There is nothing in "Cheetah on Fire" that you haven't seen many times before (except for a bullet-removal during sex, perhaps!); the "attack on the villain's jungle camp" part that takes up the last 30 minutes or so has been done so many times it could evolve into a genre of its own. Script and production-wise, "Cheetah on Fire" is about on a par with a low-budget straight-to-video American action film starring, say, Dolph Lundgren; with that said, the execution does have a certain made-in-Hong Kong energy. I particularly liked the 3 women in the film: Cheung Man, Fujimi Nadeki, and Carrie Ng. They are all strong, fearless, and equal to the men in both giving and taking hits. Cheung Man, in particular, makes a great action heroine and it is unfortunate that she is written out of the second part of the movie. I also liked (once again) Michael Woods, who looks and acts like a comic-book creation (you could call him "The Black Hulk"). On the other hand, Donnie Yen fans will probably be disappointed, since he has very few fight scenes, the last of which (against Gordon Liu) is so often intercut with action happening elsewhere that there is no flow to it. (**1/2)
11 Reviews
Cheetah on fire
coltras354 January 2023
In Hong Kong, a weapon dealer has a special computer chip, which is needed to build a secret missile. He is trying to sell it to a foreign goverment. The local secret police, the CIA and an enemy band is looking for him, but he has a very rich and influential man as his partner.
Not as bad as some reviews suggest. It's a well-paced Hong Kong actioner with a good cast and an interesting enough story, though the narrative gets buried amidst the splendid action sequences, which what drives this film. It's what makes it so watchable. Donnie Yen is in his bone-crunching form, taking on some bad hombres, however his character comes across unlikeable, arrogant and quite caveman-like in his approach to detective work. He beats up a gangster, trying to get some answers from him, instead of putting his little grey cells to the test, or use some guile.
Not as bad as some reviews suggest. It's a well-paced Hong Kong actioner with a good cast and an interesting enough story, though the narrative gets buried amidst the splendid action sequences, which what drives this film. It's what makes it so watchable. Donnie Yen is in his bone-crunching form, taking on some bad hombres, however his character comes across unlikeable, arrogant and quite caveman-like in his approach to detective work. He beats up a gangster, trying to get some answers from him, instead of putting his little grey cells to the test, or use some guile.
An example of Asian Trash Cinema
jordondave-2808517 June 2023
Warning: Spoilers
(1993) Cheetah On Fire
(In Chinese with English subtitles)
ACTION
Something to do with a stolen computer chip carrying information regarding H. K. missiles and an eye witness Shing Fu-On (the main baddie in John Woo's The Killer). The movie stars Cheung Man (frequent female co-star of many Stephen Chiau/ Chow Sing Chi's comedic movies) playing yet again as a cop teaming up with other authorities Carrie Ng and Donnie Yen as an agent to retrieve it back. Low budget and not as good, obviously inspired by Jackie Chan's major Hong Kong hit "Police Story III: Super Cop" released in 1992! This movie has one of the most bizarre scenes I had ever seen similar to something what Tarantino or Takashi Miike would've shown, showcasing Chia Hui Liu (star of the "Master Killer" movies or "The 36 Chamber of Shaolin) as a bad guy making out with a woman while a bullet is being taken out of his back, a prime example of 'Asian Trash cinema' at it's best. (Spoiler Warning) One of my Chinese friends was totally stoked about the Donnie Yen character being killed off!
Something to do with a stolen computer chip carrying information regarding H. K. missiles and an eye witness Shing Fu-On (the main baddie in John Woo's The Killer). The movie stars Cheung Man (frequent female co-star of many Stephen Chiau/ Chow Sing Chi's comedic movies) playing yet again as a cop teaming up with other authorities Carrie Ng and Donnie Yen as an agent to retrieve it back. Low budget and not as good, obviously inspired by Jackie Chan's major Hong Kong hit "Police Story III: Super Cop" released in 1992! This movie has one of the most bizarre scenes I had ever seen similar to something what Tarantino or Takashi Miike would've shown, showcasing Chia Hui Liu (star of the "Master Killer" movies or "The 36 Chamber of Shaolin) as a bad guy making out with a woman while a bullet is being taken out of his back, a prime example of 'Asian Trash cinema' at it's best. (Spoiler Warning) One of my Chinese friends was totally stoked about the Donnie Yen character being killed off!
Trashy and no fun.
chand-suhas5 December 2023
It's a cop film masquerading as a spy film. The good cops are trying to transfer a criminal who holds the chip for nuclear missiles which other parties want. As he escapes from the cops, it is upto the good cops to track him down and stop him from selling the chip. When that doesn't happen, they still have to track down the one that is having the chip and giving enough men for Donnie Yen to kick and punch around.
The threadbare storyline is least of this film's problem as it has got everything a low budget B-grade action film of the 90s must have right from the trashy dialogues to poor acting and over the top action along with barely surprising twists. Ofcourse there is lot of shooting and throwing of grenades too. There are two actors from the West who don't get to fight Donnie Yen and there's a third good guy who gets killed off soon. Apart from Donnie Yen factor, I just watched it to test my on tolerance level and I am happy to say, it is intact.
The threadbare storyline is least of this film's problem as it has got everything a low budget B-grade action film of the 90s must have right from the trashy dialogues to poor acting and over the top action along with barely surprising twists. Ofcourse there is lot of shooting and throwing of grenades too. There are two actors from the West who don't get to fight Donnie Yen and there's a third good guy who gets killed off soon. Apart from Donnie Yen factor, I just watched it to test my on tolerance level and I am happy to say, it is intact.
Stereotypical characters fighting in a semblance of a plot.
tamhien_le5 May 2001
The producers of "Cheetah on Fire" probably got together and said "Let's make a movie with Donnie Yen, a lot action and fight scenes, and some sex; all we need now is a plot and some music to go with it". The result is an awfully bad movie. Of course, one should not expect a lot of realism from the fighting scenes of HK action movies, but the ones in this movie were so gratuitous, confusing, and boring that even fans of the genre will be disappointed.
Lower budget than expected, but still packs a punch
Leofwine_draca10 May 2020
Warning: Spoilers
An anything-goes kind of action flick from Hong Kong, CHEETAH ON FIRE offers high entertainment and below-par production values and writing. It's essentially a string of action set-pieces shot on a budget that's too low for the film to rival the highlights of the TIGER CAGE franchise or IN THE LINE OF DUTY IV. There's an almost slapdash quality to the film at times, with glaring plot holes (such as why is the bad guy allowed to hang on to the priceless computer chip while in police custody?) and even the use of stock footage at the climax.
Despite the flaws, this turns out to be a lot of fun. There are a lot of actors in it and they take part in regular shoot-outs and brawling action sequences. Donnie Yen dominates with another cocky performance, although Carrie Ng is stylish enough to stand against him. The bad guys are particularly well represented, with Gordon Liu as the crazy ringleader, Ken Lo as athletic second in command, and the hulking Michael Woods dominating the climax as a Thai rebel leader. The cheap and cheerful fight scenes don't amount to much when compared to Yuen Woo-ping's choreography, but they contribute towards making this a light and easy watch.
Despite the flaws, this turns out to be a lot of fun. There are a lot of actors in it and they take part in regular shoot-outs and brawling action sequences. Donnie Yen dominates with another cocky performance, although Carrie Ng is stylish enough to stand against him. The bad guys are particularly well represented, with Gordon Liu as the crazy ringleader, Ken Lo as athletic second in command, and the hulking Michael Woods dominating the climax as a Thai rebel leader. The cheap and cheerful fight scenes don't amount to much when compared to Yuen Woo-ping's choreography, but they contribute towards making this a light and easy watch.
The unique bits make this a film you'll want to see
dbborroughs29 December 2008
Warning: Spoilers
A Hong Kong action film about a wanted fugitive who is to be extradited who is released and chased by the police. I've been watching a good number of Chinese martial arts and police action films lately and to be honest most of them have blended together. Most of the films simply copy from each other in a weird daisy chain of generic action. This is a film that is different enough that I know I will actually remember it a week or three down the road. This has some wild action and several good scenes you're not likely to see else where including what has to be a unique way to remove a bullet- have the injured person be distracted by having sex. Its a trip. Worth a look if you run across it.
A Solid Yen Film.
Masta_Ruthless22 January 2006
Warning: Spoilers
This is one of those movies that you may have caught playing at about 2 in the morning. Next you realize that this is a good film, gunplay aside the action was pretty good if not great. Yen again shows off his talents in this film.
He plays a cop from the US brought in to help with a serious case, his cockiness is backed up by his gunplay and fighting skills. To see him and Gordon Liu go at it in a fight was amazing. Although I didn't like the fate Yen took at the end of the film, it was still decent.
A lot of people reviewing this movie are screaming about realism, but yet we praise the Matrix Reloaded and Revolution, (yeah I can really see the realism in those two films)but anyway if you want a good gunplay, azzwhupping, explosion having action movie, then try out this film.
What could go wrong, you'll either love it or hate it right?
He plays a cop from the US brought in to help with a serious case, his cockiness is backed up by his gunplay and fighting skills. To see him and Gordon Liu go at it in a fight was amazing. Although I didn't like the fate Yen took at the end of the film, it was still decent.
A lot of people reviewing this movie are screaming about realism, but yet we praise the Matrix Reloaded and Revolution, (yeah I can really see the realism in those two films)but anyway if you want a good gunplay, azzwhupping, explosion having action movie, then try out this film.
What could go wrong, you'll either love it or hate it right?
A bit disappointing
donbendell25 January 2007
Warning: Spoilers
"At first, I was a bit surprised at the cast list of this movie. But, of course, Cheetah on Fire was made during the early '90s, where there seemed to be an overabundance of talent, but not enough quality producers, directors or scriptwriters to work with them. Granted, none of the cast (with perhaps the exception of Gordon Liu) are really "A-list" stars, but if you were looking to make an action movie, you could do much worse than the actors assembled here.
Which makes the results of Cheetah on Fire a bit disappointing. There is a good deal of action, but it lacks that certain something -- that extra punch -- to set it above other similar films. The action is staged and shot well, and there could have been some classic stuff (such as when Donnie Yen takes on Ken Lo, and then later when he fights Gordon Liu) but it all falls a bit flat. What makes matters worse is that the exposition in Cheetah on Fire is fairly poor.
The direction is workman-like at best, and that make the plodding script seem all the worse. When we're supposed to develop sympathy for the characters and care when they are hurt, but all that happens is boredom or laughter, something fell apart in the execution -- much like Cheetah on Fire as a whole. It's not a bad movie. In fact, I had a pretty good time with it because of the abundance of action. It's just that I had fairly high expectations and they were not met. Cheetah on Fire does a good job for a low-budget action movie, but don't expect much more than some decent action sequences."
Which makes the results of Cheetah on Fire a bit disappointing. There is a good deal of action, but it lacks that certain something -- that extra punch -- to set it above other similar films. The action is staged and shot well, and there could have been some classic stuff (such as when Donnie Yen takes on Ken Lo, and then later when he fights Gordon Liu) but it all falls a bit flat. What makes matters worse is that the exposition in Cheetah on Fire is fairly poor.
The direction is workman-like at best, and that make the plodding script seem all the worse. When we're supposed to develop sympathy for the characters and care when they are hurt, but all that happens is boredom or laughter, something fell apart in the execution -- much like Cheetah on Fire as a whole. It's not a bad movie. In fact, I had a pretty good time with it because of the abundance of action. It's just that I had fairly high expectations and they were not met. Cheetah on Fire does a good job for a low-budget action movie, but don't expect much more than some decent action sequences."
Guns and kung fu in Hong Kong jungle thriller
BrianDanaCamp8 May 2001
CHEETAH ON FIRE (1992) is a by-the-numbers thriller about government agents tracking down an errant arms dealer, culminating in a raid on the arms dealer's outpost in the southeast Asian jungle. The action is mostly gunplay but is enlivened by some solid kung fu action performed by hero Donnie Yen and a quartet of memorable villains led by Gordon Liu and including Ken Lo and western martial artists Michael Woods and John Salvitti. The highlight is a fight between Donnie and Gordon (of MASTER KILLER fame and tons of old-school kung fu films), representing two generations of kung fu stars. Also on hand are Carrie Ng and Cheung Man, who are very good at looking pretty, but not so good at fighting. (Carrie's red lipstick lights up the jungle in every scene she's in.) Donnie Yen plays an American, which prompts the others on his team to call him `Foreigner,' one of the few times his actual nationality is acknowledged in a Hong Kong film.
Standard Hong Kong gunplay cheapie livened up by Donnie Yen's presence
bijin_chick25 June 2003
Warning: Spoilers
*Mild Plot Spoilers*
Quite frankly, I found the plot of "Cheetah on Fire" pretty confusing. Whether this is a fault in the movie itself or an indication of how bad the dubbing was, I'm not sure. In either case, the dubbing is horrible. Of course, given the general quality of dubbing, that shouldn't come as a big shock to anyone.
From what I could glean of the story, the Hong Kong police are chasing a man named Tom Yang, who has stolen a valuable microchip. The CIA is also after him, and they send some of their people after the baddies as well. There's an inevitable culture clash between the Hong Kong police and Donnie Yen's character, a hotheaded American police officer who doesn't play by the rules (TM). Eventually, there's a showdown in the jungles of Thailand, which is somewhat confusing given that both armies are wearing dark green and at times it's difficult to tell who's who.
It's not a particularly inspired movie, but it's certainly not terrible either. There's a rather uncomfortable sex scene towards the beginning which, well, wasn't my cup of tea, but maybe other viewers will feel differently. The usual cop-buddy "witty banter" isn't great, but thankfully, it's kept to a minimum. Donnie Yen gets his own theme music, which is funny in that it is reminiscent of softcore porn music. With regard to Yen, his acting is reasonably good, and yes, he definitely looks good in this one too.
The fights themselves are good, but rare. There's quite a bit of gunplay, and actual martial arts is given short shrift in its favor. Almost everyone gets to show off their skills a little, though. Other than Donnie Yen, Man "Peggy" Cheung gets some of the better beatdown opportunities. Of course, it's no surprise that the best fight scenes in the movie belong to martial arts master Yen. His climactic fight sequence is an incredible display of his talent and speed, and Donnie seems to barely break a sweat as he lays it down.
One fight scene in particular is very disappointing because it takes place in a forest at night. The lighting is terrible and it's difficult to see what's going on. From what I could see, it actually looks like it was a very good fight sequence. You could TELL that people were kicking ass, but you couldn't really SEE it. I hope if they ever remaster this movie they somehow fix that problem, because it looked like a real gem of a fight, with several of the main characters involved.
Overall, "Cheetah on Fire" was fairly unremarkable. If you're a Donnie Yen aficionado, if you have a thing for gunplay movies, or if you just want to kill some time, there are a lot of worse ways you could do it. I'd give this movie a 4.5 out of 10.
Quite frankly, I found the plot of "Cheetah on Fire" pretty confusing. Whether this is a fault in the movie itself or an indication of how bad the dubbing was, I'm not sure. In either case, the dubbing is horrible. Of course, given the general quality of dubbing, that shouldn't come as a big shock to anyone.
From what I could glean of the story, the Hong Kong police are chasing a man named Tom Yang, who has stolen a valuable microchip. The CIA is also after him, and they send some of their people after the baddies as well. There's an inevitable culture clash between the Hong Kong police and Donnie Yen's character, a hotheaded American police officer who doesn't play by the rules (TM). Eventually, there's a showdown in the jungles of Thailand, which is somewhat confusing given that both armies are wearing dark green and at times it's difficult to tell who's who.
It's not a particularly inspired movie, but it's certainly not terrible either. There's a rather uncomfortable sex scene towards the beginning which, well, wasn't my cup of tea, but maybe other viewers will feel differently. The usual cop-buddy "witty banter" isn't great, but thankfully, it's kept to a minimum. Donnie Yen gets his own theme music, which is funny in that it is reminiscent of softcore porn music. With regard to Yen, his acting is reasonably good, and yes, he definitely looks good in this one too.
The fights themselves are good, but rare. There's quite a bit of gunplay, and actual martial arts is given short shrift in its favor. Almost everyone gets to show off their skills a little, though. Other than Donnie Yen, Man "Peggy" Cheung gets some of the better beatdown opportunities. Of course, it's no surprise that the best fight scenes in the movie belong to martial arts master Yen. His climactic fight sequence is an incredible display of his talent and speed, and Donnie seems to barely break a sweat as he lays it down.
One fight scene in particular is very disappointing because it takes place in a forest at night. The lighting is terrible and it's difficult to see what's going on. From what I could see, it actually looks like it was a very good fight sequence. You could TELL that people were kicking ass, but you couldn't really SEE it. I hope if they ever remaster this movie they somehow fix that problem, because it looked like a real gem of a fight, with several of the main characters involved.
Overall, "Cheetah on Fire" was fairly unremarkable. If you're a Donnie Yen aficionado, if you have a thing for gunplay movies, or if you just want to kill some time, there are a lot of worse ways you could do it. I'd give this movie a 4.5 out of 10.
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