After murdering the leader of a rival gang, childhood best friends Ah Bee, Fai Jai, and Sau Ming flee Hong Kong for wartime Vietnam, hoping to make their fortune from a risky smuggling job. Greed, betrayal, and bloodshed derail their fresh start, putting their vows of loyalty to an extreme test.

Originally intended as a prequel to A Better Tomorrow, John Woo’s sprawling parable features an impressive early-career turn from Tony Leung Chiu-wai. Pushing questions of honor and loyalty to baroque excess, this tale of friendship tested by fire deepens wartime horrors with the trauma of betrayal.