''Millionaires Express'' (, also known as ''The Millionaires' Express'' or ''Shanghai Express''; released in the Philippines as ''China Warriors'') is a 1986 Hong Kong

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

action comedy film The action comedy is a film genre that applies to action films where humor plays a much more central role. While early films feature stuntwork and humor, academic Cynthia King wrote that the genre only came into its own as a mainstay of the Americ ...

starring, written and directed by

Sammo Hung Samuel "Sammo" Hung Kam-bo ( zh, t=洪金寶, j=Hung4 Gam1-bou2; born 7 January 1952) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film producer and Film director, director, known for his work in martial arts films, Hong Kong action cinema, and as a figh ...

. The film co-stars

Yuen Biao Yuen Biao (born Ha Lingchun; 26 July 1957) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist and stuntman. He specialises in acrobatics and Chinese martial arts and has also worked on over 80 films as actor, stuntman and action choreographer. He was one o ...

, Rosamund Kwan, Fan Mei-sheng, and Hwang Jang-lee.

Plot

In Russia, Ching Fong-tin attempts to steal goods from Russian soldiers. They catch him and force him to strip down to his underwear and dance for their amusement. He escapes by stealing the soldiers' grenades and blowing up the cabin with them inside. Ching is immediately caught by government agent Fook Loi, but escapes and retrieves his clothes. In Ching's home town, policeman Jook Bo and his allies set fire to a large building, as a diversion for a bank robbery. Tsao Cheuk-kin and his fire team race to the scene and save a fat lady and a blind woman. While the fire rages, the criminals rob the bank; two of them are caught and jailed. Mayor Yi gives a negative speech lamenting that there is no chance of recovering the stolen money; in contrast, Tsao encourages the townsfolk, and he is given the job of head of the town's security. A train is due to pass the town, carrying numerous wealthy passengers including

Wong Kei-ying Wong Kei-ying or Huang Qiying (c. 1815–1886) was a Chinese Hung Ga martial artist and physician of Cantonese ethnicity, who lived during the Qing dynasty. He was one of the Ten Tigers of Canton and was best known for his use of the Tiger Crane ...

and his young son

Wong Fei-hung Wong Fei-hung (born Wong Sek-cheung with the courtesy name Tat-wun; 19 August 1847 – 17 April 1925) was a Chinese martial artist, physician, and folk hero. Though he was considered an expert in the Hung Ga style of Chinese martial arts, his r ...

, as well as three Japanese who are in possession of a stolen map showing the location of the

Terracotta Army The Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE with the purpose of protecting him in his aft ...

. A group of bandits conspire to steal the map; separately, Jook Bo's criminal group plan to board the train. Ching's ambition is to bring money into the town, so he intends to force the train to stop at the town by blowing up the tracks with

dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern German ...

. Ching recruits a group of women, including Chi and Siu-hon, and they clean up and redress a hotel. When questioned by Tsao, the women claim to be make-up artists. Ching places dynamite at the railway station, but is caught by Tsao; they fight, knocking Tsao out. As the train travels through the country, passenger Han uses the roof to sneak back and forth between his wife and his mistress. Jook Bo's criminals try to board the train, using magnets, a

lasso A lasso or lazo ( or ), also called reata or la reata in Mexico, and in the United States riata or lariat (from Mexican Spanish lasso for roping cattle), is a loop of rope designed as a restraint to be thrown around a target and tightened when ...

, and a cart. When the train reaches the station, Ching blows the dynamite, derailing the train. As Ching had planned, the passengers spend time in his home town awaiting the train's repair. In the hotel, the criminals seeking the map attempt to occupy the room housing Han's mistress, in order to spy on the three Japanese in the room next door. The criminals don't know the language, and are forced to hide when the train captain and his mistress enter the room. Han enters the room via the hotel roof, inadvertently scaring the train captain's mistress. The commotion alerts his wife, who accuses him of cheating. To explain the situation, Han claims that he is actually an agent spying on the Japanese, which prompts the criminals to emerge from hiding and share the same excuse. Fook Loi returns from Russia and uses Tsao to capture Ching and put him into jail. At night, Siu-hon and her group of ladies free Ching. An army of bandits arrives on horseback, storming the town and capturing the Japanese and other passengers. Ching returns to town and frees Fook, Tsao, Siu-hon and her women, and Jook Bo and his criminals from jail. Ching and Fook attack the bandits with a

multiple-barrel firearm A multiple-barrel firearm is any type of firearm with more than one gun barrel, usually to increase the rate of fire or hit probability and to reduce barrel erosion or overheating. History Volley gun Multiple-barrel firearms date back t ...

, while their allies free the Japanese and the other train passengers. A huge fight breaks out, until the bandits are dealt with and Ching and Tsao finally take back the map from the Japanese.

Cast

as Ching Fong-tin *

as Fire Chief Tsao Cheuk-kin * Rosamund Kwan as Chi *

Kenny Bee Chung Chun-to (born 23 February 1953), also known by his stage name Kenny Bee, is a Hong Kong singer, musician and actor. He is best known as the singer of the group the Wynners, and as a solo artist who has been active in the Hong Kong ent ...

as Fook Loi / Lai Fu *

Peter Chan Peter Ho-sun Chan (born 28 November 1962), also known as Peter Chan, is a Hong Kong-born filmmaker best known for directing films that span a wide range of genres, including romantic comedies, musical dramas, and historical epics. He is r ...

as Firefighter / Security Officer * Olivia Cheng as Siu-hon * Chin Kar-lok as Firefighter / Security Officer * Chin Siu Ho as Siu Cheung * Emily Chu as Prostitute Employee Bo * Chung Fat as Mountain Bandit * Fan Mei-sheng as Mountain Bandit (as Mei-sheng Fan) * Hsiao Ho as Siu Hau * Hwang Jang-lee as Yukio Fushiki * Yasuaki Kurata as Ninja * Phillip Ko as Mountain Bandit *

Lam Ching-ying Lam Ching-ying (; born Lam Gun-bo (); 27 December 1952 – 8 November 1997) was a Hong Kong stuntman, actor, martial artist and action director. As a practitioner of martial arts Lam starred in a number of notable films that found recognition o ...

as Security Officer / Bank Robber * Billy Lau as Train Captain *

Lau Kar-wing Lau Kar-wing (born 1944) is a martial artist, Hong Kong film director, action choreographer and actor. Background Born in the Xinhui District of Jiangmen in Guangdong, China, Lau Kar-wing was the fourth child of Lau Cham (), a martial arts mas ...

as Kang * Mang Hoi as Security Officer / Convict / Bank Robber (as Randy Mang) *

Richard Ng Richard Ng Yiu-hon (27 December 1939 – 9 April 2023), also known as Richard Woo, was a Hongkongers, Hong Kong actor known for playing comedic roles, particularly in Hong Kong films of the 1980s and 1990s. Film and television career Ng a ...

as Han *

Lydia Shum Lydia Shum Din-ha or Lydia Sum Tin Ha (; 21 July 1945 – 19 February 2008) was a Hong Kong-Canadian comedian, Master of Ceremonies, MC, actress and singer. Known for her portly figure, signature dark-rimmed glasses and bouffant hairstyle, she w ...

as Han's Wife * Richard Norton as Mountain Bandit *

Yukari Ôshima is a Japanese people, Japanese actress and martial artist. She gained prominence in Hong Kong and became popular in the Philippines as Cynthia Luster. Due to Philippine interest in Jackie Chan, she became Chan's pseudo-female equivalent. Biograp ...

as Female Ninja * Cynthia Rothrock as Mountain Bandit * Shih Kien as Master Sek * James Tien as Yun Shiyu / Shi Yu *

Eric Tsang Eric Tsang Chi-wai ( zh, t=曾志偉; born 14 April 1953) is a Hong Kong actor, film director, producer, and television host, best known for hosting the variety show ''Super Trio series'' on the Hong Kong television network Television Broadcasts ...

as Jook Bo * Jimmy Wang Yu as Master

* Dick Wei as Mountain Bandit * Woo Fung as Mayor Yi *

Wu Ma Fung Wang-yuen (22 September 1942 – 4 February 2014), better known by his stage name Wu Ma, was a Hong Kong actor, director, producer and writer. Wu Ma made his screen debut in 1963, and with over 240 appearances to his name (plus 49 directoria ...

as Security Officer / Convict / Bank Robber * Bolo Yeung as Cotton Weaver *

Yuen Wah Yuen Wah (born Yung Kai-chi; 2 September 1952) is a Hong Kong action film actor, action choreographer, stuntman and martial artist who has appeared in over 160 films and over 20 television series. Early life Born Yung Kai-chi on 2 September 195 ...

as Security Officer / Convict * Johnny Wang as Train Robber * Cho Tat-wah as Shanghai Chief Inspector * Teresa Ha as Cotton Weaver's Wife

Release

''Millionaires Express'' was released in Hong Kong on 30 January 1986. In the Philippines, the film was released as ''China Warriors'' by Asia Films on 2 August 1987, rated "G" by the

Movie and Television Review and Classification Board The Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB; ; is a Philippine government agency under the Office of the President of the Philippines that is responsible for the classification and review of television programs, motion p ...

Home media

The film was initially released on DVD in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

by Universe Laser (Region 0). It was re-released in 2006 by Joy Sales (Region 3). In the US it was released in 1999 by Tai Seng, under the title ''The Millionaires Express'' (with a leading "The"). It was re-released in 2007 by Dragon Dynasty under the title ''Shanghai Express''. In the UK it was released in 2005 by Hong Kong Legends / Contender Entertainment Group, under its original title. In July 2021, Eureka Entertainment released the film on

Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...

in the United Kingdom, under the title ''The Millionaires' Express'', as a two-disc set containing the 97 minute Hong Kong theatrical cut, the 101 minute extended version (a.k.a. the "international" cut), the 92 minute English export cut, and a new 109 minute "hybrid" cut. In September 2022, Eureka released a single-disc edition containing only the former two cuts of the film.

Notes

References

External links

*
The Millionaires Express at filmaffinity.com
{{Sammo Hung 1986 films 1986 action comedy films 1986 martial arts films 1980s Cantonese-language films 1980s Hong Kong films 1980s martial arts comedy films 1980s Western (genre) comedy films Films about bank robbery Films set on trains Films directed by Sammo Hung Golden Harvest films Hong Kong action comedy films Hong Kong martial arts comedy films Ninja films