Global InformationThe Man from Hong Kong information
| The Man from Hong Kong | |
|---|---|
 US film poster by Arnaldo Putzu | |
| Traditional Chinese | 直搗黃龍 |
| Simplified Chinese | 直捣黄龙 |
| Literal meaning | The Yellow Dragon's Direct Attack |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Zhí Dǎo Huánglóng |
| Jyutping | Zik6 Dou2 Wong4 Lung4 |
| Directed by | Brian Trenchard-Smith |
| Written by | Brian Trenchard-Smith |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Russell Boyd |
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | Noel Quinlan |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by |
|
Release dates |
|
Running time | 106 minutes |
| Countries |
|
| Languages |
|
| Budget | A$550,000[1] |
| Box office |
|
The Man from Hong Kong (Chinese: 直搗黃龍), originally released in the US as The Dragon Flies, is a 1975 action film written and directed by Brian Trenchard-Smith in his directorial debut and starring Jimmy Wang Yu and George Lazenby, with Hugh Keays-Byrne, Roger Ward, Rosalind Speirs, Rebecca Gilling, Sammo Hung, Grant Page and Frank Thring in supporting roles. The first film to be made as an international coproduction between Australia and Hong Kong, it serves as a satire of the James Bond and Dirty Harry franchises, combined with tropes of the concurrent chopsocky craze.[4][5] Its plot follows Inspector Fang Sing Leng (Wang) of the RHKPF's Special Branch, who travels to Sydney to perform an extradition, only to find himself locked in battle with Jack Wilton (Lazenby), the city's most powerful crime lord.
Having gained experience as an editor of film trailers and director of television documentaries, Trenchard-Smith established a connection with Golden Harvest producers Raymond Chow and Andre Morgan while making two TV specials, The World of Kung Fu (1973) and Kung Fu Killers (1974). Originally conceived as a Bruce Lee vehicle, the film was reconfigured as Wang's English-language debut following Lee's death; much of the remaining cast and crew had previously worked on Trenchard-Smith's documentary films and on Sandy Harbutt's outlaw biker film Stone (1974). Its budget was jointly funded by Golden Harvest, Greater Union and the Australian Film Development Commission.[6]
The Man from Hong Kong features multiple large-scale action scenes with elaborate, dangerous stunts. It includes a fight scene between Hung and Ward atop Uluru/Ayers Rock as the film's opening setpiece, several car chases devised by Stone's Peter Armstrong, hang-gliding sequences performed over Hong Kong and Sydney Harbour by Page — who would achieve further recognition as the stunt coordinator of Mad Max (1979) — and a climactic battle between Wang and Lazenby in which the latter is briefly set on fire, which caused injury to the actor's hand.[6] The film's theme song, "Sky High" by Jigsaw, became a one-hit wonder during the latter half of 1975.[7][8]
Although the film was released in a wide array of markets and turned a profit, The Man from Hong Kong was not the blockbuster Trenchard-Smith and the film's producers had hoped it would be upon its initial release; in Australia, its box office performance was limited as a result of its R rating.[6] Later restored by the Australian National Film and Sound Archive,[9] it has since garnered a cult following as one of the key films of the Ozploitation cycle and Trenchard-Smith's career,[5] and was prominently featured in the documentary Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation! (2008).[10]
- ^ Richard Brennan, 'Brian Trenchard-Smith', Cinema Papers, Dec-Jan 1979-80 p 600
- ^ 'Australian Films At the Australian Box office' Film Victoria accessed 28 September 2012
- ^ "The Man from Hong Kong (1975)". Hong Kong Movie DataBase. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ^ Vagg, Stephen (31 December 2019). "Top Ten Australian James Bond Homages". Filmink.
- ^ a b Caterson, Simon (27 September 2016). "Return of the Ozploitation gem 'The Man from Hong Kong'". Daily Review.
- ^ a b c "The Man from Hong Kong". Ozmovies. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
- ^ "1975 One Hit Wonders page at Tunecaster". Tunecaster.com. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ "Who Do You Think You Are? A one-hit wonder for several different groups". DangerousMinds.net. 25 January 2011. Archived from the original on 27 May 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ "Kodak/Atlab". National Film & Sound Archive. 29 November 2010.
- ^ Partridge, Des (31 July 2008). "Quentin Tarantino backs Mark Hartley's Ozploitation doco". The Courier-Mail. Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 30 September 2008.