Like David Chiang's character in THE GENERATION GAP, Wang Chung's "John" is pretty much doomed from the moment of birth: he's a delivery boy for a restaurant whose father toils away as a security guard in a warehouse. Moms is long gone, and the other teens refer to John as "having two fathers." Needless to say, he doesn't take this too well and proceeds to plant his fists (and feet) upside some heads. This attracts the attention of the local gang boss, Lam, who sets about recruiting our hero. (And anyone who thinks that Chang Cheh never really appreciated women, be advised that in THE DELINQUENT we see the camera linger lovingly over a well-endowed young woman's ample endowments...) The Big Boss decides to rob the warehouse where John's father works and convinces John (by bailing him out of jail when his father refused) to help engineer the robbery. John talks Dad into taking a night off and going to the movies with him, but another worker calls in sick and Dad has to go in. This sets up some down and dirty action in the warehouse. At one point, Dad makes a diving catch for a shotgun and comes up blasting in slow motion in a sequence that prefigures the John Woo gun fu films that followed. In fact, much of the action that follows seems to have inspired John Woo. THE DELINQUENT is an outstanding example of a top director at the top of his game.

From the first frame of "The Delinquent" it is obvious that this angry film is very unlike the pretty, stylish films known to come from the Shaw Bros, and director Chang Cheh. Artificial sets are done away with, in favor of real location shooting. The film captures the attention from the beginning, with close up shots of mouths, shoving greasy food in and chewing like wild dogs. The neighborhood is made up of cut throat thugs, and the landscape resembles a maximum security prison with it's dismal concrete buildings. Wang Chung, in a rare turn as the main character, is great as the young martial arts protégé, living with his hard-working father, after his mother has left them both. John Shen (Chung), frustrated with a life of poverty, is seduced by fast cars, expensive clothes and beautiful women, when a gang boss offers to hire him for his martial arts skills. A plan to rob the business where is father is security guard, goes wrong, and all hell breaks loose. 'Street Gangs..' is a very grim and serious film about betrayal and redemption and a lot of it is downright depressing. Ti Lu is excellent in the role of Shen's hardened, but decent father, and the cast is all around fine. Loaded with amazing camera work and artistic touches, this one is very unique within the genre. This isn't really a 'kung fu flick,' but rather a serious crime-drama with martial arts included. Even the English dubbing is done well, very seriously this time, although I would like to see it with the original Mandarin language track someday. Great, nihilistic film, and the last fifteen minutes has to be seen to be believed; if you are looking for a light kung fu flick with bad dubbing and silly scenarios, look elsewhere; "Street Gangs of Hong Kong" is not exactly light viewing...

The Delinquent (1973) was a Chang Cheh film set during the "modern" era circa 1973. A majority of the Shaw Brothers Action film productions were earlier costume productions. The delinquent was a hardcore violent bone crunching film about a poor kid who can never do nothing right in his father's eyes. Tired of having to work for a living and wearing "street" clothes, the kid (Chung Wang) decides to take a shot at the big time (crime). His fighting skills attract a local crime lord who wants him under his wing. He decides to woo the kid and get him to work in his syndicate. But after having to betray his father and watching him die at the hands of his employers. The kid snaps and wages a one man war against him and his syndicate.The kid destroys the boss' whore house/ opium den and races for his penthouse suite. He has to fight his way through his personal bodyguards in a blood drenched finale. Badly wounded, the kid fight's the boss one-on-one. The boss gut wounds the kid in the stomach with a spear gun. After killing the boss with his bare hands, he runs into the penthouse's picture window. As he falls to his death, he flashes back to major events in his live. Dying on the pavement the gawking on lookers are what he sees last before expiring on the hard pavement.Awesome!! Nothing but hardcore violence from the original innovator of violence. One of his protégés (John Woo) made a film career by copying off of this man. If you like bone crunching action with no flashy kung-fu crap then this is your movie. Bright red old fashion blood squibs, tooth rattling punches, blades and motorbikes! You'll be in heaven if you're a true fan of action films. No Hollywood nonsense here!Highly recommended.

This story of a misguided adolescent features one of the bleakest views of Hong Kong which can be found on celluloid: An urban moloch populated by slimy characters, a city without hope.Even if you don't like martial arts, watch this movie! It has some stunning widescreen cinematography and one hell of a finale!