‘Turning Point,’ ‘Lotus Lantern’ coming to DVD

Tai Seng’s November DVD releases include Herman Yau’s crime actioner TURNING POINT starring Anthony Wong, Wong Jing’s period comedy ON HIS MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE with Louis Koo, crime drama TACTICAL UNIT – THE CODE starring Simon Yam, and the 35-episode fantasy martial arts TV series LOTUS LANTERN.

TURNING POINT (2009)

“Brother Laughing (Michael Tse) is a member of the triads and works for the big boss, No. 1 (Anthony Wong). Due to a strong bond, No. 1 arranges for Laughing to join the Police Force to become his mole. Laughing graduated top of his class and because of his bad boy image attracted the attention of the Head of District Anti-Triad Squad who arranges his assignment as an undercover cop to infiltrate the mob. Laughing is now a double mole. How will Laughing contend with the law and the triad brotherhood? Also starring Francis Ng.” 100 minutes.

Features: 16×9 Widescreen. Cantonese and Mandarin 5.1 audio. Optional English and Chinese subtitles.

This film, which is based around a character from a popular Hong Kong TV series, marks the return of Shaw Brothers to film production. The studio has only produced a handful of films since 1985 when they shut down their filmmaking unit to focus on TV production and film distribution.

ON HIS MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE (2009)

“For generations, the Secret Royal Guards has been protecting the emperor. The 12 agents are named after the 12 Chinese Zodiac Animals and are assigned different duties. Among the current group, Agent 00Tiger is the best in martial arts while Agent 00Dog (Louis Koo) is considered the weakest as a bodyguard. His forte is in inventing strange impractical devices rather than practical kung fu. The Emperor and Empress (Sandra Ng) are selecting a suitor for their Princess while the Chief eunuch, Unicorn, is plotting to kill the emperor. Uncovering Unicorn’s evil plot, agent 00Dog decides to eliminate the enemy in his own way.” 98 minutes.

Features: 16×9 Widescreen. Cantonese and Mandarin 5.1 audio. Optional English and Chinese subtitles.

Wong Jing is at it again, for better or worse.

TACTICAL UNIT – THE CODE (2009)

PTU officer, Jim, and his team beats up Shing, a habitual criminal, while on duty and the incident was captured by CCTV. The team is going to arrest Shing and solve the problem their own way. In the midst of this, Jim’s teammate, Double Eight, receives a letter from Wong about his big debt problem, forcing Double Eight to return his gun to the station after Shing’s chase. However, while chasing Shing, Double Eight induces his unstable emotion who decides to use his gun to do the last thing for himself…. 90 minutes.

Features: 16×9 Widescreen. Cantonese and Mandarin 5.1 audio. Optional English and Chinese subtitles.

The trailer above might look familiar with Simon Yam in police uniform. This is a TV movie spinoff of Johnnie To’s PTU with Yam and other members of To’s cast regulars back for more gritty crime drama, only on a smaller budget.

LOTUS LANTERN [TV] (2007)

Based on a famous Chinese myth, LOTUS LANTERN is the story of Chen Xiang, an ordinary man who was surprised to find out that his mother was a fairy that broke the heaven’s rule by marrying a mortal. With help, Chen Xiang acquires the magical Lotus Lantern and learns wizardry from a fox spirit, so that he can rescue his mother from the heaven’s prison. Filled with marvelous visual effects, LOTUS LANTERN is a wonderful, imaginative fantasy with a distinctive Chinese flavor. 1575 minutes.

Features: 4:3 Full Screen. Cantonese and Mandarin 5.1 audio. Optional English and Chinese subtitles.

I have no idea if the music featured in the preview above is related to the series or if this is just a fan mash up.