is a 1977 Japanese-language

action Action may refer to: * Action (philosophy), something which is done by a person * Action principles the heart of fundamental physics * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video gam ...

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...

starring

Sonny Chiba , known internationally as Sonny Chiba, was a Japanese actor and martial artist. Chiba was one of the first actors to achieve stardom through his skills in martial arts, initially in Japan and later to an international audience. Born in Fukuo ...

as the international

assassin Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

Golgo 13. It is the second live-action movie based on the

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

series ''

Golgo 13 is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Takao Saito, published in Shogakukan's manga magazine ''Big Comic'' since October 1968. The series follows the title character, a professional assassin for hire. ''Golgo 13'' is ...

'', after the eponymous 1973 JapaneseIranian film starring

Ken Takakura , born , was a Japanese actor and singer who appeared in over 200 films. Affectionately referred to as "Ken-san" by audiences, he was best known for his brooding style and the stoic presence he brought to his roles. He won the Japan Academy Pri ...

Plot

Master assassin Duke Togo—codenamed "Golgo 13"—is hired by an American crime syndicate to kill Chou Lei Fang, a powerful member of the syndicate's Hong Kong branch who has been selling their drugs through his own channels. At the same time, he has to keep an eye out on Smith, a hard-boiled Hong Kong detective who is hell-bent on taking down Chou and his drug-manufacturing organization. One night, an undercover officer named Lin Li follows Chou and infiltrates his drug factory, but she is shot and captured by his henchmen. The next day, Smith locates Chou's factory after a group of children find Lin Li's communicator, but Lin Li is killed during a shootout and the factory is destroyed. By this time, both Chou and Smith have been made aware that Golgo is in Hong Kong. Smith has a personal vendetta on Golgo, who assassinated a foreign diplomat he was assigned to protect a year earlier. Because of this, Smith urges the police chief to issue a warrant to arrest Chou before Golgo gets to him first. The next day, during a ceremony to open a public swimming pool funded by Chou, Golgo prepares to shoot the drug lord from a nearby building, but a female Caucasian assassin named Leika gets to Chou first. While Smith and his men presume it was Golgo that killed Chou, Golgo suspects someone in Hong Kong higher than Chou ordered the hit. The American syndicate offers Golgo an extra US$100,000 to track down the mastermind. Shortly after Chou's funeral, his widow Li Hua and Leika are killed by Golgo while attempting to trap him and put him down. Golgo travels to Japan to follow Poranian diplomat Polansky, who had strong ties with Chou. There, he discovers that Polansky is seeking U.S. asylum from the FBI in exchange for vital information related to Chou's drug trafficking network. At the same time, Smith follows the trail and manages to arrest Golgo when the assassin returns to Hong Kong. Smith attempts to interrogate Golgo, but to no avail, as the assassin is released after police discover that it was Leika who assassinated Chou. On his way to the U.S. Embassy, Golgo is ambushed by a hitman named Schilz, but he kills Schilz, despite being shot in the leg. Meanwhile, Smith and his team discover that Polansky has been receiving drug shipments from all over Southeast Asia, but the police cannot touch him due to diplomatic immunity. Golgo recovers from his wound and heads for Sekirei Island, where Polansky is hiding. Despite having no jurisdiction, Smith and his men raid Sekirei Island. Polansky attempts to escape via helicopter, but Golgo - who is hanging by the side of a cliff, guns him down, sending him out of the helicopter and crashing into the ocean. His body and the briefcase containing evidence of his involvement with Chou's assassination are recovered by Smith's team. The next day, Golgo and Smith meet again at

Kai Tak Airport Kai Tak Airport was an international airport of Hong Kong from 1925 until 1998. Officially known as Hong Kong International Airport from 1954 to 6 July 1998, it is often referred to as Hong Kong International Airport, Kai Tak, or simply K ...

. Smith punches Golgo, vowing to lock him up should he ever return to Hong Kong.

Cast

as Duke Togo/Golgo 13 * Callan Leung as Dirk Chang Smith *

Etsuko Shihomi , now known by her married name , (born October 29, 1955 in Okayama City, Japan as ) is a Japanese actress and martial artist who appeared in several Japanese martial arts films and samurai film and TV productions of the 1970s and 1980s. Life a ...

as Lin Li *

Jerry Ito Jerry Ito (July 12, 1927 in New York City, New York – July 8, 2007 in Los Angeles, California) was a Japanese-American film and television actor, born as Gerald Tamekichi Itō, specializing in Japanese films throughout the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s ...

as Polansky * Alan Chui as Poison Spider Black Dragon (cameo) * Clayton as Rocky Brown * Yao Lin Chen as Chan * Emi Shindo as Yip Lin * Elaine Sung as Kong Laan * Dana as Leika *

Kōji Tsuruta , better known by his stage name , was a Japanese actor and singer. He appeared in almost 260 feature films and had a unique style of singing. His daughter, Sayaka Tsuruta, is an actress. Career Born in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Tsuruta was raised ...

as Senzō Shigemune

Home media

''Golgo 13: Assignment Kowloon'' was bundled with ''

The Bullet Train is a 1975 Japanese action thriller film directed by Junya Sato and starring Ken Takakura, Sonny Chiba, and Ken Utsui. When a Shinkansen ("bullet train") is threatened with a bomb that will explode automatically if it slows below 80 km/ ...

'' and ''

Executioner An executioner, also known as a hangman or headsman, is an official who effects a sentence of capital punishment on a condemned person. Scope and job The executioner was usually presented with a warrant authorizing or ordering him to ...

'' in the ''Kill Chiba Collection'' Region 1 DVD set by Crash Cinema on May 18, 2004. On November 20, 2007, BCI Eclipse released the film in their ''Sonny Chiba Collection'' DVD set, which also includes ''The Bullet Train'', ''

Dragon Princess ''Dragon Princess'' is a 1975 karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ), also , is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts ...

'', '' The Bodyguard'', ''

Karate Warriors originally titled in Japan as is a 1976 Japanese martial arts film starring Sonny Chiba. Plot Wandering karate master Shuhei Sakata ("Chieko" in the English-dub) stops by a port town where he meets a child named Osamu and his father Rensaku Mi ...

'', and ''

Sister Street Fighter is a 1974 martial arts film directed by Kazuhiko Yamaguchi. Produced and distributed by Toei Company, it is a spin-off of ''The Street Fighter'' (1974), and is the first entry in a trilogy of films starring Etsuko Shihomi as Kōryū Li. It was ...

''. In the UK, the film was bundled with ''The Bullet Train'' and '' G.I. Samurai'' in ''The Sonny Chiba Collection Vol. 2'' Region 2 DVD set by Optimum Home Releasing.

References

External links

* {{Golgo 13 1977 films 1977 action films 1970s Japanese films 1970s Japanese-language films Films set in Hong Kong Films set in Kyoto Films set in Macau Films set in Miami Films set in Tokyo Films set on islands Films shot in Hong Kong Films shot in Japan Films shot in Macau Golgo 13 Japanese action films Live-action films based on manga Toei Company films Works set in Kowloon Walled City