Kar-Wai Wong moved into the director’s chair after years of scripting with this bipolar actioner that alternates ultra-violence with gooey romanticism. There are some standout perfs, especially from Jacky Cheung as an out-of-control hood who plays a sort of Robert De Niro to Andy Lau’s Harvey Keitel (think MEAN STREETS), but it’s the mood & look of the piece that make it memorable. Film noir and early Warners gangster pics ne’er crooned such sentimental notes between scenes of OTT brutality. But since everyone heals up lickety-split, cartoon fashion, it’s hard to take anything too seriously. By film’s end, a crew of detectives are barely noticed as collateral damage while our boys take out a stoolie. It’s certainly energetic stuff (watch for a great chase/shoot-out staged in a low-ceilinged pool hall), but the oil & water elements remain defiantly at odds.
No comments:
Post a Comment