“Angry Ranger” Chinese Theatrical Poster
Director: Wang Lung Wei
Producer: Jackie Chan
Cast: Ben Lam Kwok Bun, Jackie Lui Chung Yin, Sun Chien, Leung Yuen Jing, Mai Kei, Edward Mok Ga Yiu, Benny Lai Keung Kuen, Danny Chow Yun Kin, Johnny Cheung Yiu Wah, Anthony Carpio, Christopher Chan Sai-Tang, Mai Kei
Running Time: 87 min.
By Martin Sandison
Once one of the premier members of the Jackie Chan stunt team, whose greatest role in a Chan movie came with the classic Police Story 2 (he actually appears in two roles, one as an innocent fireman and the other as nasty villain Hung), Ben Lam is one of the great unsung heroes of Hong Kong cinema. Like Yen Shi Kwan (Once Upon a Time in China) or Kim Wong Jin (Operation Scorpio), he appeared in numerous classics such as Legend of the Wolf and Love on Delivery, but unfortunately didn’t make the transition to leading man. There is one movie, however, in which he starred and conveyed his true talent as an onscreen fighter, and as an actor: Angry Ranger. The film has all of the elements that we all love about golden age Hong Kong martial arts cinema, and is also notable as being one of the few movies that legendary Shaw Brothers villain Johnny Wang Lung Wei (Martial Club) lent his directoral hand to.
Peter (Lam) is an ex-con just released for hospitalising some thugs who attacked his friend Hsing (Bruce Mang Lung, Stool Pigeon) and gets a job as a fish vendor. His wild and reckless ways have not been put to bed, and one night him and Hsing steal a car belonging to gangster Lun (Jackie Lui Chung-yin, The Mission). Soon Peter becomes embroiled in a web of gangster double crosses, mainly because, as he puts it, he will beat up anyone that bullies him. It doesn’t help that he becomes romantically involved with gangster Han’s (Sun Chien, Five Venoms) girlfriend Jane (Leung Yuen-Jing, Hard to Kill). Soon the situation comes to a head with what we all wanted: a huge martial arts showdown.
Previous to Angry Ranger, Lam had shown sparks of greatness in his onscreen fighting abilities, but they were all too brief. From the off, Lam’s controlled ferocity, martial arts chops and technique in the film are truly impressive, and make the viewer beg for more. It helps that the film was made right at the heart of the golden age, in the early 90’s, and that choreographing are the Jackie Chan stunt team, coming off the back of Chan’s classic Operation Condor. There are three stand out fight scenes, all mini masterpieces in themselves. The first is the most vicious and cathartic, as Peter has been wronged by the gang for the first time and must bring the smack down. The impact of his punching and kicking places him high in the pantheon of screen fighters; every blow connecting with such power that it jumps off the screen.
The most sustained one-on-one fight comes next, with Lam facing off against gangster Macau Hua (Cheung Kwok-Wah, Shaolin Prince) in an intense duel that sees Cheung using some traditional kung fu techniques against Lam’s kickboxing. The give and take, petering off of the styles here is a wonder to behold, with both fighters adapting brilliantly.
Unfortunately the end fight between Lam and Sun Chien, a mouthwatering match up on paper, is short and scrappy. It’s the most disappointing aspect of the film. But previous to that Lam takes on a bunch of fighters, most tellingly Benny Lai, who kicked Jackie’s ass at the end of Police Story 2. The build up to money shots here is truly transcendent, with two shots especially that blow my mind; one has Lai side kicking Lam, with the latter flying through the air like a rag doll. The next features Lai again showing his masterful kicking, as he performs some wire assisted kicks that fuck up Lam big style.
Aside from the action, Angry Ranger is surprisingly strong in other departments. Lam is a decent actor, and the role brings out his strengths in this regard, with a quietness that erupts in to wildness and violence. Jackie Lui (whose full name in the film is AIDS Lun! Come on, this is early 90’s Hong Kong cinema, so anything goes!) commits to an interesting part, and lends depth to what could have been a very one-dimensional character. A movie like this wouldn’t be complete without a hefty dose of cheddarish romantic montage, terrible-but-charming music, and Leung provides the romance in a sexy and arresting way, despite having no depth to her character at all.
Unfortunately there is a blandness to the aesthetic at times, with little thought being put in to the camera set ups and lighting. It is a case, at times, of the screen going dead when there’s no action. Perhaps it’s not surprising Johnny Wang only directed one movie subsequently, the trash classic Escape from Brothel. That film’s most notable achievement is a scene when a completely starkers Sophia Crawford (Beauty Investigator) fights Billy Chow (Miracles: The Canton Godfather).
Angry Ranger can be forgiven for its lapses in to bad taste, but a scene wherein frogs are stomped to death goes too far, and is completely unnecessary. The execution of the fight sequences is what we’re here for, and with such a high quality on offer, any martial arts movie fan will be in seventh heaven. Seek it out, my brothers and sisters!
Martin Sandison’s Rating: 8/10
Eeeh, Wang Lung Wai directed 9 movies in total, almost all classic joints. Also, Ben Lam was the male lead in A Punch to Revenge alongside Yukari Oshima and had plenty of notable villain roles on top of that.
I want to start a band called “AIDS Lun”.
Great to see ‘Angry Ranger’ getting some love on COF! (But ooomph, did ‘Legend of the Wolf’ just get referred to as a “classic”!? :-P) It’s one of those movies that captures everything I love about the late 80’s/early 90’s HK kickboxing flicks, and I agree it would have been nice to see Lam take on more starring roles. I feel the same way about guys like Kenny Ho and Yu Rong Guang – all had the moves and the screen presence, but don’t have anywhere near as many leading roles as I wish they did. Still, if ‘Angry Ranger’ is the movie you’re remembered for, then you know you’ve done something right!
Paul, I direct you to Jeffreys review of Legend Of The Wolf:
http://cityonfire.com/legend-of-the-wolf-1997-aka-the-new-big-boss/
I was glad I bought the Fortune Star DVD before the price was jacked up. It’s interesting to see an actor mostly known for villainous or henchmen roles get to be the hero. I don’t know what Ben Lam is up to nowadays, but I hope he still contributing to Asian cinema in some way.
The fights are great stuff, but I wish he got to use more of his superkicking like he did in Return to a Better Tomorrow. They look like they rival Ken Lo in his prime.
I don’t get the real life cruelty in some of these films. Birds, reptiles, and amphibians seem to be the most common victims.
I feel bad this movie bombed. It’s one of the best 90s presentation of a fighting spectacle. Every fight scene is brutal with steroids. Ben Lam kickboxing skills, shine here, as there’s no holds barred, every fight is a brawl, brilliantry choreographed by JC stunt team. No matter if, they rip so bad James Dean Rebel Without A Cause Ben Lam simply pulled it off, as guy who takes shit from no one and can’t be controlled, you feel convinced all the way around the movie he’s a legit badass. This is as real a fight scene could get in terms of contacting around that time, so if you like brutal, watch that movie. Ben Lam is so intense, that I decided to, start training kickboxing myself after watching such intensity on screen. And watch venom Sun Chien, in what I believe that it’s his last martial on screen appearance. I feel bad he decided to retire, he could still go and his style finally fitted in with that era choreography.
Call me a fan of Ben Lam! He’s been vastly underused in his career, and almost any time I see him featured in an action role, I jump at it like in A Punch to Revenge or Dreaming the Reality. His kicks are just as good as Ken Lo’s, and I wish he also had a 15 minute fight scene to showcase them.
Ben Lam had a real brutal style of onscreen kickboxing. He would probably had difficulties with old school of choreography, but he was utilized where his skills were the order of the day. I decided to hunt his small moments here and there, and I still believe, his best performance is still on Angry Ranger. Now if you asked me, I dreamed on seeing him against donnie yen in a Tiger Cage style choreography. I just found that Legend of Wolf fight so lame, with that editing. But if you want him against Ken Lo, albeit short, watch The Holy Virgin Vs The Evil Dead. A zero budget movie that also had Donnie Yen and Robert Mak. Check it out.
I’m sure a traditional choreographer would have trouble with Ben Lam, but someone like Sammo Hung could have done wonders for him.
I liked Legend of the Wolf when I saw it 15 years ago, but now that overly ambitious experimental film making and editing doesn’t hold up And did do an injustice to Ben and Donnie.
His kicks were superb in Return to A Better Tomorrow and he even had a decent fight scene with Karen Mok in So Close. I just wish he was featured more often.
Might as well do a list of his best fight scenes. I got to know more of Ben Lam, even Angry Ranger as well, when youtubers did shared fight scenes of old movies. And you can see, that even in a comedy movie like Love on Delivery, the guy is still brutal, lol. I guess that is his trademark, and that’s what differentiates him from others. No wonder he’s a unsung hero, every people I show his fight clips, instantly like his style.