Chinese Movie Reviews »
Horrible High Heels (1996) Movie Review
The Category III rating of Hong Kong cinema is as much a genre as it is a certificate. Coming to prominence in the 1990s, the rating was created to classify those films containing extreme...
Read More »Jiang Hu (2004) Movie Review
Running at a breezy 80 minutes (that is, if you don’t count the extensive John Woo-ish slow motion that makes up about half the film), Ching-po Wong’s “Jiang Hu” is nothing you haven’t seen...
Read More »Throwdown (2004) Movie Review
I haven’t made any secrets of my admiration when it comes to the works of one Johnnie To. The man behind such excellent cinematic fare as “The Mission”, “PTU”, and just recently “Breaking News”,...
Read More »Heat Team (2004) Movie Review
You certainly wouldn’t mistake Dante Lam’s “Heat Team” to be anything of substance. It’s basically too much style-over-everything, with a number of choice scenes just screaming, “Pay attention, this is a real cool camera...
Read More »Breaking News (2004) Movie Review
As a solo filmmaker, Johnnie To continues to be one of the few Hong Kong directors to regularly offer up an intriguing product. His latest is 2004′s “Breaking News”, about a gang of Mainland...
Read More »Koma (2003) Movie Review
With just 3 films in his oeuvre (“Double Tap” and “Inner Senses” being the other two), director Chi-Leung Law is quickly proving to be one of the more talented filmmakers currently working out of...
Read More »The Eye 2 (2004) Movie Review
Here’s the thing about these “I see dead people” movies: if I woke up one day and realized I was seeing ghosts, I would be scared; at least, for the first couple of days,...
Read More »Sex and the Beauties (2004) Movie Review
The thing about characters in movies having uni-brows — that is, one long eyebrow instead of two — is that it only works if it’s not overplayed. Say, a cameo appearance by someone with...
Read More »Lost in Time (2003) Movie Review
Derek Yee’s “Lost in Time” is like a gust of fresh air washing over the Hong Kong movie industry, cleansing it of the foul stench of Popstar-itis that has been plaguing it for the...
Read More »Silver Hawk (2004) Movie Review
If you picked up Michelle Yeoh’s “Silver Hawk” expecting something serious, then you’re out of luck. The movie, directed by Jingle Ma (“Tokyo Raiders”), is all camp. After the average “The Touch”, one should...
Read More »Beyond Hypothermia (1993) Movie Review
One of the traits of Hong Kong action films that set them apart from their Hollywood counterparts is an attempt to imbue a sense of deep emotional conviction to the main characters, some sort...
Read More »Anna in Kung Fu Land (2003) Movie Review
“Anna in Kung Fu Land” is the second 2003 film from Hong Kong that sports an asinine love story wrapped around a martial arts tournament. The other was “Star Runner”, which looks like a...
Read More »Warriors of Heaven and Earth (2003) Movie Review
If John Wayne was still alive and making movies about the divine might of the U.S. of A., he would probably make something like Ping He’s “Warriors of Heaven and Earth”, which is, in...
Read More »Xanda (2003) Movie Review
“South Park” once did an episode where they made fun of Sports Movie cliché, including the biggest clich’ of the genre, the inevitable Big Game (or Big Fight or Big Race, etc.). The second...
Read More »Infernal Affairs 3 (2004) Movie Review
2002′s “Infernal Affairs” was, in many ways, a seminal work in Hong Kong cinema. Not only did the film come out during a period when the industry was mired in bubbly nonsensical comedies starring...
Read More »Star Runner (2003) Movie Review
The biggest problem I can foresee with Daniel Lee’s “Star Runner” is keeping the men in the audience from walking out before the film kicks in gear at about the 40-minute mark. Of course...
Read More »Tiramisu (2002) Movie Review
I guess it’s a new law now that every movie that comes out of Hong Kong has to have a ghost in it for one reason or another. In “Tiramisu”, the ghost is Karena...
Read More »Shiver (2003) Movie Review
Although 2003′s “Shiver” is more Serial Killer/Murder Mystery than Horror movie, that doesn’t stop the distributors from trying to lure audiences in with false advertisement. Even the movie’s poster, showcasing severed heads inside body...
Read More »New Blood (2002) Movie Review
I would be curious to learn who was it that decided that all Hong Kong horror films must be shot with a somber green tint. I would also be curious to learn who made...
Read More »Infernal Affairs 2 (2003) Movie Review
“Infernal Affairs 2″ comes to us a quick one year after the critical and commercial success of the original. The sequel — or prequel, actually — returns almost all of the same faces behind...
Read More »
