THE ADVENTURERS: Andy Lau Brings the Pain

THE ADVENTURERS (Blu-ray)

1995 / 110 min

From Eureka Entertainment

Review by Mr. Bonnie, the Badass😺

When this arrived, I initially thought it was a rerelease of an identically-titled film I once reviewed which also starred Andy Lau. And I had no problem with that. I generally enjoy Lau’s action movies and 2017’s The Adventurers was a fairly entertaining heist flick. But 1995’s The Adventurers is a completely different animal. It’s one of director Ringo Lam’s lesser-known films on this side of the pond, having never been released on Blu-ray until now.

Lay plays Wai Lok-yan, a Cambodian fighter pilot still traumatized from witnessing the murder of his entire family when he was a boy. The man who killed them is Ray Lui (Paul Chun), a treasonous former CIA operative who’s since become rich as an illegal arms dealer. Wai has had revenge on his mind ever since, and after a failed attempt to assassinate Ray, he’s recruited by the CIA to go undercover as a ganglord in order to help bring Ray (and his much bigger associates) to justice.

Andy Lau suffers for his art.

The job takes him to San Francisco, where he wastes no time taking over territories. He also insinuates himself into the life of Ray’s estranged daughter, Crystal (Jacklyn Wu), eventually marrying her to get closer to his target. The problem is he’s also fallen in love with her, which creates a moral quandary, especially after he learns she’s pregnant. And absolutely none of this sits well with Mona (Rosamund Kwan), Ray’s mistress with whom Wai enjoyed a brief tryst. 

It's occured to me that I’m making The Adventurers sound like a melodramatic soap opera. While some narrative elements reflect that, it’s primarily a violent, complex action film. Some of the story doesn’t always come across as plausible, but it’s certainly exciting, with some excellent action sequences. Lau has always been a solid physical & dramatic actor, and he’s in fine form here. As Ray, Chun makes a wonderfully hateful foe, while Kwan could sort-of be viewed as a femme fatale…and a compelling one at that.

The Adventurers is nowhere near as upbeat as the somewhat misleading title suggests. For the most part, the tone is dark and serious, compounded by brutal violence and a massive body count, especially during the kaboom-laden climax. For Andy Lau and Ringo Lam fans, this one-time collaboration is worth seeking out. 

On an amusing side note, the original poster (reproduced on the Blu-ray cover) shows Lau standing in front of a New York skyline, even though none of the movie takes place there.

EXTRA KIBBLES

INTERVIEWS - Two Adventurers features Asian Cinema journal editor Gary Bettinson, who thoroughly discusses the golden era of Hong Kong action films, focusing largely on director Ringo Lam and The Adventurers; Interview with writer-producer Sandy Shaw.

AUDIO COMMENTARY - By critic David West.

SUPPLEMENTAL BOOKLET - Includes “Unconventional Heroism,” an essay by Han Joon Magnan Park; cast, crew & Blu-ray credits.

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