An admirable experiment made unremarkable by the fact that all three directors play things very safe. Obviously, I wasn’t expecting some sort of masterpiece but I still anticipated something a bit more than just a nicely photographed action film. If Hong Kong action films were at the risk of drifting into self-parody then this film does nothing to prevent that. It unintentionally shows just how unimaginative these guys are since they all basically submit to conventions. Still, a half-decent way to kill 90 minutes.
Three men, all plagued with a list of personal problems, devise a possible heist. They are given a tip that treasure is hidden inside a legislative office. One of the heist participants, Bo, is an even tighter predicament as his wife, Ling, is having an affair with an officer that continues to tail them. That’s pretty much it, though, of course, there’s plenty of gunfights and car chases to bring up the film’s running time.
Tsui Hark is the first one up and he is at a distinct disadvantage because he has to essentially setup the whole film. Unsurprisingly, he chooses something skull-crushingly banal. Look, I’m fine with these films since they all end up looking beautiful but considering the fact that this is essentially an experiment, can’t we find something a bit less contrived? It seems that Tsui puts the other two directors (Ringo Lam and Johnny To) in positions that basically cuts off any type of creativity.
To their credit, all three do try at least one “out-there” idea in their respective segments. Ringo Lam throws in some weird Wong Kar-Wai/perfume commercial dance sequence and Johnny To throws in a fat retarded guy. Of course, the film looks great, too, even though I might go as far as to say that all modern Hong Kong films look this good. And yes, it is entertaining in a mindless superficial way, but even just as that, it’s still loaded with problems.
Cinema Talk 
Leave a Reply