Young and Dangerous

Five youths with criminal ambitions cruise around nocturnal Hong Kong, meeting girls, carrying out murder assignments, singing karaoke, getting beaten up and learning the importance of loyalty. ”Young and Dangerous 1” is in many ways a typical youth gang film. Nam, Chicken, Pau-pau, Chow-pan and Yee choose a life of crime early on. Friendship, loyalty to the leader and remaining faithful even in the face of adversity are all factors that help form their lives.
The film has become an almost unbelievable success in Hong Kong. Within six months after the premiere the film already had two official and one unofficial sequel. At least four official and nine unofficial parts have been produced to date.
The main cast, especially Dior Cheng who plays Nam, and Jordan Chan who plays Chicken have become stars. Francis Ng, however, who plays Kwan, the baddie in the film, is the one who makes the greatest impression. It is he who gets our heroes beat up at the start of the film. He moves through the film like an evil spirit, constantly appearing out of nowhere, foiling their plans. The only one who comes close to being as evil as he is, is his mother.
The neon lit nighttime exteriors through which the gang moves, are also a credit to the film. Director/cinematographer Andrew Lau's skillful camera work has imbued the clubs, offices, and especially the street scenes that make up our heroes' environment with an impressionist quality. The Hong Kong that is the backdrop for the film is hardly glamorous: traffic jams, petty crime, cramped and dreary apartments in enormous housing estates are part of everyday life. The fight scenes are filmed with the help of grainy, stroboscope-like slow-motion effects that pull the audience into the action. In certain important scenes the image freezes and transforms into a drawing - the film is based on a cartoon ”Teddy Boy” created by Cow Man (Niu Lo).
Equally important is the communalism that defines the gang and their boss, Brother Lee. Together with their girlfriends and the local priest, who was also a teenage criminal (nicknamed Deadly Weapon) they drink, sing karaoke, have barbecues and play games.
It's clear from scenes like those that Andrew Lau has understood something that American action film directors have missed - that well-made action sequences alone are not enough. There has to be some depth to the story for it to be really engaging, which is where the ''Hong Kong pathos'' comes into play: friendship, loyalty, and a sense of duty really do have meaning.
Jakob Abrahamsson

Premiärstatus
Europeisk premiär: Orig. titel
Goo Waak Jai Ji Yan Joi Gong Woo: Medverkande
Dior Cheng Yee-Kin,Jordan Chan Siu-Chun,Gigi Lai Chi: Producent
Manfred Wong: Manus
Manfred Wong: Foto
Andrew Lau Wai-Keung: Musik
Clarence Hui Yuen: Talat språk
Cantonese with English/Cantonese subtitles