Millionaires' Express

Millionaires' Express (Foo Gwai Lip Che) (1986)

Runtime: 101 minutes

Directed by: Sammo Hung

Starring: Hung and many others

From: Golden Harvest

This was even sillier than expected, yet thankfully it never became… a train that derailed off the tracks. In short, it felt like the time to see an action film (who knows when I’ll have the time for Expend4bles… which I don’t have high expectations for anyhow) and I should use Arrow’s streaming service more often. Thus, this overstuffed film from Sammo Hung featuring many familiar 80’s Hong Kong faces was watched. To clarify, Arrow has the 101 minute “International Cut” of the movie.

Ostensibly, this action/comedy w/ a Western flavor set in the past revolves around a map to the location of the Terracotta Army that among others the Japanese are interested in. In actuality, there are plenty of characters, the titular Express is a locomotive for rich people and scoundrel Hung has a nefarious scheme to drive people to his old hometown. Mix in some very goofy comedy (one dude talks w/ a major lisp, another has a funny voice, and there are sight gags straight out of a silent film) and this may not satisfy everyone for a variety of reasons.

Me, I had to focus but otherwise it isn’t too difficult to follow despite the surplus of characters. Plenty of faces I knew from other 80’s Hong Kong films, and the ones best known to many here include Rosamund Kwan, Cynthia Rothrock, Richard Norton, Yuen Biao, and Jimmy Wang Yu. Some moments have aged poorly but thankfully I laughed more often than not.

Most importantly for action fans… does that element deliver? I say “yes”, especially during the stellar final 20 minutes that served as the climax. No matter your opinion of the first 80 minutes, after that most should be satisfied with the conclusion. Henceforth, I was happy to have made this streaming decision last night.