Baraka - Ron Fricke (1992) - Kowloon Walled City

Shot in 1992, this film was able to capture some shots of the (in)famous Kowloon Walled City just prior to its demolition. This was the south facing side of the "city" with the flats here overlooking Carpenter Road bicycle track (itself due to be demolished to make way for a market building...because who really needs all those pesky leisure facilities getting in the way of redevelopment?).

Whicker's Orient - Alan Whicker (1972) - Kowloon Walled City

Whicker does some more reporting from the infamous Kowloon Walled City and alludes to a confrontation with some triads in a later part of the same segment. He also conducts an interview with Gladys Donnithorne, who you can read all about over on Gwulo.com.

Whicker with Gladys Donnithorne

Asia-Pol Secret Service - Wang Yu (1966) - Kowloon City Aerial View

The final aerial shots are taken over the Kowloon City area just in front of the airport runway.

The government estate that can be seen in the upper part of both images is the old Tung Tau Estate before it was redeveloped into taller/higher capacity blocks. The sole remaining structure from this image was, until 2014, Block 22 - the taller building on the corner of the road junction. This has since been replaced by the newer, taller Wui Chi House. However, the smaller building in front of it survives and contains the Po Yan Oblate Primary School.

Directly below that is a squatter village that sat in between the notorious Kowloon Walled City (on the left) and Kowloon City area that is still around on the right. So the whole area encompassing the squatter huts and Kowloon Walled City are now all city park.

Shadow of China - John Lone (1989) - Kowloon Walled City, Kowloon City

Akira has obviously lost his way because in the very next shot (after walking past what looks like the southern part of Kai Tak) he can be seen walking down the western edge of the "walled city" back in the direction of the airport. This area has now become Carpenter Road Park with the Kowloon Walled City Park occupying the old space of those famous ramshackle tenements.

You may recognise this area as the same one where Madonna was with Sean Penn a few years earlier.

Shanghai Surprise - Madonna (1986) - Kowloon Walled City, Kowloon

Another site that seems to have satisfied the film makers with regards to being dilapidated enough to represent old Shanghai is the Kowloon Walled City. We don't get to see inside the "city", but the ramshackle illegal tenements that formed the outer walls of the place can be seen in the background of the next scene along with the shaved hillside at the back of the Tung Tau Tsuen Road.

The buildings at the back used to form part of the western edge of the slum which would put the filming action pretty much in the centre of today's adjoining Carpenter Road Park near (or perhaps on) the site of the Kowloon City Plaza mall (it was built in 1993).

Yellowthread Street (TV Series) - Bruce Payne (1990) - Kowloon Walled City, Kowloon

One of the scenes from Rummy's Cut involves the gang heading over to the former Walled City in Kowloon to investigate the death of poor old Rummy.

The first scene is a panning shot that tracks from left to right across the outside of the tenements before moving down to focus on the unmarked police car. Rather than stick a bunch of screencaps here I was have managed to stitch a bunch of shots together to make the rather interesting picture below.

Here are a few more shots from inside the Walled City, but it's nothing that we haven't seen before such as in Bloodsport.

Bloodsport - Jean Claude Van Damme (1987) - Tin Hau Temple, Kowloon Walled City, Kowloon

Well, we've seen the outside of the walled city, we've seen a few shots taken inside some of the alleyways inside the walled city, now here we have a picture of the city's Tin Hau Temple.

I scratched my head for a while wondering if this was filmed in a studio or actually done on location and have come to the conclusion that it was on location. Why? Well, because thanks to the Facebook group: Kowloon Walled City 九龍城寨 (九龍城砦), I found a picture of the temple front allowing me confirm its identity.

The above picture was grabbed from the title sequence, but we return to the same location later with ol' Gibbsy and Van Damage as they enter what is supposed to be the venue for the Kumite. I believe the actual fight scenes were filmed at Clearwater Bay Studios on Ying Yip Road.

A nice touch with the pot plant...

So anyway, here is the picture from the above mentioned Facebook group. Incidentally, this Tin Hau temple has been mentioned elsewhere in the arts world and I distinctly remember Martin Booth making a reference to it in his memoir "Gwei Lo/Golden Boy".

What I can't quite determine at the moment, because I lack a decent map, is whereabouts in today's Walled City Park the Tin Hau Temple would have been located. As far as I know it was demolished along with the rest of the place (although some older buildings were preserved e.g the Almshouse), however, it's a while since I ventured there and perhaps it still stands in some corner somewhere. Failing that an approximation of its location would be nice. I will try and find out...

Bloodsport - Jean Claude Van Damme (1987) - Kowloon Walled City, Kowloon

Not much to say about this next collection of screen grabs other than they show what the 'Walled City' used to look like - both inside and out.

Lots of dark alleyways that would intimidate even the hardiest explorer. For more photos inside the Daily Mail has a great gallery of pictures here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2139914/A-rare-insight-Kowloon-Walled-City.html

Bloodsport - Jean Claude Van Damme (1987) - Tung Tau Tsuen Road, Kowloon

Okay, after being led around the houses by Victor, our next shot shows the Kowloon Walled City proper - or at least part of it - from the vantage point of Tung Tau Tsuen Road. You really have to see to believe how much of a difference has been made since the 'city' was demolished (circa 1994). Here is the road as seen on film.

You can tell we are looking at Kowloon Walled City just by noticing the height of the buildings in the background - no other place in HK really had this style of 'improvised' skinny highrise in such great quantity. Anyway, our key reference to its modern day identification is actually the building on the right hand side of the grabs which is called Mei Tung Estate.

Yes...that is the same road (it runs along what was the north face of the walled city) and those are the same buildings belonging to the Mei Tung estate on the right! Of course the walled city was replaced by the walled city park - a very nice place to visit if you ever come to HK.