Donnie Yen plays drug lord from ’70s Hong Kong

In his career spanning three decades, actor Donnie Yen has starred as many heroes, such as a martial arts master in the Ip Man franchise and as a blind monk in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

So, it may be not a surprise that he was at first unsure about joining Chasing the Dragon, a new crime action movie based on the true story of Ng Ski-ho (1930-91), an infamous drug lord in Hong Kong in the 1960s and ’70s.

The movie will be released on Sept 30.

“I have had a goal for a long time that I hope my movies can transfer positive energy. So, when director Wong Jing invited me to play Ng, I initially hesitated,” says Yen, during a Beijing event to promote the movie last week.

He was concerned that it would be difficult to explain to his children and their classmates about the screen transformation from a hero to a ruthless criminal.

But Wong, one of the most prolific film directors in Hong Kong, helped him overcome such concerns. The director made Yen believe that the role would become a breakthrough in his career as he had not played such a role earlier. Besides, the movie marks his first teaming up with Andy Lau, one of the most celebrated stars in Hong Kong showbiz.

“It was a very exciting experience. I’ve learned a lot of acting skills from Lau,” says Yen, 54, whose most pivotal awards are in the action choreography sector.

To better play the role, Yen recruited a coach to teach him to speak in the Teochew dialect, as Ng was born and raised in Shantou, Guangdong province, where it is spoken.

But Yen decided the movie will not be a simple goodversus-evil story. As one of the movie’s executive producers, Yen pondered about his character who is conflicted while trying to be a good husband, brother and a crime boss all at the same time.

With approval from Ng’s family, Chasing the Dragon chronicles the rise and fall of Ng, also known as “Crippled Ho”, and his complex brotherhood with a corrupt police officer during a time in Hong Kong when Ng controlled the majority of drug trafficking there. He was arrested in 1974 and sentenced to 30 years behind bars.

For Wong, whose films have received mixed reviews in the past, Chasing the Dragon could be a turning point. After the sneak previews held last week in Beijing, the movie got audience praise.

“I had worked hard on the previous titles. I may have wrongly used my diligence,” Wong says of some of his past movies that reviewers have criticized.

Chasing the Dragon is a Chinese equivalent of Once Upon a Time in America, the 1984 classic about some New York gangsters, Wong says.

To bring to life the thenlawless, densely-populated slums gathering gangsters in Hong Kong, Wong built a vast set to replicate the Kowloon Walled City, which was demolished in the mid1990s.

The film also depicts some corrupt British police officers’ discrimination against their Hong Kong colleagues, which Wong says he wanted to expose.

“In the past, I would say I don’t know if someone asked me what my favorite work is. But now I will give the answer — Chasing the Dragon,” says the 62-year-old filmmaker.