November 11, 1996

Once Upon A Time In Triad Society (1996) *****

Leck Kwan is the scamiest and vilest gangster in Hong Kong. On a nice day, he will kill a tailor, try to rape his daughter and then sell her as a hooker to a bordello in the Middle East. Shot by fellow gangsters, he's transported to a hospital, but nobody there wants to treat his wounds. Everyone would like to see the last of Leck Kwan. Is he really such a bad person ? In the first flashback, Leck tells us a bullshit story about his childhood: what a nice boy he was, how he was forced to join the triads, how his friends betrayed him, how his pregnant wife was killed by gangsters. All lies. Then, Leck tells the true story: how he killed his best friend, double-crossed his boss, humiliated his girlfriend and got away with one murder after another. The film is basically a parody of "GoodFellas", but Leck Kwan makes Henry Hill look like an altar boy. The film is viciously and gloriously cynical; its humor drips like acid.