Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - Stephen Rea (1995) - Lion's Club Pavilion, The Peak

Unfortunately we don't get to see how they get up to the Peak, but at the top there is the Lion's Club  Pavilion andits very famous view.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - Stephen Rea (1995) - The Peak Tram Open Top Bus, Central

I'm not sure if this thing still runs, I don't think it does but I could be wrong because I have only just made it back up to the Peak following a break of almost 10 years. Lots has changed. I didn't see this bus around so I assume it has gone the way of many other great things (some tangible, some not so) in Hong Kong and disappeared.

 Anyway, back during my multiple trips in the 90s you used to be able to catch this free, dedicated open-top bus from Edinburgh Place, outside the old Star Ferry pier. It didn't go to the Peak, it just trundled up to the Lower Peak Tram Terminus, offload and refill passengers, and then go back down again, but it was a short and very enjoyable journey through a small part of Central. Did I mention it was free? Nikos and Li do the same in the film, although they don't appear to be quite as excited about it as I used to get all those years ago.

Fun fact: when I first moved to Hong Kong in 2006, I think a one way ticket on the peak tram was HK$14, and a return $28. Now it's $62 for a one way trip and $88 for a return and each tram now has four carriages (it used to be two).

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - Stephen Rea (1995) - Yau Ma Tei Wholesale Fruit Market

The sites of Nikos and Li's walk seem to change between Hong Kong and Kowloon. In this scene they are walking through Ya Ma Tei's famous wholesale fruit market.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - Stephen Rea (1995) - Ma Tau Kok Public Pier, Ma Tau Kok

The day Nikos decides to go on land, he and Li catch a sampan to the Ma Tau Kok Public Pier. The pier is located next door to the Kowloon City Ferry Pier which can be seen in the background of the first image.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - Stephen Rea (1995) - Victoria Harbour

Next on the list is a mid-90's film based on a short story written by Nikos Kavvadias. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea stars Stephen Rea as Nikos, a Greek sailor who arrives in Hong Kong just as the company that owns the ship he is working on goes out of business. This leaves him and his fellow sailors stranded for a few days until they can find new jobs and move on. In the meantime a little girl is sent to the ship by her family to offer her services as a maid. The backstory to the girl (living on her wits amongst the Hong Kong boat people) feels a little before the time this movie was made - feasible in the 1960s and even 1970s but certainly a bit unbelievable for the 1990s setting of the film. Anyway, after an initial reluctance, Nikos grows fond of the girl and it forces him to rethink his life and perhaps return to his abandoned girlfriend and the child they had together.

Much of the earlier part of the film is set on the ship as it sits in the harbour, but later on the pair decide to explore the "land" together, so we get a small number of locations to include here as a result.

It looks to me as though the ship is moored somewhere to the west of Kowloon because the odd bit of skyline that can be seen is Stonecutter Island, the west end of Hong Kong Island and, in a couple of shots, the mass of floating dredging platforms that are being used to created the West Kowloon Reclamation.

Stonecutters Island on the left

West Kowloon dredgers in the background

The west end of Hong Kong Island in the distance

Legacy of Rage- Brandon Lee (1986) - Town Island, Sai Kung

The film ending consists of some B&W images of Brandon and new-found son meeting Four-eyes on a remote pier next to a lighthouse/beacon. This one took some tracking down but I finally located it on the north tip of Town Island in Sai Kung, on the outer edges of Port Shelter.

Unfortunately there are no nearby pictures for comparison but if you want to search on GoogleEarth it's called "Doorhead Lighthouse" (門頭角燈塔), but whether this is the proper name or some local nickname, I have no idea. It's not the first time we have featured Town Island on the blog. Anyway, I think that just about wraps up this deep dive into Legacy of Rage.

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Sai Sha Road, Ma On Shan

After some of the car chase takes place at the Tseung Kwan O landfill, all of a sudden we move to Ma On Shan and the area around Whitehead Point and Lok Wo Sha. The area was very much undeveloped at the time and I suspect that the Michael's house was largely just a facade constructed for the film.

The first image shows the view looking east, towards Ma Kap Lun and the range on the other side of Three Fathoms Cove. The second image is looking the other way with Grassy Hill in the distance.

The next images should be familiar to anyone who has read my posts for The Young Master  because it is closer to Whitehead Point. The key landmark here is the pointy hill in the background which is the northern point of Ma On Shan mountain. This can help narrow down the location to somewhere close to where Nin Wah Road meets LokWo Sha Lane. It looks like the house facade was constructed at the Whitehead Point-end of Lok Wo Sha Lane facing Ma On Shan. The last image below shows the view along Lok Wo Sha Lane with Wong Leng - a hill in north Tai Po - in the background.

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Tseung Kwan O Stage 1 Landfill, Tseung Kwan O

Brandon appears to be working at the Tseung Kwan O Stage 1 landfill.  At least that's where he is when Mr Wong drives up to him to tell him about May being kidnapped by Michael.

In 1986 the landfill was still pretty much in its infancy, but has since been completed and turned into a much more picturesque green hillock with sporting facilities and a promenade around the edge. In the background of the first image is Hong Kong Island. The camera lens makes it look much closer than it is. The buildings in the background belong to the Hing Wah Estate in Chai Wan with some of the ash halls/columbariums belonging to the Cape Collinson Crematorium sitting on the slopes behind. The third image is also looking towards Hong Kong Island with Mount Parker in the distance and Devil's Peak poking up on the right.

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Regency Art Hotel, Macau

Although we are still supposed to be in Hong Kong, the hotel sequence - when May and family return to their hotel and are recognised by Michael - was shot at what was, back then, the Macau Hyatt Regency. It was a fairly new hotel when this film was made. It's still around but is no longer managed by Hyatt as far as I know. It was refurbished circa 2009 and reopened as the Macau Regency Art Hotel. I stayed here not long after the refurb back at a time when the kids were young enough to enjoy the annual Macau fireworks competition.The rooms on the north west side have a great view of the bay where the fireworks are set off. 

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Ocean Palace Restaurant Night Club, Tsim Sha Tsui

The large circular restaurant where Michael goes to"gong sau" (that's Triad speak for negotiations between gangs) with other gangsters was filmed at the now closed Ocean Palace Restaurant Night Club (海洋皇宮大酒樓). It was located in the Ocean Centre section of Harbour City on Canton Road which explains the curved layout of the venue. I believe it closed circa 2005.

Edit: the marker gremlins are at it again and marked it as the 1st floor but in reality the restaurant was located on the 4th floor (hat tip to Dave)

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Watson Road, Causeway Bay

Watson Road lies right on the boundary between Wanchai and Eastern Districts. It's here at the waterfront that May finally gives in to her older suitor's overtures and leaves with him in his car. This area was all ripped up while the construction for the Central/Wanchai Bypass was constructed. Where May is standing is now a waterfront park. It's definitely looking a bit tidier but it's only been open a year or so and still has a rather sterile feel to it (as with most public spaces in HK).

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Cham Shan Monastery, Clearwater Bay

The temple where Michael takes his wheelchair-bound dad to pray is the Cham Sham Monastery in Clearwater Bay. It's located just off Lung Ha Wan Road and hasn't changed much in the intervening years. It was built in 1964 so doesn't have quite the pedigree of many of Hong Kong's historical temples.

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Floating Restaurants, Aberdeen

With their corrupt ex-police liaison now dead, the gangsters start grooming his replacement and go for talks at the Jumbo Floating Restaurant (R.I.P 2022). The film has done a bit of a switcheroo though because the interior scenes were actually filmed inside the Tai Pak. I seem to remember Les Fruits de la Passion did the same thing (although it looks like I never bothered posting about it).

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Harbour Road, Wanchai

We move one block north as May runs between the old Exhibition Centre and Harbour Road Garden. The green, tiled wall with the old Urban Council symbols has since been removed, although you can still see it on older Streetview captures (minus the Urban Council symbol). The exhibition centre has also been gone a while now. It's role was largely usurped by the new, larger convention centre nearby and the last time I was there was for a dive show about 10 years ago. It's now been replaced by the St Regis Hotel.

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Harbour Drive, Wanchai

Michael's car can be seen driving down Harbour Drive, just past the junction with Fleming Road. That's the Fleming Road flyover behind the car. This section of Harbour Drive runs parallel with Gloucester Road, the main highway behind. The hotel sign used to belong to the Harbour Hotel, but this was demolished in the mid '00s to make way for the Mormon Church. The white building in the background with the large Chinese characters on it is the Tung Wai Commercial Building. That one is still around as far as I know. Anyway, it's here where May tries to make a run for it after Michael attacks her.

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Lan Kwai Fong, Central

Lan Kwai Fong is where the old man catches up to May and tries to convince her to go away with him. The scene starts on D'Aguilar Street (top image) but then moves to Lan Kwai Fong as he jumps out of his car to stop her, only to have Michael muscle in and whisk her away.

Legacy of Rage - Brandon Lee (1986) - Stonecutter Island, Kowloon

Stonecutter Island (or is it Stonencutters? I never been able to determine which is correct) features extensively in this film because it was the old barracks there that stood in for the prison that Brandon is sent to after being found guilty of manslaughter. But it's not just the old Stonecutters barrack buildings that appear on film, there are a few other locations as well so I'll include them here as well.

First up is the block where Brandon is imprisoned. The building itself is still around and is located on the slope of a hill at the north west side of the island (although it's no longer an island). The best way to show this is by with a GoogleEarth link.

As you can see, when Google did their 3D rendition of Hong Kong (circa 2015 I think, it's not particularly up to date and certainly not complete) the block had lost its naked brickwork and acquired a white paint covering.

The beach cleaning scene, as Brandon ponders escaping, was filmed on the northwest coast of the island. Look closely at the background in the third image below and you'll see one of the "prison" blocks. This beach has now completely disappeared due to the reclamation and redevelopment of the north side of the former island. The GoogleEarth view here will illustrate what I mean by the development.

Next up is a quick scene as Regina is taken to see Brandon in her husband's car. The tall thin structures on the left are part of the barrack's firing range and it is still located on the east side of the island - although its wood veneer has been removed and the upright sections have now been painted white (same as the barrack block mentioned above). The road the taxi is on below is now completely out of bounds for civilians but is does run parallel to Ngon Shung Road.

Last but not least is the supposed front entrance to the prison. Again, this is now off bounds to non-military - although perhaps on the various PLA open days it is accessible? - but it is/was located at the eastern section of the island. We see it later in the film when Brandon gets out of prison and in that scene you can see one of the old Victorian towers in the background. As far as I know that structure is still there and can be seen on the left hand end of the row of trees in this GoogleEarth view.