Year of the Dragon
Year of the Dragon

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- 68/100 based on 16,965 votes

Chinatown, New York City. There has long been an unofficial agreement that the NYPD will leave the traditionally run Chinese triad alone to manage the crime issue in the neighborhood, the triad who is the face of organized crime of Chinatown. The triad also has an unofficial agreement with the Italian mafia, still seen as the major player in organized crime in the city, to be cooperative in a win-win situation in their illegal activities. However, the Chinese youth gangs are ... (Full plot summary below)

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Actors in Year of the Dragon:

Mickey Rourke
John Lone
Ariane
Leonard Termo
Raymond J. Barry
Caroline Kava

Full Plot Details

Chinatown, New York City. There has long been an unofficial agreement that the NYPD will leave the traditionally run Chinese triad alone to manage the crime issue in the neighborhood, the triad who is the face of organized crime of Chinatown. The triad also has an unofficial agreement with the Italian mafia, still seen as the major player in organized crime in the city, to be cooperative in a win-win situation in their illegal activities. However, the Chinese youth gangs are disregarding these unofficial agreements, being another violent player in the crime scene in Chinatown, they who take a stand by killing Jackie Wong, the head of the triad. To deal with the matter, the NYPD reassign Captain Stanley White from Brooklyn to Chinatown. Stanley, of Polish heritage, is not averse to slinging slurs toward his adversaries, most of those of a racial nature. This reassignment will not help the already deteriorating marriage he has to his long suffering wife, Connie. While Stanley is supposed to target his efforts against the youth gangs, he instead decides to target his efforts against Joey Tai, Jackie's son-in-law who has taken over the triad. Stanley's actions do not sit well with his superiors who want to honor their long held tradition of leaving the triad alone. Although Joey convinced the triad elders that they needed a more vigorous leadership which he could accomplish, Joey, in reality, may have more to do with the increased violence in Chinatown than they realize, including Jackie's murder. In achieving his goal, Stanley co-opts the assistance of Herbert Kwong, a neophyte NYPD officer to go undercover to infiltrate Joey's organization, a job for which his training may make him ill-prepared. Also to further his goals, Stanley begins a love-hate relationship with Tracy Tzu, an American born ethnic Chinese reporter who works the Chinatown beat for an English language network. As Joey goes about his business and Stanley tries to bring him down, the battle between the two becomes personal, which places those around them in danger. The question becomes whether each will survive the battle, not only against each other but by their respective organizations who may not see what they're doing as maintaining what was the on the surface peace that existed in Chinatown before the current problems.

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Movie Reviews

Associated Press - 10/10 by Bob ThomasUnquestionably, Cimino’s eye for detail and insistence thereon has paid off in his impressive recreation of Chinatown at producer Dino De Laurentiis’ studios in North Carolina. Crammed with an array of interesting characters, including the extras in the background, Dragon brims with authenticity.
Los Angeles Times - 9/10 by Sheila BensonYear of the Dragon has an arrogant, electric energy that dares you to look away from the screen for an instant. Do so and you miss a furious piece of action that has bubbled up, seemingly out of nowhere.
Newsweek - 8/10 by David AnsenIt so often is a joy to look at and so often a pain to listen to.
Miami Herald - 8/10 by Bill CosfordCimino's talent is at least 50 percent hot air, but the part that is not—his superb feel for movement across the Panavision frame—seems especially valuable. Say what you will about his overstuffed, overdetailed images, they at least represent a notion of cinema, as opposed to the flat television aesthetic that dominates Hollywood, that no film lover can afford to ignore.
Movie Metropolis - 6/10 by John J. PuccioBullets, blood, and bodies fly, but little rings true.
Christian Science Monitor - 5/10 by David SterrittEverything from the style to the casting feels grubby and worn.
Washington Post - 5/10 by Paul AttanasioCimino's instincts are right -- the movie is outsized, and it needs baroque dialogue; you get the sense that he'd recognize the right dialogue if he heard it. But when he actually has to come up with it, the result is a series of outrageous hooters: "I've got scar tissue on my soul"; "I carried the cross with you, in Brooklyn and in Queens."
The New York Times - 4/10 by Janet MaslinIn Year of the Dragon, a busy and elaborate film that manages to be inordinately messy, his tactics are a constant distraction, dissipating the viewer's interest at every turn.
The New Yorker - 3/10 by Pauline KaelDirector Michael Cimino turned YEAR OF THE DRAGON, an engrossing novel by Robert Daley, into a confused, overlong, preachy, and at times downright annoying crime epic with a wholly unsympathetic main character played by the totally miscast Mickey Rourke.
User Review - 10/10 by Cassandra MYear of the Dragon is something of a little known masterpiece. It is well written by Oliver Stone, and directed by Cimino at a turning point in his career. The centre piece, however, is Rourkes performance, which was caught while he most likely was at the peak of his acting ability's. You will be totally blown away by the realism of his acting, and it's even more noteworthy that the film was made while Rourke was youthful while making this and was made to look more senior (that grey hair is dye). A heartfelt performance from an actor playing a cop with "scar tissue on his soul", will never be forgotten once seen. While the main character is far from perfect, it is just that which makes him believable as well. Stanley White is on a crusade and would die for his principles, which effects all those involved with him. It is a complex film, often talky, which is punctuated throughout with explosive violence, well shot with use of excellent set pieces. Bloody in places and above all gritty and realistic, in parts it is even beautiful. The film works on many levels from it's slow burn beginnings with emphasis on conspiracy to the final pay off on the dock yards. Well drawn characters are everywhere in this film, and it never losses its hard edge. Rourke has seen a much needed and deserved return in recent years. He may have lost his handsome good looks due to boxing and due to too many face lifts, but the guy will never lose his acting ability. We, the true fans, never gave up on this chance. And now he's finally gaining popularity with a new generation, who need to see and experience The Year Of The Dragon, To believe the hype. Also check out his other classics Angel Heart and Barfly.

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