Director: Herman Yau
Screenplay: Law Kam-fai and Sammy Lau
Starring: Anthony Wong, Danny Lee and Emily Kwan
Country: Hong Kong
Running Time: 95 min
Year: 1993
BBFC: 18
Anybody who’s into Hong Kong cinema should know about Category III, also known as CAT III, the age rating given to films that are too extreme for young audiences, only allowing adults over the age of 18 to view them. While an NC-17 rating in the United States is seen as a killing blow to a film, making it near impossible to advertise or promote a film in traditional methods, in Hong Kong, it was considered an achievement. The typical CAT III films contained excessive violence, sexual content or what was considered taboo content, such as same-sex relationships.
In the 1980s and 1990s, CAT III films were all the rage, with T. F. Mou’s Men Behind the Sun being one of the most notorious early films to receive the rating, for its real life autopsy footage of a child, as well as real animal cruelty. Other notable films to receive the rating include Wong Kar-wai’s Happy Together, Danny Lee and Billy Tang’s Dr. Lamb and Lam Nai-Choi’s Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky. But out of all of the filmmakers to release films during the boom of CAT III features, I think there’s only one name that comes to most people’s minds and that’s Herman Yau.
Director Herman Yau created some of the most notorious Category III films to ever exist, many of them with actor Anthony Wong such as Taxi Hunter and Ebola Syndrome, but before either of those films were released, the pair teamed up on a film that took Hong Kong by storm. Based on the real life Eight Immortals Restaurant murders that occurred in 1985, The Untold Story is one of the most disturbing ‘based on a true story’ films I’ve ever seen. For those who are unaware of the event, after a dispute over some gambling winnings with the restaurant owner Zheng Lin, Huang Zhiheng murdered Lin and nine other family members, with the ages ranging from 70 years old to just 7 years old. It’s a horrible, horrible story and reading up on the events after watching the film really upset me. To even think about making a film on such awful events must have been a challenge for Yau and company, but after Danny Lee approached Yau to make the film, offering to both star and produce the film, Yau accepted the role as director.
In the film, Anthony Wong plays Wong Chi-hang, who was the murder in the original case and we’re immediately greeted with him burning a man alive because he wouldn’t lend him money. If there’s anything that Anthony Wong is great at, it’s giving us a reason to hate the character he plays from the get-go. After fleeing Hong Kong, Wong changes his name and moves to Macau, and we catch up with him seven years later, where he’s now running the Eight Immortals Restaurant, with the original owner being strangely absent. Around the same time, human body parts are discovered on a beach, which leads the police officers to the restaurant to question Wong.
The film’s shown from two perspectives, the police officers tasked with finding out who committed the murders, and Wong’s perspective as the man responsible for them. It’s an incredibly compelling film that hooks you in immediately and has you wondering “What is wrong with this man?” while also making you feel bad for wanting to know all of the terrible acts he committed. While the film is definitely bleak, with some sequences I’ll never be able to erase from my memory, there’s a lot of black comedy here too, which caught me off guard.
Anthony Wong is delightfully chaotic in the role and always has this look of anger on his face, which is endlessly entertaining. People who say that Nicolas Cage gives heightened performances need to check out some films with Wong, because he’s insane here. Although compared to the over-the-top nastiness of Ebola Syndrome, his work here is a little more down-to-Earth, but still, his performance as Wong is one I found impossible to look away from. He’s a vile, scummy, reprehensible human being and despite being a lovely guy from all accounts in real life, Anthony Wong excels at playing characters like this. If there’s any reason to check out The Untold Story, it’s for his powerhouse performance.
The police officers we follow too are fairly interesting, with my favourite being Bo (Emily Kwan), the only female police officer who is constantly bullied by her co-workers, but still holding her own on all accounts and being the most likeable of the bunch. Danny Lee plays Inspector Lee, who adds a great level of humour to the film and he has a great screen presence. I think a lot of films that focus on police officers investigating events we already know about can be hit or miss, as it can lead to viewers feeling like nothing new is happening, but I really loved the direction that The Untold Story takes with this, and without getting into spoilers, there’s an event that occurs in the second act that had me curious on where the film was going to go.
The last twenty minutes of this film are downright brutal and I’m quite surprised that the BBFC allowed this film to be released fully uncut, giving it a deserved 18 certificate. As previously mentioned with the real life events that the film is based on, there’s no holding back from the nastiness that transpired and I found myself utterly repulsed by what was being shown, meaning Yau and Wong’s work here was a success. It’s an unforgettable climax. The film adds fictionalised elements to the story, such as a notorious urban legend involving cannibalism, but mostly remains faithful to the events that occurred.
The Untold Story is a chilling feature. It’s something that I’m beyond thrilled to see 88 Films release over here. I’m excited for their upcoming release of Taxi Hunter, another Yau/Wong team-up that came out just a year later. If it’s anything like this and their 1996 feature Ebola Syndrome, then we’ll be in for a great time. But as it stands right now, if you’re a fan of extreme Asian cinema and have the stomach for enduring brutal content, The Untold Story is the dish that will surely satisfy you. Be wary though, because as Inspector Lee says in the film, you never know what’s inside…
Film: 
The Untold Story was released by 88 Films on Limited Edition Blu-ray on the 3rd July. I was sent a screener copy without the limited edition goodies, but all of the on-disc extras remain the same. The transfer seems to be the same one on the US Unearthed Films Blu-ray, and it looks fantastic. The image quality is crisp, while still retaining the fairly gritty look of the film. It’s a great presentation for a great film. The audio track included is a 2.0 lossless Cantonese track and it sounds great. It’s not a powerhouse track, but it suits the film perfectly. An isolated score track can be chosen too, if you’d like to experience the film with only the visuals and the music. English subtitles are also included.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Limited Edition Rigid Slipcase
Double-sided foldout poster
Perfect Bound Book with new writing on the film by Zoe Rose Smith and Paul Bramhall
High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray™ presentation in 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio
Lossless 2.0 Cantonese Mono
Newly Translated English Subtitles
Isolated Score
Audio Commentary with Hong Kong Film Expert Frank Djeng
Archive Commentary with Actor Anthony Wong
Archive Commentary with Director Herman Yau
Hong Kong Superstars – Anthony Wong’s UK Visit
Cantonese Carnage – Interview with Rick Baker
Hong Kong Trailer
English Trailer
Reversible cover with new artwork by R.P. “Kung Fu Bob” O’Brien
Audio Commentary with Frank Djeng – In this brand new audio commentary, Hong Kong expert Frank Djeng goes in-depth in all of the ways you’d expect from him. It’s informative, he always knows what he’s talking about. It’s a great, great commentary.
Archive Commentary with Anthony Wong – In this audio commentary, Anthony Wong talks about how he started his acting career, highlighting his wig in the opening scene too. Early on, he says improvisation is important in Hong Kong cinema, as he finds a lot of the scripts he’s given fairly bad. The questions he is asked are relatively standard by the host Miles Wood on the audio commentary, but it’s still a decent listen, thanks to Wong’s enthusiasm and sense of humour.
Archive Commentary with Herman Yau – The final commentary here is with Herman Yau, being hosted by film critic Miles Wood, just like the prior track. Yau immediately gives the audience a history lesson on the real murders that the film was inspired by, as well as giving Danny Lee credit for producing and starring in the film, with it being something he was incredibly passionate about. This is more informative than the commentary with Anthony Wong and incredibly insightful for fans of the film.
Hong Kong Superstar: Anthony Wong’s UK Visit – An archival featurette that’s around 12 minutes long, highlighting Anthony Wong at a UK festival before diving into an interview. Wong’s great to listen to, highlighting his work in Beast Cops and The Untold Story. I think my favourite part is during a Q&A event, Wong is asked what’s the hardest thing about getting into character, to which he responds “When I’m dealing with a crap script” which made me laugh. There’s a great clip of him in his apartment performing his own music at the end too. Great stuff.
Cantonese Carnage – This is a 13 minute interview with Rick Baker, discussing how he initially came across The Untold Story, as well as how he released many Cat III films under his Eastern Heroes label. It’s a really interesting insight into the whole boom of these films in the UK, even if the films were released cut initially. I’m fairly certain this was recorded prior to 88 Films’ release of Ebola Syndrome, as Baker seems unsure that it would get a release in the UK. It’s a fun interview.
Also included are two trailers, a Hong Kong trailer, and an English trailer.
I wasn’t provided with the booklet, poster or slipcase, unfortunately.
The 88 Films release of The Untold Story is fantastic. While it’s missing some extras that are included on the US Blu-ray release, it has some great special features, such as the commentary track with Frank Djeng, and the fact they were able to get this through the censors uncut is an achievement in its own right.
Disc/Packaging: