Not to be confused with director Zhang Yimou's acclaimed 2002 effort of the same name, director Corey Yuen's 1997 crime drama is loosely based on the 1972 feature Boxer From Shantung. As thousands of refugees make their way from Shantung to Shanghai, Ma Wing Jing (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and his brother Ma Tai Cheung (Yuen Wah) follow the horde in hopes of finding a better life in China's largest city. When Ma Wing Jing discovers that the whole of Shanghai is run by a mere two triad bosses, his appetite for power is only exceeded by his unquenchable thirst to make a name for himself in the criminal underworld. Though it appears that his friendship with triad head Tam See (Yuen Biao) has served well to set him on the fast track to notoriety, Ma Wing Jing's hasty takeover of one of rival crime boss Yang Shuang's (Yuen Tak) provinces soon sparks a desperate and bloody turf war.
~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide