Writer: Naseem Randhawa

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Watch this if you liked: "Triad", "Young And Dangerous", "A Better Tomorrow", "The Godfather" & "American Gangster"

"The Last Tycoon" is a gangster story with heart which in a nutshell, is somewhat rather a Chinese version of "The Godfather" which sees Chow Yun-Fat taking a break from Hollywood to indulge his talents once again through Asian cinema.

Yun-Fat plays Cheng Daqi, one of the yesteryear tycoons of the 40's that ruthlessly ruled over Shanghai. The movie explores his rise to the top from his meager beginnings while he tries to forge and maintain relationships via his hectic underworld circle.

The main draw of the film however is not through its predictable storyline, which to be fair is partly based on historical mob accounts - but the star studded cast that carry the movie above par with their performances alone. Emotions hold more weight than violence in the plot and that's what Yun-Fat effortlessly conveys on screen as he tries to manage the conundrums of being part of the criminal world. Huang Xioming who plays the younger version of Yun-Fat's character also pulls his chops just as equally and both the actors are very reminiscent of Al Pacino's role in "The Godfather" which similarly also featured a story that followed his younger and older self.

With the two actors decently balancing the weight of the movie on their shoulders, viewers are also treated to notable performances by martial arts veteran Sammo Hung along with Monica Mo and Yuan Li, which is actually another plus point for the movie for where a good performance by a star-studded ensemble is concerned.

As far as Hong Kong gangster movies go, "The Last Tycoon" is one that stands out mostly due to the emotional play that it successfully evokes depicted through the harsh undertones of one's unforgiving underworld life.

Cinema Online, 06 January 2013