Tiger On The Beat: The Whole Tiger Affair

KonCategoryIII

Tiger on the Beat ( Chinese : 老虎出更 ; lit. ' Tiger on Beat ' ) is a 1988 Hong Kong action comedy film directed by Lau Kar-leung . It was written and produced by Tsang Kwok-chi. The film stars Chow Yun-fat and Conan Lee as a buddy cop team who originally hate each other, but learn to overcome their differences in solving a case. On its release in 1988, it was described as a "surprise hit" at the Hong Kong box office. At the 8th Hong Kong Film Awards , the Liu Brothers were nominated for their work on Tiger on the Beat for Best Action choreography . A sequel which also featured Lee, Tiger on the Beat 2 , was released in 1990. Synopsis edit Lazy police veteran Francis Li and his eager rookie partner Michael Tso are assigned to investigate the murder of a heroin trafficker "Poison Snake" Ping who was known to be associated with crime boss Johnny Law. The duo interrogate bar girl Marydonna who is the sister of "Poison Snake" Ping, one of Law's associates. Marydonna eventually caves to the intense pressure and fingers Law. Though the criminal soon winds up in jail and Li gets his long overdue promotion, Law is all out for revenge. Cast edit Chow Yun-fat as Francis Li Nina Li Chi as Marydonna (credited as Li Chi) Conan Lee as Michael Tso Gordon Liu as Fai, the Hitman Philip Ko as Heroin dealer (credited as Ko Fai) Shing Fui-On as Dummy (credited as Shing Fui Ann) Ti Lung as Loong David Chiang as Police Superintendent (credited as John Keung) James Wong as Police Inspector Jim Pak Lydia Shum as department store staff (credited as Sun Tin Ha) Lau Kar-wing as Sour Puss Shirley Ng as Mimi, Francis' sister Norman Chui as Mr. Law (credited as Tsui Shui Keung) Chan Chi-shing as Shing Joe Bryan Baker as Boss Production edit The filmmakers originally wanted Brigitte Lin to play the role of Marydonna in the Tiger on the Beat , but Michael Mak and Shi Tian, the owners of Cinema City Enterprises , thought that Lin's HK$600,000 salary was too expensive. They offered half of the salary and cast Nina Li Chi . [ 2 ] Release and sequel edit Tiger on the Beat was released in Hong Kong on March 19, 1988. It grossed a total of HK$27,865,158. [ 1 ] Bey Logan in his book Hong Kong Action Cinema (1995) described it as a surprise hit in Hong Kong. [ 3 ] The film was released in the United States as Tiger on the Beat . [ 4 ] Tiger on the Beat 2 was the films sequel which does not follow the narrative or characters established in the original film. [ 5 ] Returning cast included Conan Lee while Chow-Yun fat passed on appearing in the film. [ 5 ] Bey Logan described it as an "outright flop." in the Hong Kong box office. [ 6 ] Reception edit At the 8th Hong Kong Film Awards in 1989, The Liu Clan were nominated for their work on Tiger on the Beat for Best Action choreography . The award was given to The Jackie Chan Stunt Team for Police Story 2 (1988). [ 7 ] In his book The Hong Kong Filmography , John Charles described the film as having "wild action and low humor", concluding that it was an "entertaining knock off of Lethal Weapon . [ 5 ] While Charles said Chow Yun-fat for giving "one of his most animated performances" in the film, a review in Sight & Sound wrote that Chow Yun-fat's screen persona would mature in other later films such as The Killer (1989) and Hard Boiled (1992). Tiger on the Beat 2 ( Chinese : 老虎出差2 ), also known as Tiger on Beat 2 , is a 1990 Hong Kong action comedy film directed by Lau Kar-leung . It is the sequel to the 1988 film Tiger on the Beat . Plot edit Hong Kong Police Captain Lam Yick-lin's sister's son Buffalo travels from Los Angeles to Hong Kong and Lam is tasked by his sister with finding her American-born Chinese son a suitable Chinese wife. Lam and Buffalo respond to Sweet Dream's report of a murder on a boat owned by the cocaine dealer Fai, but cannot find any body, which has been thrown into the sea. Sweet Dream, now in possession of the dead man's valuable ring used as identification in drug deals, seeks protection from Buffalo by inviting him to stay in her apartment with her and her roommate Meng. A killer enters the apartment and tries to kill Sweet Dream but, after a struggle, he falls from a balcony and dies. Meng asks for help from two men outside, but they are Fai's men so they kill her. Buffalo did not see any of this occur, so he does not believe Sweet Dream's story and takes her to stay with his uncle Captain Lam. Fai's men attempt to kill her again, but Lam and Buffalo see this and help her. Sweet Dream eventually swallows the ring, so Fai's men are forced to bring her along to a warehouse for their planned cocaine deal, but Buffalo and Lam fight off her attackers and hold them for arrest by the arriving police. Lam is suddenly shot by one of the dealers, but survives thanks to a bulletproof vest given to him by Buffalo. Cast edit Danny Lee as Captain Lam Yick-lin Conan Lee as Buffalo Ellen Chan as Sweet Dream Roy Cheung as Fai's Man John Cheung Chim Bing Hei Norman Chu as Chui Maria Cordero a