Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - Kau Yi Chau, Western Harbour

Foiled at the ferry terminal, Flatfoot follows Chaplin to Macau by commandeering a helicopter (hence the last picture in the previous post). On his way we are treated to a view of what I assume is an American Aircraft carrier, junk boats in Aberdeen Harbour and finally a rather nice shot of Kau Yi Chau island - which lies about halfway between Hong Kong Island and Lantau.

Regular readers of my blog may also realise that Kau Yi Chau also goes by another name: Han's Island. It was the island used by Warner Bros featured on a B&W composite photo supposedly of aforementioned criminal mastermind's island fortress (the composite had King Yin Lei and the Palm Villa tennis courts superimposed). In Flatfoot in Hong Kong we see it 'au naturel' - as the green hilled, uninhabited island that it is.

Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - Hong Kong Macau Ferry Pier, Sheung Wan

Here's a place we've seen before - it featured on the previous year's effort starring Roger Moore. In this sequence we see Rizzo following Chaplin's mysterious character to Macau and therefore catch glimpses of the old ferry terminal and the car park in front that have long since been replaced by the Shun Tak Centre. We also get a quick glimpse at one of the old ferries called the "Nam Shan".

Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - H.M.S Tamar, Hong Kong

No, not a ship, just a very famous military base named after a ship. The famous waterside military base was taken over by the PLA in 1997 (of course) and the iconic blocky mushroom-like building was renamed to the "Chinese Peoples' Liberation Army Forces Hong Kong Building".

Another recent change is that it's no longer prime waterfront property, but like many other previous waterside location has now been moved slightly inland (relatively speaking) thanks to the Central to Wanchai reclamation project that now has the new Govt HQ sitting on it.

In 1975 it's not so much the Tamar site that is interesting (which it is of course) but rather what can or cannot be seen in the background. In the case of the snap below we can see the hillside behind and what used to be Victoria Barracks. This view is now completely blocked by Pacific Place and the barracks themselves have been replaced by Hong Kong Park. Some of the old barrack buildings remain, but not the ones you can see here on the hillside at the back.

Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - Chater Road, Central

We are suddenly spirited back to Hong Kong-side as Rizzo and the Japanese boy walk along Chater Road with the old Hong Kong Club building behind them, as well as the Cenotaph, City Hall and the Supreme Court Building. Rizzo sits the kid down on the side of one of the Statue Square pools.

Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - Macpherson Playground, Mongkok

At one point the heroes go to a sumo wrestling fight (in Hong Kong!?) before getting shot at and then Rizzo storms out of the arena and pops out of Macpherson playground onto Nelson Street. Things around here have changed a lot but look at the background and you can still see one of the old buildings there.

When I originally posted this location (back in 2012), I wasn't sure if the interior scenes were shot at the Macpherson stadium, but it turns out they were, so for this update (2025) I have also included shots from the Sumo arena. It was demolished/rebuilt smaller in 2008 to partially make way for a residential building, but the outdoor pitch is still there. If you look at the image on the right of this Wiki entry, you can see the curved roof of the old stadium.

Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - Hyatt Regency, Tsim Sha Tsui

With Nancy's demise and a little boy in their care, the guys head back to their hotel, which appears to be the old Hyatt Regency (formerly The President Hotel) on the block between Lock Road and Nathan Road. In the first image we are looking north up Lock Road with the hotel's car ramp on the right hand side. The hotel was demolished in 2006 and replaced by iSquare (a.k.a "Eye Sore").

Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - Tin Hau Temple, Repulse Bay

Our intrepid duo, Barella and Rizzo, now a team, follow a clue to a house next to a beach. Where are we now? The colourful Tin Hau shrine at the southern end of Repulse Bay beach. Here we find Nancy Sit playing a Japanese lady (or as I like to call her Nancy Zit because of the large mole on her forehead). For those who don't know, the ornate building here is not a temple but the club house of the Hong Kong Life Guard association.

The interior does appear to be the actual location, although I still have yet to go here to confirm.

Hung Gar Kung Fu - The Tiger Crane Form starring Chiu Chi Ling

A while ago I was asked by a friend (who is into kung fu in a big way) to identify the location used in the short film embedded below.

I'm not sure when it was filmed - possibly the late 70's or early 80's given that it's star - Chiu Chi Ling - looks fairly youthful still (though that could just be because of his hard Hung Gar practice bestowing healthy benefits...). But anyway it was filmed in Tsuen Wan at the Yuen Yuen Institute.I went there the other day and it looks exactly like it did when this film was made.

Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - Barker Road, The Peak

After Rizzo has hijacked a car to help him chase his quarry, we see a shot of them driving up a small road and under a bridge that is part of the tram track.

Barella alights at the Barker Road stop, not realising Rizzo anticipated his movements once again.
The Barker Road station has been seen in quite a few productions covered on this blog.

Flatfoot in Hong Kong - Bud Spencer (1975) - MacDonnell Road, Midlevels

Part of the aforementioned chase also takes place in and around various parts of the Peak Tram system. The first bit we see if the bridge over the tram track along MacDonnell Road in the Central Mid-levels area. Of course the tram still plows the same path it has done since day one but the surrounding areas have seen inevitable change and redevelopment.

What's changed? Well, the bridge is still there and it looks as though the same concrete balustrades are in place today although the bridge has had some sort of platform added on the higher side - perhaps to prevent people falling directly on the track? The bridge sides are quite low and it would be fairly easy for someone to be stupid enough and lean over and lose their balance. Here is the contemporary Streetview version. The residential building seen in the last image has since been replaced by a modern one called "Silvercrest".