A Killer's Blues

1989 1h 32m CN

🤯

10.0

MASTERPIECE

★10.0TMDB · 1

Action

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Fourteen years ago, Wai Yat Ming (Ti Lung) went to the US to settle affairs for triad boss Sun (Bao Fang), but ended up in prison. Finally free again, Wai wants to start over with his girlfriend (Olivia Cheng) and adopted daughter (Fennie Yuen), but he finds it hard with Sun's feuding son and nephew, Kit (Mark Cheng) and Chong (Roy Cheung), constantly raising trouble in the gang. Seeing his own misguided past in them, Wai fruitlessly tries to guide them in the right direction. He eventually decides to make a clean break and leave Hong Kong, but Sun's sudden death pulls him back into the violence of the underworld.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Ti Lung
Wai Yi Ming
Olivia Cheng Man-Nga
Wai
Fennie Yuen Kit-Ying
Suet
Roy Cheung Yiu-Yeung
Chung
Mark Cheng Ho-Nam
Kit
Lo Lieh
Tai
Wang Hsieh
2nd Boss
Timothy Shaw Chun-Yung
Stephen

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Raymond Lee Wai-Man
Writers: Nam Yin
Languages: Cantonese, Mandarin
Countries: Hong Kong

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

37 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Cantonese, Mandarin.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

AWARDS

Did you know

Directed by Raymond Lee Wai-Man, shot by Joe Chan Kwong-Hung. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Lo Ta-Yu. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

AWARDS

Did you know

Editor Wong Ming-Lam shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Ti Lung and Olivia Cheng Man-Nga and Fennie Yuen Kit-Ying carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0099131 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 1 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Raymond Lee Wai-Man directs. Joe Chan Kwong-Hung behind the camera. Lo Ta-Yu scores. Wong Ming-Lam cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Hong Kong. Dialogue in Cantonese, Mandarin.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

137 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Cantonese, Mandarin.
3Directed by Raymond Lee Wai-Man, shot by Joe Chan Kwong-Hung. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Lo Ta-Yu. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Wong Ming-Lam shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Ti Lung and Olivia Cheng Man-Nga and Fennie Yuen Kit-Ying carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0099131 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 1 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.