Prison on Fire

worth a watch

Gritty prison drama that reminded me a lot of 1983's Bad Boys. The movie starts off with a brutal scene and then settles into being a character study of various prisoners and guards and life in a Hong Kong prison. The film does get goofy at times but somehow it fits in the film. The ending is intense and kept me riveted.

Violent and moody tale of brotherhood and friendship set in a Chinese prison. Chow Yun-Fat takes a new fish under his wing to help him survive, and they bond over the usual trials and tribulations, including gangsters, corrupt guards, etc. Chow is good, and the action is rough and bloody, but it's otherwise a pretty unexceptional traipse through familiar territory if you've ever seen another prison movie.

Ringo Lam's prison-buddy movie manages to be both passionate and cornball. But maybe that's because it's from the 80s. Combining gangland intrigue with prisoner social justice (yeah, I know) with plenty of vicious revenge the film is given considerable weight by a funny and intense Yun-Fat Chow, a young and pretty Tony Leung and some genuinely explosive and chaotic fight scenes. Plus, a happy ending, of sorts.