Drenched in Mayhem: A Review of ‘Fatal Termination’ – Hong Kong’s Explosive Action Spectacle!

Hong Kong action films absolutely drip with style and panache. Fatal Termination (Chi se da feng bao)is no exception. Honestly speaking I have never watched much in the Hong Kong action genre except John Woo’s early material (Bullet in the Head, A Better Tomorrow 2, Hard Boiled, The Killer, Heroes Shed No Tears) and his films absolutely astounded me. Woo invented the stylized violent gun play we see in mostly every action film past and present stabilized with the help of actor Chow Yun Fat. Bullet in the Head was also released around the same time as Fatal Termination, in 1990, and features actors Woo used in some of his films.

Director Andrew Kam (The Big Heat) pulled out all the stops stunt wise in Fatal Termination. The film was made in an era of filmmaking which the world will never see again. Ridiculous stunts which gave zero fucks about safety or in one particularly infamous scene, the disregard for children and actually putting them in harm’s way. Let us rejoice in awe and jaw-dropping glory at the spectacle that is Fatal Termination. 

Wai Loong (a young Robin Shou of Mortal Kombat) is a corrupt custom’s official, running guns with illegal arms dealer Ko Mok-Fu (Phillip Ko). Political division agent Jimmy Lee (Simon Yam of Dr. Lamb) is hot on his trail but things get complicated as another cop named Miu (Kiu-Wai Miu) gets involved and killed leaving his sister, Moon (prolific Moon Lee of Devils Hunters), and his brother in-law, John (Ray Lui), who is also a police officer (and a Chow Yun Fat look-alike to boot!) to pick up the pieces.

Fatal Termination results in a web of double crosses, betrayal, revenge, car chases, shootouts, a crazy roof top confrontation a furious high-octane finale with helicopters, more car chases, and explosions galore.

The subtitles were sub-par with the version I watched, which was basically broken English that were really hard to follow. Fatal Termination (the title is sort of a double negative) is definitely sought after and known simply for its dangerous stunts. Lacking the firepower and budget of John Woo’s epic displays of bullet ridiculed mayhem, instead, the viewer is fed a couple of memorable and flabbergasting scenes to amuse.

During an underground parking garage shootout multiple innocent bystanders are mowed down and caught in the crossfire. The young daughter of Moon and John named Yan Yan (Cheuk Yan Chan) has her hair grabbed by a sadistic grinning buffoon (Mike Abbott) with his hand dangling the young girl out the passenger side window while the car speeds off. Yan Yan’s mother, Moon, literally jumps into action on the hood of the car in an attempt to save her daughter but you can see the look of terror on the child’s face and the stunt doesn’t look faked in any shape or form. This scene alone has made Fatal Termination infamous. 

In a rooftop showdown, explosives are strapped to Moon, Yan Yan, and a friend/police officer named Billy (Kwok Leung Cheung). Let’s just say a body plunges off the rooftop with explosives attached practically disintegrating the body in the air in a crazy blood-soaked sequence. Fatal Termination is just a crazy film. It seems everyone just naturally knows kung fu and to top it all off, people are smoking cigarettes in every conceivable place.

In the finale, endless hand grenades are thrown and seem to detonate instantly before they hit the ground. Everyone has terrible aim until it’s time to wrap things up. The conclusion is not as satisfying as I had hoped considering all the shit poor Moon and her husband John went through. Fatal Termination is a memorable action time piece which I recommend checking out just for its bonkers antics (Fatal Termination did get a recent Blu-Ray release from Error 4444 but sold out immediately).

AKA: Death Blow, Chi se da feng bao, 赤色大風暴 , 平凡英雄

Directed by: Andrew Kam
Written by: Chi-Ming Pang
Produced by: Man-Chung Ma
Editing by: Wing-Chan Leung
Music by: David Wu
Special Effects by: Siu-Jan Choi
Cast: Robin Shou, Phillip Ko, Simon Yam, Kiu-Wai Miu, Moon Lee, Ray Lui, Cheuk Yan Chan, Mike Abbott, Kwok Leung Cheung
Year: 1990
Country: Hong Kong
Language: Cantonese (English Subtitles)
Colour: Colour
Runtime: 1h 29min

Studio: Regent Film
Distributor: Golden Sun Films Distribution, Error 4444