Tiger on the Beat I & II Shout! 4K Review

Plot: A seasoned cop and his rookie partner are a pair of mismatched partners in this Hong Kong action-comedy in the style of ‘Lethal Weapon’. The wacky twosome are up in arms as they try to solve the murder of a heroin trafficker.?

Review: I have never seen the Tiger on the Beat (or Tiger on Beat as they’re also known) movies as they seemed rare to find on physical media for the longest time or they were just super expensive. I’ve been excited to finally watch them in glorious 4K and this weekend I finally viewed them both.

I think Chow Yun-fat is normally one of the coolest people alive however, here he plays against type and I was disappointed with his character in this movie (until the shotgun finale, obviously). Francis Li is kind of a dick and a bit goofy with “humour” that doesn’t hold up at all.

The cool character here is Michael Tso played by Conan Lee who would practically start a fight in an empty room.

Thankfully, in the second half we get to see some classic Chow as he takes out the trash in the action-packed finale. We get a chainsaw fight between Tso and Fai (Gordon Liu!!) which was worth the wait; I knew it was in there, but deliberately never watched clips before seeing the full movie.

Where this movie shines is the action – the fight scenes are brutal and it doesn’t skimp on violence with the second half clearly the highlight. It’s also cool to have A Better Tomorrow cast reunion with Ti Lung also showing up as Loong.

The 4K looks and sounds like the movie came out this week, so I’m glad I waited to get it on 4K. The awesome rock tunes sound great in it too as does the score.

Overall, Tiger on the Beat is at its best when the action is in full force as it’s brutally effective and the chainsaw fight is a classic. I didn’t care for Chow Yun-fat’s goofy character for most of it, but he was still cool for the bullet laced finale.

 

Tiger on the Beat II (1990)

Plot: Captain Lam is a cop approaching 40, wants to achieve something memorable before his retirement.

Review: This is really a sequel in name only with Chow Yun-fat not returning however, Conan Lee is back but he’s playing a different character with Danny Lee also playing the co-lead, Captain. Lam Yick-lin. Gordon Liu is also back as Fai, but this is a different Fai from the first movie… so it’s best to just take this as a completely separate entity.

Like the first movie it’s the action that stands out here and the final 30 minutes is the highlight. It never quite matches the epicness of the chainsaw fight from the first movie, but the final fights are awesome.

What I love about these old-school movies is how raw the fights are; people look like they are genuinely getting injured and there are some amazing stunts. Like the first film the story isn’t anything that reinvents the genre, but it’s well enough paced and an easy watch.

Overall, Tiger on the Beat II has some decent fight scenes with Conan Lee stealing the show once again and it moves along at a decent pace. It still has the same goofy humour the first one has, but it’s the action that makes this worth a watch.

Special Features

Disc 1 – Tiger on Beat:
– 4K Scan from the Original Camera Negative
– Presented in Dolby Vision
– Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated for this Release
– Audio Commentary with Film Historian Frank Djeng

Disc 2 – Tiger on Beat:
– 4K Scan from the Original Camera Negative
– Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated for this Release
– Interview with Stunt Man and Actor Billy Lui
– Interview with James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic at easternKicks
– Audio Commentary with Film Historian Frank Djeng

Disc 3 – Tiger on the Beat II:
– 4K Scan from the Original Camera Negative
– Presented in Dolby Vision
– Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated for this Release
– Audio Commentary with Film Historian Frank Djeng

Disc 4 – Tiger on the Beat II:
– 4K Scan from the Original Camera Negative
– Optional English Subtitles Newly Translated for this Release
– Interview with Martial Arts Director Ridley Tsui
– Interview with James Mudge, Hong Kong Film Critic at easternKicks
– Audio Commentary with Film Historian Frank Djeng

The 4Ks for both movies are worth picking up for fans as we get some enjoyable interviews and commentaries; the picture and sound are faultless too, so if you enjoy these movies it’s worth picking this up.

So, I didn’t love these movies but they are lifted up by the action especially the first movie with its awesome chainsaw fight and Gordon Liu as an enjoyable villain. The 4Ks are great quality and have enough special features to be a worthy addition to your collection.