This is a film about the war between two gangs: The Green Dragons and the White Tigers. It is told through the view of the Green Dragons. Paul Wong (Harry Shum Jr.) is an intellectual businessman leader of the group, almost worshipped as a god. He brings in illegal's because ir is better to be a slave in America than a free man in China. Sonny (Justin Cong) is a member of the Green Dragons and our protagonist as he doesn't like the more violent aspects of the gang.
The film jumps from 1983 with a Reagan voice over on how wonderful immigrants are to 1989 when the view has changed. The Chinese gangs have branched out into a large crime syndicate and drugs from Hong Kong. Only Ray Liotta can stop them. The film was an interesting take on the American Dream and for better or worse creates turns into an illegal or undocumented scare film with the end commentary. The repeated voice over during the end parking garage scene was a poor selection and really didn't keep with the overall theme of the film unless Asian on Asian crime is okay, but heaven help you if you kill a white man was the main theme, which seemed more of a sidebar during the feature. In that regard the script needed tightening, considering that it was filled with truisms and decent lines.
Good Martin Scorsese soundtrack. Decent crime drama.
Parental Guide: F-bomb, brief scenes of sex, rape, and nudity.
The film jumps from 1983 with a Reagan voice over on how wonderful immigrants are to 1989 when the view has changed. The Chinese gangs have branched out into a large crime syndicate and drugs from Hong Kong. Only Ray Liotta can stop them. The film was an interesting take on the American Dream and for better or worse creates turns into an illegal or undocumented scare film with the end commentary. The repeated voice over during the end parking garage scene was a poor selection and really didn't keep with the overall theme of the film unless Asian on Asian crime is okay, but heaven help you if you kill a white man was the main theme, which seemed more of a sidebar during the feature. In that regard the script needed tightening, considering that it was filled with truisms and decent lines.
Good Martin Scorsese soundtrack. Decent crime drama.
Parental Guide: F-bomb, brief scenes of sex, rape, and nudity.