong's Mahjong Buddy
    • (as James Jim-Si Ha)
    Siu-Ming Lau
    Siu-Ming Lau
    • Cheng Lam
    Tin-Dok Wong
    • Hair Dresser
    Chor-Fai Kwong
    Chor-Fai Kwong
    • Macau Policeman
    Siu-Hung Leung
    Siu-Hung Leung
    • Doctor
    Si-Man Hui
    Si-Man Hui
    • Cheng Lam's Wife
    Wai-Nam So
    Wai-Nam So
    • Policeman
    Dave Ching Lam
    • Policeman at Hospital
    Pak Fei
    • Customs Officer Chan
    Chun Hung Cheung
    • Inmate
    • Directors
      • Danny Lee
      • Herman Yau
    • Writers
      • Wing-Kin Lau
      • Kam-Fai Law
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews70

    6.84.9K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    6Ramuna

    Traumatic movie experience

    'The Untold Story aka Human Meat Roast Pork Buns'

    I first had a chance to watch this movie when I was a kid about 13 years of age in my junior high, believe it or not this movie was widely spoken at that time in the place where I live (Medan,Indonesia), of course considering the graphical content and nudity of the movie, I only have the chance to watch it together with several buddies while nobody's attending home. What happened was...one of my mate dispersed halfway the movie, as for me, after watching it, I feel terribly remorse within because it haunted me day after day for long enough than I could remember, especially that Wong figure make me really sick and guts out.

    Last Sunday, 24th August 2008, after 15 year I have another chance to watch this movie again. It's much different this time, kinda nostalgic and I found the scenes more bearable compare to watching it in the older day, but still I prepare extra guts and it still portrays a very horrifying and disturbing scenes even compared to modern Hollywood gory/slasher flick like 'Saw' and 'Hostel' alike. So it was fair to say that one should never claim to have watched 'the most' gory or terrifying film in modern cinema before ever taste a chunk of this Hong Kong classic cinematic horror.

    I wouldn't go so far to say that this movie is great, but I can point out few points that distinguish 'The Untold Story' from movie alike:

    1.The acting of the lead (Anthony Wong) is unbelievable brilliant, as the bun man , only by the evil look of his eyes you could tell how vicious and mean he is. And he really deserved to be the only lead actor from CAT III Hong Kong movie to ever win the best actor category in Hong Kong Film Award history.

    2. The dark and merciless scenes contain of extreme graphic violence subject to children, the sadistic method of killing and diabolical suicide attempt, police and cell brutality, etc, all those scenes are somehow cross the line, thank God there's some crunchy humor poured onto the film. Well, some silly humor wouldn't do any harm in such a dark material.

    3. The originality of the movie's theme itself has become like a trend-setter at Hong Kong cat III film industry at that time, many of which trailed the very same theme despite of the controversy, and the movie itself later spawned its sequel of The Untold Story II and III respectively, of which none has the quality equal or even close to the original.

    4. This is one of the movie despite explaining everything in the title and poster still make you feel like watching it, under the account of curiosity.

    As a matter of fact I wouldn't ever recommend such a disturbing movie to anyone, but for those who like to test the limit of tolerance, well this one is surely worth a notice. Strongly not recommended for age below 17, based on what I experienced...
    Tavison

    One of the most disturbing movies I've seen

    My wife and I saw this movie recently, and I am still creeped out by it. To put this in perspective, we watch movies like Henry Portrait of a serial killer, and Thief, Cook, Wife and Her Lover all the time. None of those movies had the same impact on me as this one. I don't know if it is knowing this was a true story, or the intensity of the killers acting, but this movie draws you into the story and makes you watch as a helpless bystander.

    I think the best thing the movie does is show how homicidal maniacs have Jeckle/Hide personalities. The movie never paints the killer with the same broad strokes it unfortunately paints the rest of the cast. There are scenes where I found myself feeling sorry for him, times where he looked like people I know, and times where I could almost like him. The police aren't painted as the heros in the white hats either. Most of them are less likeable than the killer. The whole movie has the feeling like your quiet uncle Joey just murdered your whole family right in front of you.

    We did watch the un-cut not rated version, so I don't know what the theatrical release is like.
    chaos-rampant

    Nasty CATIII shocker is all that and a bowlful of bowels

    Consensus view: ugly, bleak, grueling slasher film about sick restaurant owner in Macau mincing his victims into pork buns, given really strange comedic pizazz by a group of daft incompetent cops on the trail. Smudge of social commentary near the end, when the cops cannot properly solve the case by gathering clues they turn into torturers themselves.

    Digging a little deeper, I believe it works the way it does because of the particular way we are situated inside the story: we only spend time with the killer as he maims and mutilates. Our primary focus is on the incompetent investigation, itself a source of ironic amusement exactly because we are two steps ahead; we know exactly what is going on and have to wait for them as they play catch-up. Every dimwitted joke is someone's limbs hacked off down the road.

    Our killer is messy and an amateur, the law enforcers perhaps even more. The police captain is always cavorting with hookers. The result is a chaotic universe without moral value or clear demarcations. How better to exemplify a corrupt, absent law than by increasingly depraved violence recast as the darkest of comedies?
    8The_Void

    Just as brutal and nasty as you've heard!

    This is my first 'Cat III' flick, so while I'm not qualified to compare this to other genre entries; I've heard this is the pick of the bunch, and I wouldn't be surprised to find that is indeed the case. I guess this is the sort of film that people mean when they talk about completely sick Asian cinema, as The Untold Story doesn't exactly hold back and while the plotting is largely uneven and sometimes doesn't flow well; there's buckets of blood on display, and the film always at least has that to fall back on. The film plays out something like a cross between a psycho killer flick and a police drama, as we follow Wong Chi Hang; a man who brutally murdered a family after a card game, and took control of the Eight Immortals Restaurant. Various members of the restaurant staff are going missing, and it's no coincidence that the restaurant happens to serve 'pork bao'. The story really starts when some kids discover a hand on the beach, and following an investigation into the hand's former owner; it comes to light that it once belonged to the mother of the restaurant family...

    The film starts off slowly, and I can't say that I was enjoying it too much by the end of the first half. However, things really pick up in the second half and by the end we are treated to what is surely one of the most brutal murder sequences ever committed to screen! There's a distinct element of pitch black humour to the film, and this is shown through the bumbling police officers and even some of the murder scenes themselves. The way that the film is shot is fairly stylish and certain sequences; such as the one that sees the main character welding a huge butcher's knife, are very memorable. The Untold Story does a good job of drawing the audience into the central character's story, and this is why the second half of the film works better than the first. The title of the film comes from the fact that our murderer tries his best not to divulge the story surrounding the murders to the police, and the torturous sequences that see the fuzz trying to get it out of him add nicely to the brutal atmosphere of the film. Overall, this is a great slice of nasty cinema. Since it's one of the better known 'Cat III' films, I guess all the experienced viewers will already have seen it; but if you've never seen a Cat III film, this looks like as good a place as any to start!
    8jluis1984

    Simply brutal!

    In the early 80s, popular actor Danny Lee (famous for his work in action films) became director and producer of his own films, and by the end of the decade was already a major player in Hong Kong's movie industry. This position allowed him an enormous amount of power during the 90s boom of Hong Kong cinema, and made him the discoverer of famous stars (like Stephen Chow) and producer of a wide array of interesting films by upcoming filmmakers. Among those, Herman Yau's "Baat sin Faan Dim Ji Yan Yuk Cha Siu Baau", or "The Untold Story", is one of the most popular in the Western world, and one of the better known movies of the CAT III rating that was introduced by the Hong Kong government during those years. Suppousedly based on a true crime story, "The Untold Story" is a very powerful film that truly lives to its reputation as one of the most brutal films of Hong Kong cinema.

    The plot starts with the discovery of a plastic bag containing the severed hands of a person in a lonely Macao beach. The young and unexperienced police team assigned to the case is clueless as they had never faced something so horrible, but lead by the suave officer Lee (Danny Lee), they find some clues pointing to Wong Chi Hang (Anthony Wong), the owner of the popular Eight Immortals Restaurant. As the cops find out that Wong just bought the place to his former boss, they try to track down the previous owner, but every attempt to find him or his family prove futile. The discovery of Wong's dark past prompts his arrest, but he still refuses to admit having committed the crime. Officer Lee decides to take severe measures, but not even he will be prepared to hear Wong's Untold Story.

    Written by Law Kam Fai (author of another famous CAT III film, "Dr. Lamb"), the movie develops as a police procedural movie, detailing the work of the cops to figure out the responsible of the crime; however, two extremely different elements set "The Untold Story" apart from similar stories: the dark and extremely brutal portrayal of the psycho killer, and the odd addition of offbeat comedy thrown in to balance the grittier aspects of the movie. While this strange mixture of genres may sound unappealing (and honestly at first sight looks unappealing too), it surprisingly works within the movie, and gives good balance to the overall darkness of the story. Apropriately, in the end it is the horror element the one that dominates the film in a terrific brutal finale that by now is definitely a classic of 90s CAT III movies.

    Famed for being one of the most shocking Asian horror movies, "The Untold Story" is surprisingly not as gory as one would expect with that reputation; however, this is not saying that the film doesn't live to the hype, as it is definitely a shocking experience although for a very different reason. Director Herman Yau cleverly chooses to portray the grotesque details of the crime in a relatively subtle, unseen way; but the way he executes the scenes allow for a far more powerful effect as plays with the imagination making the violence portrayed frighteningly real despite not being too graphic. The raw and gritty style Yau uses for his film (mainly for budgetary reasons) only enhance the realism of the movie, and together with Wong's brilliant performance make a movie very hard to forget.

    Definitely one of the elements that really make the difference between "The Untold Story" and similar exploitation movies is the top notch performance of Anthony Wong as the enigmatic Wong Chi Hang. He captures so well the traits of this unbalanced psychotic character that one can't help but believe that the man on screen is truly a demented person. Danny Lee as the Officer in charge of the case offers the balance between the sadistic darkness of Wong and the at times silly comedy of the police team. Lee's smooth and witty character contrasts with the clumsiness and naiveté of the young cops, portrayed effectively although somewhat average by equally young actors. The exception is Emily Kwan, who plays Bo, the only female in the team and therefore the one who has to prove that she is as capable as the guys to do the police work.

    "The Untold Story" is often hard to watch, but it's definitely never boring, and while crude, the portrait of sadistic violence it makes of the crime is captivating in a way that few horror movies are. While this is definitely one of the best CAT III movies of its time, it's not without flaws, as the budgetary constrains really took its toll in the movie. Anyways, what most viewers have criticized about "The Untold Story" is the odd mixture of comedy in the movie, as it seems to add an unnecessary source of silliness to an otherwise brutal movie. Personally, I think that, while not exactly subtle, the comedy do adds to the "charm" of the film, and helps to break the tension in a very dark movie. It may not seem appropriate at first sight, but it's not really a terrible flaw as some may have pointed out.

    In the realms of the horror genre, Herman Yau's "Baat sin Faan Dim Ji Yan Yuk Cha Siu Baau", is now a classic of Hong Kong cinema, and essential viewing for those interested in the infamous exploitation movies rated as CAT III. It's not a movie for everyone, but if you have an interest for gritty tales of serial killers, "The Untold Story" is a must-see. 8/10

    More like this

    Ebola Syndrome
    6.5
    Ebola Syndrome
    The Untold Story 2
    5.7
    The Untold Story 2
    Taxi Hunter
    6.6
    Taxi Hunter
    Dr. Lamb
    5.9
    Dr. Lamb
    Red to Kill
    6.1
    Red to Kill
    Run and Kill
    6.6
    Run and Kill
    The Untold Story III
    5.1
    The Untold Story III
    Man Behind the Sun
    6.1
    Man Behind the Sun
    Dream Home
    6.6
    Dream Home
    The Untold Story
    5.9
    The Untold Story
    A Chinese Torture Chamber Story
    5.9
    A Chinese Torture Chamber Story
    Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky
    7.0
    Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      It is based roughly on a true case which happened in Macau.
    • Goofs
      During the family massacre scene, one of the children is decapitated, but the "head" is clearly fake. First when it drops down from the table it looks a lot bigger and doesn't have colored eyes (they have the same skin-coloring effect). And secondly when we see the whole room, the head on the floor looks almost pale-white. It's really white actually, and that's weird because the family was "slightly dark" skinned.
    • Quotes

      [after realizing that Wong used human flesh to make the pork buns]

      Officer Lee: I'm glad I didn't have any of those.

    • Alternate versions
      Tai Seng English market video contains footage removed by Hong Kong censors.
    • Connections
      Featured in Neon Grindhouse: Hong Kong

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ18

    • How long is The Eight Immortals Restaurant: The Untold Story?Powered by Alexa
    • Is this movie based on true story?
    • What are the differences between the HK VHS and the Japanese LD?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • May 13, 1993 (Hong Kong)
    • Country of origin
      • Hong Kong
    • Languages
      • English
      • Cantonese
    • Also known as
      • The Untold Story
    • Filming locations
      • Hong Kong, China
    • Production companies
      • Golden Harvest Company
      • Heroes United Films Ltd.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 36 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    The Eight Immortals Restaurant: The Untold Story (1993)
    Top Gap
    By what name was The Eight Immortals Restaurant: The Untold Story (1993) officially released in India in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb app
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb app
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb app
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.