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City on Fire

Play trailer Poster for City on Fire R 1987 1h 38m Action Crime Drama Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
89% Tomatometer 18 Reviews 75% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
An undercover cop (Chow Yun-Fat) infiltrates a gang of jewel thieves, but things go terribly wrong during a heist.
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City on Fire

Critics Reviews

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Steve Rose Guardian Nov 13
4/5
This is a more brutal and realistic kind of movie, full of grubby locations, tough choices and sudden deaths as well as some thrilling foot chases and shootouts. Go to Full Review
Jake Cole Slant Magazine Aug 20
Tonally, Ringo Lam’s City on Fire stands far apart from most of the Heroic Bloodshed films of its time. Go to Full Review
Joshua Ryan FandomWire Sep 4
8/10
Its influence on the action genre is undeniable, and its gritty tone and attention to detail have acted as a roadmap for filmmakers for decades. Go to Full Review
Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Sep 1
3/4
The creators of numerous crime flicks have been tapping this particular well for decades. Go to Full Review
Jeff Beck The Blu Spot Aug 25
4/5
With its deft mixture of genres, it's hardly a wonder as to why it's held in such esteem by many filmmakers & fans, and why it's commonly cited as an action classic. Go to Full Review
Yasser Medina Cinefilia 09/25/2022
6/10
A heist film that unevenly brings together some of the components of the heroic bloodshed subgenre between violent shootouts and police chases, but whose action load is not strong enough to keep them under a consistent tone. [Full review in Spanish] Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Landon J @Minxsykitty 4d A good HK entry, has some great emotional moments and I actually like the unconventional ending. Genre fans will enjoy certainly. See more Darren D @DarrenJD Apr 4 Ringo Lam’s crime thriller takes us through the neon-lit city streets & into the grimy, rundown hideouts of criminals, as Lam's heroic bloodshed quickly establishes the tone for "City on Fire" with a brutal stabbing & an explosive jewellery heist. Lam does an admirable job of establishing each storyline, which blurs the lines between Ko Chow (Chow Yun-fat), his loyalties to Inspector Lau, the man who tasked him with infiltrating a gang of jewel thieves & his growing loyalty to the thieves themselves. Lam’s taste for violence feels more brutal & realistic, from the gritty, chaotic foot chases & the sudden deaths during the blood-soaked shootouts. It’s hard not to miss how Ringo Lam's "City on Fire" has served as an inspiration to filmmakers over the years. See more Leprechaun K @LeprechaunKing 02/27/2025 Another good movie from Ringo Lam. Chow and Lam paired up again for this action crime thriller. See more Dick C @Joshua19930826 10/23/2023 It's a great film for Chow Yun-fat, City on Fire, 1987...two years later, the Killer much better... See more DanTheMan 2 @DanTheMan2150AD 02/24/2023 An absolute classic of Hong Kong cinema, City on Fire is a neon-soaked twist on the bromance shared by Chow Yun-fat and Danny Lee seen later in John Woo's masterpiece The Killer. Punctuated by an incredible saxophone soundscape and taking a bottomless dive into the risks of being an undercover cop plunging into the depths of the Hong Kong underworld, it seems that Quinten Tarantino owes Ringo Lam a pretty penny or two. Perhaps even his entire career... See more 03/19/2020 A John Woo film that doesn't contain his signature over-the-the-top action and gunplay... But I welcome the realism for more serious work. And, like a great artist, John Woo continues to deliver. City on Fire paints a picture of Hong Kong that is crime infested, chaotic, and dysfunctional. It's a story about honor among thieves told in a cop and robber style fashion. Chow Yun-Fat's portrayal of Ko Chow is applaudable. Seeing a younger Yun-Fat breathes a certain life to the film. His acting from serious undercover cop to broken lover twists and turns at the heart. Set design is visual eye candy. From neon lights filled with the sounds of jazz, John Woo shows us a Hong Kong that we wish still existed. 5/5. A less flashy John Woo film, but the serious nature of the film is a welcome stylistic change. See more Read all reviews
City on Fire

My Rating

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Movie Info

Synopsis An undercover cop (Chow Yun-Fat) infiltrates a gang of jewel thieves, but things go terribly wrong during a heist.
Director
Ringo Lam
Producer
Karl Maka
Screenwriter
Tommy Sham
Production Co
Cinema City, Nova Media
Rating
R
Genre
Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
Chinese
Release Date (Streaming)
May 20, 2017
Runtime
1h 38m