VCD cover  Chow Yun-Fat

The Story of Woo Viet

AKA: God of Killers, Wu Viet's Story

1981

Director: Ann Hui

Stars: Chow Yun-Fat, Cora Miao, Cherie Chung, Lo Lieh

Chow plays Woo Viet, a Vietnamese refugee who comes to Hong Kong with hopes of eventually emigrating to America. While in a refugee camp, he witnesses a murder by some Vietcong and becomes a target himself. After dispatching with his attackers, Viet realizes he must flee HK right away and turns to his only friend (Cora Miao) to help him get a fake passport. While staying with a "snakehead" (smuggler) and a group of illegal immigrants, Woo Viet becomes infatuated with a fellow refugee, Shum Ching (Cherie Chung). The snakehead has other plans for Ching, and while the group is in Manila, he sells her to a local brothel. Desperate to save Ching, Viet attacks a policeman and takes a local hood hostage to find out who controls the brothel. Viet finds the boss, a man named Chung, but can't save Ching as he is now a wanted man. Chung promises to help Viet if he becomes an assassin.

While Chow had worked on several films before, The Story of Woo Viet was his first role that had a serious script behind it (something other than his usual boring cop drama or romantic drivel that he was pigeonholed into at this point in his movie career) and allowed him to go beyond a stereotype in his performance. The movie is a bit-slow moving in parts, but it is held together by Chow, who does a great job. Also, the supporting cast does well, particularly Lo Lieh, playing a booze-soaked low-level gangster who later becomes Chow's partner, and Cherie Chung, who manages to come off as innocent without being overly naive, childish or stupid.

Those looking for tons of action will probably be disappointed. While there are a few shootouts and chases (as well as a few violent murders, including one of a small child), The Story of Woo Viet's emphasis is more about creating a dark mood and telling a compelling story, which it does well. If you want to see a good early role for Chow Yun-Fat, you don't have to look further than this movie.

RATING: 7

Note: Hong Kong video versions of this movie are not subtitled. The only subbed version of this movie is Arena's God of Killers, but even then the subs are unreadable for the most part because the picture is center-framed and the subs are cut off on the sides.

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