Year of the Dragon

Audience Reviews

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Luke W Apr 11, 2019 Unfortunately I'm as impressed as others on this. For a start you don't kill the shop keeper you want to extort protection m oney from for one simple reason - he won't be able to pay. Also Rourke has to be the worst shooter on the force - you don't wave your gun about when firing, you keep it steady, no wonder he couldn't hit a barn door at twenty paces. No, I wasn't enthralled, it wasn't even close to something Scorsese would have directed, it was a bit lame. In fact it was a bit clappy. See more

Abraham R Sep 17, 2018 Scenes are cliche. The acting is over the top and unbelievable. Cimino lost his touch. Rouke is too young to play this cop. Some of the story makes no sense. Stereotypes: rogue cop, organized immigrant crime, infidelity sex scenes/girlfriend, shot in the face. See more

Harry G Apr 2, 2018 One of Mickey Rourke's best films, a good plot and great acting... this was a movie that was ahead of it's time. Rourke was looked over for his talent and incredible acting performance in this role, for the same reason Eric Roberts was overlooked for his role in Pope of Greenwich Village --- Hollywood politics, that's it. See more

Theodore S May 3, 2017 Starts off good, then noticeably and gradually becomes ridiculous. Rourke and Cimino being about the only good thing.

Luke S May 5, 2012 Teaming up director Michael Cimino with actor Mickey Rourke, Year of the Dragon presented a collaboration of talent on both sides of the camera. Michael Cimino stands as a memorable director in my eyes for having crafted the exciting Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974) and the epic war masterpiece The Deer Hunter (1978), the latter which I consider to be one of the greatest films ever made. However, the director since became more notorious for his industry-changing box office flop Heaven's Gate (1980). So Year of the Dragon comes within a brief span of one of the greatest films ever made and another said by many to be among the worst. But nevertheless I have always had an appreciation for the director's sense of style, and so to see that applied to a screenplay by Academy Award winning writer Oliver Stone would really suggest a great film in the works. Year of the Dragon was a film I had to watch twice. I perceived that it would be far more of an action-focused crime drama than it was, certifying the lack of understanding I carried about Oliver Stone at the time. Upon viewing it again a second time, I was easily able to identify that in actual fact it was Michael Cimino's attempt at a neo-noir. And it was quite an enjoyable one because as early as the beginning I could tell that there was an interesting story with Year of the Dragon. We are immediately thrown into the violent underworld of Chinatown gang wars and the merciless nature of those involved before the classic noir protagonist enters the fray with his vigilante determination to end the wars. The dialogue immediately explores the futility of his intentions and contextualizes the world of the story, so audiences are prepared for what to expect. There isn't necessarily too much of a mystery in the film since while Stanley White gets closer to understanding the mysteries in the gang wars, audiences are consistently presented with scenes depicting the antagonists of the story discussing their next decisions. But as a result, we see the impending war between the detective and the gangsters building its story up on both sides which is frequently enough to compensate. Ultimately with its investigation of drug trade and examination of racial issues, Year of the Dragon is an interesting hybrid of Graham Greene's classic novel The Quiet American (1955) and William Friedkin's Best Picture Oscar winner The French Connection (1971). However, one hole in the writing is the sense that the character development in Year of the Dragon is insufficient. Everybody is some kind of archetype or even a racial stereotype, but the protagonist Stanley White is one who has a lot of strong potential. The story hints at the notion that his determination to combat the Chinatown gang wars is driven by his desire to emerge victorious from a perceived return to the Vietnam War, but there is nothing done with this theme. We don't know the background of the character or the personal struggles he had. On top of that, his deteriorating marriage is played off more as a subplot than for much actual character building. And when he seeks solace in a younger Asian woman much like in The Quiet American, we don't gain any greater understanding of the man's psyche. The man's confusion with race and the wreckage of his past in old age all seems to be contributing factors to this, but understanding it is left to the imagination of viewers. Year of the Dragon forsakes the potential of its characters to explore its concepts, and that can prove rather unfulfilling. And one of the lesser elements that Year of the Dragon retains from its noir roots is a rather plodding pace. There is consistently a lot more happening in the story which keeps the narrative consistently moving, but there is nevertheless an abundance of talking in conversations that go on for a long time. There is a feeling that the dialogue can prove rather arbitrary at times and the conversations can go on for longer than they've needed to. While Year of the Dragon has some really striking moments, their power can wear off soon after due to the presence of rambling. Some of the most powerful moments in the film are entirely stylish exercises such as the climactic finale, but the succeeding moments of dialogue can take their impact away over time. The worst example of this comes after that finale where there is one more scene in the film which just didn't need to be there, an uplifting final scene which removes the nihilistic drama of the violence that preceded it and concludes the film with the confusingly worded line "You were right and I was wrong. I'd like to be a nice guy. But I just don't know how to be nice". I have no idea what all that means, but I just know the film would be more powerful without that entire scene. Nevertheless, Year of the Dragon gains a lot of points for its sense of style. Michael Cimino's visionary talents are great in this production as the man manages to capture a very 80's feeling while also retaining the sophistication of a strong neo-noir. The film manages to grasp much the same feeling of Big Trouble in Little China (1986) with the obvious absence of the fantasy themes, and the presence of both actors Dennis Dun and Victor Wong reinforces that. The sound stages the feature was shot on manage to look astoundingly like on-location scenery and are vibrant with colour and oriental art direction while the cinematography manages to capture every detail of it. The shots are intelligently handled as there are strong tracking shots and an appropriate use of varying angles to grap the intense mood of many scenes, and they help to reinforce the intensity of the violent moments. The visual style, violence and diverse soundtrack including some gentle acoustic melodies from David Mansfield all highlight a progressive approach to the neo-noir genre while its setting harkens back to the pinnacle of the genre in Roman Polanski's Chinatown (1974). The soundtrack is very 80's in some scenes to capture the manic energy of the era while it is extremely peaceful and almost melancholic in others to convey the emotional struggles of Stanley White. This occasionally creates a tonal inconsistency by making the general mood of each scene somewhat ambiguous. But there isn't much of a consistent issue with this as music is used sparingly throughout the film while most of the time there is tension developing from the natural drama of the subject matter. And ultimately the soundtrack does prove appropriately atmospheric all in all. Credit must also be given to the cast, led by the immensely talented Mickey Rourke. My desire to come back and watch Year of the Dragon a second time stemmed heavily from the performance of Mickey Rourke. It wasn't as remarkable as I remembered, but the man is still a solid lead. His character Stanley White has a lot lying beneath him that the script fails to grasp, but the man carries an inherently masculine feeling to him which makes him an ideal neo-noir investigator. But at the same time he is more edgy due to his Jersey roots, making the character an interesting figure. Mickey Rourke maintains strong confidence in the role and dominates the conversations without having to use the highest class of wording, offering audiences a more realistic alternative to the noir protagonist. The actor manages to capture his character's internal struggles through his physicality and draws raw aggression out during the action scenes, leading the story with intense dedication. Mickey Rourke manages to balance both the gentle spirit and serious anger of a damaged human being while keeping a likable charm about him, working with Michael Cimino a second time to deliver a strong effort. John Lone can also be credited as delivering a strong performance. Being the one actor to earn a Golden Globe nomination for the film, John Lone manages to impeccably capture the ruthless nature of Joey Tai. He carries the sophistication and restraint to keep his intentions very internal, making for an effectively manipulative villain. Yet through the intense stare in his eyes and implicit line delivery, he manages to keep himself consistently charming without breaking out the full extent of his emotional intensity until the film's climax. John Lone's restrained sophistication makes a strong contrast to the more unhinged nature of Stanley White, creating a strong rivalry for the stor. The aforementioned presence of Dennis Dun and Victor Wong is also refreshing due to their activism in films from the 1980's reinforcing the decade-defining nature of the film. Caroline Kava also brings in a strong effort with her small amount of screen time due to the sheer vulnerability she expresses in her chemistry with Mickey Rourke. However, the leading performance from Ariane comes with much greater ambivalence. The main reason she is present in the film is as the subject of Stanley White's emotional conflict and as part of the fetishized Asian female stereotype, and in that sense she has both the sex appeal and natural charm to capture the part. But when it comes time for her to display some actual emotion, we see the full limitations of her acting ability. Whenever Ariane shouts, she goes into the most one-dimensional over-the-top melodrama known to all of humanity. She continues this tone of line delivery when she goes into crying fits as well. Ariane has no problem as a background character, but when it comes to actually putting any real change of tone into her character we see that her inexperience prevents her from actually going anywhere. Year of the Dragon is a relatively slow film without sufficient character development to support its length, but Michael Cimino's brilliant sense of style and Mickey Rourke's engaging lead performance makes for a sufficiently intense neo-noir with a strong use of violence and social commentary. See more

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Year of the Dragon

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