Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
In New York, racist Capt. Stanley White becomes obsessed with destroying a Chinese-American drug ring run by Joey Tai, an up-and-coming young gangster as ambitious as he is ruthless. While pursuing an unauthorized investigation, White grows increasingly willing to violate police protocol, resorting to progressively violent measures -- even as his concerned wife, Connie, and his superiors beg him to consider the consequences of his actions.
Year of the Dragon is a competent but uneven Michael Cimino crime thriller scripted by Oliver Stone. The plot has genuine ambition in its portrayal of Chinatown's criminal underworld and the obsessive, morally compromised protagonist, but it sprawls and stumbles under the weight of its own excesses and controversial racial politics. Mickey Rourke delivers a committed if abrasive performance as Stanley White, and John Lone is compelling as Joey Tai, though supporting roles are thinner. Cinematography by Alex Thomson is polished and atmospheric, capturing New York's Chinatown with style. The film has some novelty in its scale and the Cimino-Stone combination tackling ethnic crime territory, but it ultimately feels like a more conventional entry in the 80s cop-obsession genre. The ending is abrupt and unsatisfying, undercutting the dramatic momentum built throughout — a recurring weak point in an otherwise watchable if deeply flawed thriller.