A Better Tomorrow III: Love and Death in Saigon (1989)

A Better Tomorrow 3: Love & Death in Saigon (Chinese: 英雄本色3-夕陽之歌; pinyin: Yīngxióng běnsè sān – xīyáng zhī gē; Jyutping: Jing1hung4 bun2sik1 saam – zik6joeng4 zi1 go1) is a 1989 Hong Kong action drama film co-produced and directed by Tsui Hark. It is a loosely-based prequel to John Woo's A Better Tomorrow, though it was released after A Better Tomorrow 2.

The film was directed by Tsui Hark, the producer behind the first two films in the series. John Woo wrote a screenplay for a third installment, but he never got to direct it due to having had artistic differences with Tsui Hark during the filming of the second film. Instead, the original screenplay later became Bullet in the Head. The two films have many parallels, most notably, both being set in the Vietnam War.

The film stars Chow Yun-fat, who reprises his role of Mark Gor from the first film, Tony Leung Ka-fai and Anita Mui. Set during the Vietnam War, it sets up the story of how Mark became the character he was in the original film. The second part of the title Love & Death in Saigon (夕陽之歌 or Song of the Setting Sun in Chinese) is also the title song for this movie, sung by Anita Mui, who was also the leading lady in this third installment.

Synopsis

In 1974, during the final days of the Vietnam War, Mark Lee (Chow Yun-Fat) arrives in Saigon, intending to bring his uncle Ten (Shih Kien) and cousin Cheung Chi-Mun (Tony Leung Ka-Fai) back to Hong Kong with him. Just after arriving at the airport, Mark is confined by corrupt security guards who strip and attempt to rob him, but he is saved by a mysterious woman named Kit (Anita Mui), who seems to have some measure of influence.

Actors