Here are seven of Yam’s most controversial films.

Gigolo and Whore (1991)

The unappealing English title of this film ought to give the game away. An early Category III film – the rating was introduced at the end of 1988 – Gigolo and Whore is one of many films from this era that feature Yam as a gigolo (we’ll leave it to readers’ imaginations as to why Yam was typecast this way).

What’s dubious here is Carina Lau’s character wanting to learn how to turn tricks from Yam, who provides much unvarnished instruction, and various shameless scenes lifted from Richard Gere and Julia Roberts’ Pretty Woman. The sequel (in name only) lowers the tone another notch with a plot that begins with Yam needing to seduce a lesbian executive.

Cash on Delivery (1992)

Another Simon Yam gigolo movie (a genre all of its own), Cash on Delivery doesn’t earn its Category III rating through nudity but yet more graphic talk about sex.

The movie begins with Yam being prosecuted by lawyer Sandra Ng, who soon finds it impossible to resist the defendant’s sexual magnetism. Things take a yet more crass turn when Veronica Yip decides to hire Yam with the aim that they will spend a week in bed getting her pregnant so that her impotent husband can secure a baby bonus from his parents. Naturally, they get extra if it’s a boy.

Dr Lamb (1992)

Based on the true story of serial killer Lam Kor-wan, also known as The Jars Murderer, this ranks as one of the most grisly Hong Kong films ever made. It was also extremely popular, outperforming many mainstream offerings in cinemas in 1992 and earning a cult following in the West.

Yam plays the serial killer who murders, dismembers and engages in necrophilic acts with his victims in graphic scenes. Unsurprisingly, one review of Dr Lamb described it as “a film that pushes the limits of bad taste”.

Naked Killer (1992)

Another exploitation classic, Naked Killer may not be as gory as Dr Lamb but it’s still extremely crude. This time Yam plays Tinam, an impotent police officer suffering from PTSD who can’t even shoot his gun without needing to vomit. He’s investigating a series of gruesome murders involving missing genitalia, which just so happen to be perpetrated by a couple of lesbian assassins.

Raped by an Angel (1993)

Another film with a nauseating title, Raped by an Angel reunites cast and crew of Naked Killer – mainly Simon Yam, Chingmy Yau and director Wong Jing – for another round of questionable filmmaking.

Unsurprisingly, given the title, rape is once again a central feature of the film. These vulgar acts are committed by highflying, misogynistic lawyer Eric (Mark Cheng). After a friend becomes a victim and the law lets her down, Yau’s character plots her revenge with Yam’s help. The extremely questionable nature of that revenge – a bullet or a knife won’t do here – makes this film notorious.

Run and Kill (1993)

The excessively violent films above not enough? Then try this one. Although not the main character but merely the psychotic villain, Yam still has a starring role in this movie that includes what one guide to the city’s cinema says is “one of the most famously barbarous scenes in Hong Kong film”.

The scene in question features Yam incinerating a man’s nine-year-old daughter in front of him, which causes the father to go mad, running around with the charred corpse until the head falls off. Definitely not for the faint of heart.

Trust Me U Die (1998)

Following the handover of sovereignty from Britain to China in 1997, making edgy Category III films became more difficult as Hong Kong filmmakers had to deal with the stricter censorship laws of the Mainland. As a result, Trust Me U Die isn’t as controversial as some of the other films on this list – it didn’t even get a Category III rating. Regardless, Yam yet again finds himself playing a psychotic villain and starring in a movie that has rape as a plot driver.

Thankfully, whatever was in the water pre-97 slowly disappeared in subsequent years. By 1999, Yam had made his first films for Johnnie To – Expect the Unexpected and The Mission – and started his shift towards more serious acting. He hasn’t looked back since.