Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong

I have a big thank you to say to Dan who writes the excellent Hong Kong On Film blog and actually sent me a copy of this film.

A quick surmise: Bud Spencer (real name Carlo Pedersoli, who sadly died in June 2016) plays a surly and burly Napoli cop who has a penchant for smacking people on the top of their heads with his fist in order to subdue them. He is framed by a cop traitor and has to chase various bad guys around the world (in this case Italy, obviously, Bangkok and Hong Kong and Macau) to prove his innocence and catch the bad guy. Obviously we shall focus on the Hong Kong and Macau scenes for this blog but if anyone is interested in Bangkok in 1975 then it's probably also well worth a look.

Anyway, the opening Hong Kong scene (when Flatfoot arrives in HK from Thailand) is a panning helicopter shot high above the harbour. The scene lasts for quite sometime and takes in an almost 360 degree view so we get a good look at the whole area.

Above: looking along the island towards Kennedy Town. Actually, the view looks almost as hazy in 1975 as it does today. Below: Where the large ferry is moored on the left is the HK->Macau ferry terminal, now replaced by the Shun Tak Centre.

Above: you can see the old inter-island ferry piers that lined Connaught Road. They are still there but have moved about 250 metres out and the space in between has been reclaimed and now supports the massive IFC development and Four Seasons Hotel. Below: Look carefully on the left and you will see what was HK's tallest structure - the Connaught Centre (aka Jardine House). The piers directly in front of it was the old Central vehicular ferry pier (more on that in a later post).

Above: looking all the way along towards Causeway Bay and beyond. Looks as though the Wanchai reclamation had just been finished and was awaiting development. Below: the tip of Kowloon can now be seen. In 1975 the old KCR terminus station was still standing (just) but Kowloon still lacked the high rise development that has taken over it of late (now that the airport has moved).

A bit more of the peninsula revealed in these last two shots. Eagle-eyed and HK-savvy peeps will be able to spot the dark blur of Kowloon Park, Ocean Terminal, the Ferry Point Estate and a large dark area to the left of the Ferry Point Estate which is the old Yau Ma Tei typhoon shelter.