Released by: Crash Cinema
Released on: February 25th, 2003.
Director: Ng Tin Chi
Cast: Jason Pai Piao, Bolo Yeung, Chen Sing, Wong Yuen San
Year: 1978
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Amsterdam Connection – Movie Reviews:
Wow, Amsterdam Connection is just totally jam-packed full of goofiness. Seriously, even by Kung Fu movie standards, this is a strange one.
The story, such as it is, is about two young men (played by Jason Pai Piao and Wong Yuen San) from Hong Kong. They are a pair of Kung Fu experts who have a very solid friendship until they become divided by a woman named Fanny. Once the division occurs, the two of them go off and join rival gangs, running drugs in Amsterdam.
But then one of the gang leaders devises a plan to use girls that have been tricked into thinking that they’re auditioning for a film into smuggling cocaine into Amsterdam. From here, they’ll be sold into prostitution, and one of these girls happens to be Fanny. Obviously, it’s time for our heroes to put their differences aside to save her.
The best part of the movie is definitely Bolo Yeung as the heavy. He spends most of his screen time adorned in some of the most amazingly bad ass sunglasses you’ve ever seen and laughing like sinister villains tend to do sometimes. But when he flies into action, you’d better not mess with him. Not only is he one of the bigger fight film stars in terms of his size, but he’s a lot faster than he looks too. Amsterdam Connection gets two thumbs up for Bolo kicking ass and looking cool in this movie. Throw Chen Sing (of Bloody Fists, an undeservedly lesser known film that should be bigger than it is) into the mix and you’ve got a pretty cool supporting cast set up.
There’s also a lot of unexpected and totally unnecessary nudity in the film that mostly occurs during the ‘audition’ scenes where the girls are conned into taking off their clothes as part of the screen test for the ‘film’ that they’re going to be making called ‘One Man And Seven Women.’ Gullible girls that they are, of course they’re strutting their stuff seconds later.
And then there’s the writing. Lines like “Who’s crying? Hey you, you’re also gonna be a whore!” are only part of the charm that the scripting and/or dubbing team infused the film with. Awe inspiringly awful most of the time, the banter back and forth when the combatants decide to have one of their rhyming competitions is just unreal. If you’ve ever wanted to see Bolo basically rap, this is the movie for you.
The film also makes excellent use of its soundtrack. Actually, let’s rephrase that. The film makes excellent use of other soundtracks. Those who pay close attention will notice music lifted from Once Upon A Time In The West, Rocky, Romeo And Juliet and a recurring Pink Floyd song just thrown in for good measure.
Most of the film makes no sense whatsoever, but when this much is going on in a movie, the best thing to do is just sit back and watch it explode and try not to make too much sense of it all. If you’re able to look at it that way, you’re guaranteed a good time even if it is for all the wrong reasons.
Amsterdam Connection – DVD Review:
The 2.35.1 transfer is a little bit beaten up, but not too badly. For the most part, colors are solid and accurate and the clarity on the print used is nice and sharp. There’s only minimal grain present and some random spotting here and there. It would have been nice to see this in anamorphic format, but as it stands, it looks pretty good by the standards of a DVD that came out nearly twenty years ago.
Presented in a delirious English dubbed Dolby Digital Mono track, the sound is about average for a seventies Kung Fu film. A little tinny, and more than a tad phony sounding, but for the most part dialogue is clear. The sound effects are, and this goes without saying for most titles in the genre, ridiculously over the top, but that’s ok. If you’re a Kung Fu movie buff, you expect it that way.
Included on the disc are a trailer for the film and a few extra trailers for other entries in the Pagoda Films series. There are also well written text pieces on the key cast and crewmembers, a still gallery, some production notes, and some extra fight scenes from totally different movies.
Amsterdam Connection – The Final Word:
Amsterdam Connection is a seriously fun movie with solid A/V (for its time, at least) and some OK extras make Amsterdam Connection a recommended purchase.