A co-production of Shaw Brothers and the Nikkatsu Studio during the mid-60s, this James Bond inspired spy thriller stars a very young and less experienced Jimmy Wang Yu as secret agent Yang Ming Hsuan, who works for the Japanese brunch of APSS (Asia Police Secret Service). George (Jo Shishido) is a Japanese- Malaysian criminal who smuggles gold in Asia; furthermore, he wants to bring down the Japanese economy just because his Japanese father is responsible for the death of his mother. Upon learning about George's evil plan, APSS promptly sends Agent Yang after him. Consequently, the cat-and -mouse game is on, sending him trotting from Japan to Hong Kong and finally a showdown in an ocean tanker full of gold in Macau. Yang also believes that the death of a wealthy businessman who might actually be his long- lost father is the doing of George's outfit.
Both Jimmy Wang Yu and Jo Shishido were stars on the rise in 1967; therefore, pairing them in a movie to thrill their fans was only a natural move. Unfortunately, Jimmy is less convincing playing a suave spy in suits and looks relatively stiff next to the much older and experienced Japanese actor. Maybe this has to do with the language problem or one's not used to see him in a modern setting. He's definitely more comfortable playing an angry protagonist with limited emotional range in his wuxia movies.
In spite of this, in the sequences shot in Hong Kong, things do improve greatly when he interacts with local actor Wang Hsieh who plays the double agent Lai Yu Tian. They even engage in a brief fist fight which is one of the movie's highlights. Another up and coming Shaw Brothers star Fang Ying plays the role of Ming Hua, a pretty young woman working for George, who later turns out to be Yang's long-lost sister. Both these actors have good chemistry with Jimmy; it's a pity that she's not given a much meatier part here.
Of course the stand out performance here is from the cool villain George, played wonderfully by Jo Shishido who steals the show every time he appears on screen. Oozing with charisma, very confident and right at home with this kind of role and it's a pleasure to watch him. In any case, he's one of the Nikkatsu Studio's biggest stars who continued to shine in “A Colt is my Passport” and Seijun Suzuki's memorable “Branded to Kill”.
Sachiko is the beautiful secretary of APSS, played by the equally lovely celebrated actress Ruriko Asaoka. Even though she's seen as a flirtatious love interest to Agent Yang, her character is revealed here as that of a strong and capable one. Unfortunately, their chemistry doesn't quite set the screen on fire; moreover, both she and Shishido are in a different league while sharing the screen with Jimmy.
The action sequences are more like scuffles instead of the martial arts variety which the Shaw Studio is famous for. Shootouts are also poorly staged, all lacking in suspense and excitement.
“Asia-Pol” looks and feels like a Japanese movie even though it has the Shaw Brothers stamp on it, mainly because of the involvement of the Japanese filmmakers. For a start, we get to see the real mid-sixties outdoor locations and landmarks of Japan, Hong Kong and Macau come to life on the widescreen. All this, plus the added bonus of some lively jazz soundtrack, result in a truly memorable experience.
Furthermore, the ladies look gorgeous in their trendy dresses and neat haircuts of the 60s. The male stars look equally cool too in their fitted suits and dark shades. Besides, there's the novelty of seeing both the Chinese and Japanese actors working together in real locations, all of which making “Asia-Pol” worth watching.
