THE PRISONER is a film that fell victim to poor distribution, deceptive advertising, and poor re-editing. The film was released in 1990 as HU SHAO DAO (ISLAND OF FIRE), and was touted as a Jackie Chan action vehicle, when in actuality it is an ensemble dramatic action thriller, starring Tony Leung, Sammo Hung, and Andy Lau. Columbia Tristar Home Video continues the film’s history of misrepresentation by throwing Chan’s mug on the DVD artwork and promoting it as another Jackie Chan comedic action flick, along the lines of OPERATION CONDOR or SUPERCOP. All international home video versions of HU SHAO DAO have suffered from bad source prints, poor audio, and incompetent subtitles, rendering the movie nearly unwatchable. Columbia Tristar has worked out most of these issues for their Region 1 DVD release of THE PRISONER, but the audio track features an English language dubbed soundtrack only. This is a surprise coming from CTHV because lately they have made it a point to include the original language tracks. Rumor has it the original audio sources are in such bad shape, so perhaps that’s why they didn’t bother.

THE PRISONER begins with Andy (Tony Leung) beating up some Triad members using cans of soda as a weapons to bludgeon them. Andy is a police officer who wants to purposely get incarcerated and sent to prison, so that he can uncover a corrupt regime working inside the penal system. Also at the prison is John (Sammo Hung), a con man who escapes from the prison every year to visit his son on the day of the kid’s birthday. John allows himself to be captured again and returns to prison each time. Steve (Jackie Chan) is a pool shark who gets involved with gangsters. When one of the thugs tries to kill Steve and falls on his own blade, Steve ends up taking the rap, and is sent to the same jail. The brother of the gangster who stabbed himself believes that Steve is guilty of murdering his brother, too. He commits a crime so he can enter the prison and get revenge on Steve.

Inside the penitentiary, a corrupt prison guard appears to be the head of a crime syndicate. The guard rules the prison with an iron hand, but a upstart cult leader named Lucas (producer Jimmy Wang Yu) unites the prisoners as one, and therefore wields a lot of power as well. Andy gets off on the wrong foot with Lucas, and tries to prove that he can be of use to him. John dreams up of another way to con himself out of the prison to see his son, which costs a man his life. Steve tries to stay alive in jail as challengers come out of the woodwork and attempt to kill him. He uses his Kung Fu to stay one step ahead of his adversaries. Andy fights to keep the prison guards and inmates from finding out that he is deep undercover and investigating the prison from within. But all the corrupt activity (including numerous deaths) taking place within the jail put heat on the inmates, which leads down the inevitable path of retaliation--and a riot ensues. But this prison has secrets so deeply hidden that no one suspects the true fates of our heroes!

As mentioned before, THE PRISONER is a film with quite a history. Former Shaw Brothers star Jimmy Wang Yu (of THE CHINESE BOXER fame) eventually turned producer with the 1984 action hit, FANTASY MISSION FORCE. Jackie Chan appeared in that film as a favor to his good friend Jimmy Wang Yu. In 1990, Chan lent his marquee value to THE PRISONER; another Jimmy Wang Yu produced film. Since FANTASY MISSION FORCE was a classic, expectations were naturally high for THE PRISONER, seeing as how they were both from the same director, Chu Yin-Ping. Apparently, Jackie Chan was not happy with the way the film turned out (perhaps it was because Chan was neither the star or he did not like his character having a bloodthirsty streak) and disowned the film. He also attempted to purchase the rights to the film, to keep his audiences from seeing it. Of course, having a star of any flick speak out against a movie they were in, means instant death at the box office in any country (I have to wonder if Chan and Wang Yu are still friends?). I don’t see THE PRISONER as a bad film, but it is a poor representation of what Chan’s audience has come to expect from him.

If you are a fan of the Keystone Cops antics of Jackie Chan, then you will no doubt be disappointed with THE PRISONER as Chan is only in the film for about 20 minutes. If you are a fan of HK cinema in general, well there is a lot here that might interest you, including a stellar cast composed of Tony Leung, Sammo Hung, Jimmy Wang Yu, and Andy Lau (in addition to Chan). Though Chan gets top billing, it is actually Sammo Hung who steals the show with his sadly dramatic character. No clowning here for Sammo, and he actually contributes to THE PRISONER’s few heartbreaking moments. Andy Lau is the vengeance-crazed brother who is so bent on killing Chan’s character that he purposely commits a crime just to get into the jail. Jimmy Wang Yu plays his Lucas character with all the grace of a spiritual leader. THE PRISONER also features one of the most memorable villains in contemporary Hong Kong cinema.

Chu Yin Ping crafts a film that defies expectations, and if anything, is guilty of cramming too much into a single film. Besides the obvious Chan misgivings, Chu Yin Ping delivers what is essentially a character study wrapped within a cliched police-officer-going-undercover-in-jail framework. The emotional focus is mostly on Sammo Hung and his desire to see his kid again. Then Tony Leung plays off the intrigue as he is caught in a power struggle within the penal colony. Jackie Chan is there as a catalyst for the minor revenge motive, and he provides most of the Kung Fu action, (and for once, his fighting is serious and he even kills people). The narrative follows these characters and their experiences in the prison, and they do not connect until the last 10 minutes. Then there is a sub-plot right out of LE FEMME NIKITA. Though THE PRISONER has a disjointed feel, the combination of drama, acting, and understated action drive the film. The surreal conclusion features a massive shoot-out that will leave action fans scratching their heads. Chu Yin Ping includes realistic, brutal imagery that not normally associated with a Jackie Chan film.

-  Tony Mustafa 

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