One great HK gangster flick

It was one of greatest HK gangster thrillers that the HK film industry has to offer. There was one very impressive scene (in one shot using hand-held camera) filmed in the then notorious Kowloon City (see note 1). A policeman being taken hostage at gunpoint by a gangster running backwards retreating into the world where gangsters ruled. There was a whole squad of heavily armed police inching up to them while at the same getting deeper and deeper into a complete lawless part of the former colonial HK. The suspense was palpable. It will be difficult to track down this film now. But you could (and if you like HK thrillers), watch it!

Note: 1. The old Kowloon City was a tiny area of the Kowloon Penisula that was not covered under the Treaty of Nanking (ToN). Before the handover of HK back to the Chinese Government in 1997 it was a completely no-go area even for the police. It was filled with criminals, drug addicts and poor people who could not afford better housing. Officially it was not part of the colony, the law of HK was not applicable in this area. There was no law and order in this area.

The ToN was signed 200 years ago before the return of sovereignty of HK back to the Chinese from the British as a result of losing the so-called "Opium War". HK was conceded to the British Empire as a compensation. The Opium War was triggered by the Chinese government's (the Chin dynasty) attempt to remove the British merchants who sold opium in China at the time.