Wednesday, July 31, 2024
Black Mask - Jet Li (1996) - Marine Police Harbour Division Headquarters
Tuesday, July 30, 2024
Black Mask - Jet Li (1996) - Jardines Lookout
The opening shot of the film is a helicopter shot (no drones in those days) over the peak of Jardines Lookout on Hong Kong island. Apparently, the helicopter was originally hired to do some close-up shots of the Bank of China tower but the plan was abandoned when the filmmakers thought they might get into trouble, so they settled for something a bit more discreet.
Monday, July 29, 2024
Mr Hercules Against Karate - Alberto Terracina (1973) - Aberdeen
Anyway I digress. If anything, it was just an indication of how long the burnt out wreck was left to fester at the side of the harbour since it tragically caught fire in October 1971 i.e. the best part of two years at least.
We see it again, albeit in low-res, during the Aberdeen harbour sequence. The first image below shows Terracina braving the harbour waters to escape the henchmen and, in the second image, you can see the old Jumbo on the left hand side. This shot was taken from the promontory where the Aberdeen Seminary is located. Even in low-res it looks like a sorry sight. In image three, you can see its collapsed roof in the background.
Anyway, that appears to be all from Ming, Ragazzi! aka Mr Hercules Against Karate. The final scenes appear to have been shot at a sort of Chinoiserie-style building, but it's not somewhere I recognise and it wouldn't surprise me if it was in Thailand or the Philippines. If you know better then feel free to let me know (remember, I posted the film link in the first post).
Sunday, July 28, 2024
Mr Hercules Against Karate - Alberto Terracina (1973) - Tiger Balm Gardens, Tai Hang
I tell a lie, this tiger now adorns the layby in front of the old property on Tai Hang Road.
Saturday, July 27, 2024
Mr Hercules Against Karate - Alberto Terracina (1973) - Chatham Road South, Tsim Sha Tsui
The images below start with a view of the overhanging signs along Mody Road before pulling out to reveal the front of the hotel and its characteristic crowned 'E' symbol. The last image is from a sequence where the camera pointed at the opposite side of the junction and you can see the empty space (Chatham Road Military Camp) of what would become East TST in the background.
Friday, July 26, 2024
Mr Hercules Against Karate - Alberto Terracina (1973) - Central Vehicular Pier
Thursday, July 25, 2024
Mr Hercules Against Karate - Alberto Terracina (1973) - Jordan Road Vehicular Ferry Pier #2
After arriving at the airport, the pair are picked up by a friend and driven to the former "double-deck" vehicular ferry pier at the end of Jordan Road. This one was specifically used for the double-decker ferries that allowed smaller/lighter vehicles to park on the upper deck. In relation to today's geography, it was located at the far end of Man Wui Street in front of the westernmost section of the Man King Building (which you can see behind in the top two images) - part of the Ferry Point Estate. Once again, the Google marker doesn't allow me to be exact, but you can clearly see where it was located in relation to the aforementioned building.
Wednesday, July 24, 2024
Mr Hercules Against Karate - Alberto Terracina (1973) - Kai Tak Airport,Kowloon
Despite having already included a scene that was unmistakeably shot in Hong Kong, we now move to the bit where the pair arrive in Hong Kong officially to undertake their rescue mission. There's a nice sequence of a plane landing at Kai Tak that pans across and ends on the terminal building. Pity the quality isn't better.
Tuesday, July 23, 2024
Mr Hercules Against Karate - Alberto Terracina (1973) - The Peak
Next up is another Italian production, Mr Hercules Against Karate (original title: Ming, Ragazzi!), that appears to have been shot in Sydney, Hong Kong as well as some other unknown places that are beyond my remit. The story follows a couple of oil workers who are hired by an Chinese restaurant owner, in Sydney, to go to Hong Kong and rescue his young son, who has been kidnapped by the usual meglomaniac gang leader (played by George Wang). I don't know much about Italian cinema, but the pairing of these two seems to be a cheap knock-off of the pairing in the Terence Hill and Bud Spencer movies. With the 'Bud Spencer' role (superhuman strength, big bushy beard etc) being taken by Fernando Bilbao.
Anyway, weirdly, part of a Sydney-shot sequence, as the pair walk up by the side of the Sydney Harbour bridge, was partially filmed on the Peak in Hong Kong. The scene has been edited together so that when Terracina looks off camera (in Sydney) to his friend, his point of view is looking at Bilbao at the peak as he rips a safety rail off a bus he was about to board. It's an odd combination of locations having the Sydney Harbour bridge in one direction and the Peak viewing tower in the other.
The film is available to watch on Youtube here (no doubt it will disappear at some point), but it's pretty poor quality, both in terms of resolution and entertainment.
Anyway, here are some screen captures from the 'supposedly still in Sydney' scene. The Peak Cafe is the location of the Chinese restaurant where the guys are hired by the owner.