Hou sheng (1975) User Reviews

Typical Shaw Brothers drama of 1970s Hong Kong life, plus some fights

[ckormos1 · 6/10 · 8 December 2019]

This Shaw Brothers movie is set in 1970s Hong Kong. Ti Lung is listed as director. That would have been his second and final directing credit. A blue and white 1967 VW van is featured in three or more scenes. Back in the 1970s I owned a 1967 VW van. It was the last year of the split windshield. My model had the folding sunroof. Fond memories but back to the movie.

It starts with the usual clichés of unfair life and poor conditions for the lowly worker. David Chiang's character is angry his father was killed by a truck. To support his mother and sister he takes a lousy job doing delivery for a miserable store owner. At first it seems all his deliveries are uphill in both directions. Eventually he gets the hang of the work. Then the gangs complicate things. He avoids joining a gang but then hooks up with a gang boss and seems to be oblivious about it. Ti Lung plays his friend. His character serves to contrast the other's life.

Martial arts finally enter the story at about the 40 minute mark. The great Simon Yuen plays the kung fu school master. He does not fight. All the fights are done by the extras. The fights are basic hand to hand street fighting. It only takes David Chiang about five minutes of movie time to go from a pushover to a master, but that's movies for you!

Today this movie would only draw the attention of a genre fan. This review and rating assumes the reader/viewer is such a fan. As such, "The Young Rebel" is average in every way. I found no special movie moments or anything noteworthy about the action. I also found nothing to complain about or criticize.

Very effective

[Leofwine_draca · 8/10 · 3 September 2020]

By 1975, David Chiang was coming to the end of his tenure with the Shaw Brothers studio, but that didn't stop him still playing the lead in this "angry young man" thriller with a lot to recommend it. It's one of two films directed by Ti Lung during the era, and Lung also has a small role as a cop and Chiang's buddy. In many ways it's a neat counterpoint to Lung's 1969 movie DEAD END, in which Chiang played the buddy role in a similarly aggressive plot. Chiang is very good here, playing against type as a stubborn young man with real anger issues who eventually gets drawn into the usual plot involving gangsters, murder, and revenge. This one was made by Chang Cheh's production company and distributed via Shaw, but it has great production values, plenty of good martial arts action, and many familiar faces from the era, including screen heavies Chiang Tao, Lee Hoi San and Eddy Ko. It's surprisingly deep and surprisingly effective, with plenty to say for itself.