|
Review by
Calvin
McMillin: |
The
premise of The Missing Gun is deceptively simple:
after losing his government-issued firearm, a provincial
Mainland cop must retrace his steps to find the pistol
before it falls into the hands of a criminal. It seems
that the cop in question, Ma Shan (Jiang Wen), drank
a little too much at his sister's wedding and can't
recall a single thing from the night before. In a country
where guns are prohibited, Ma's blunder proves not only
dangerous to his career, but to the populace in general.
In a series of bizarre, often amusing vignettes, Ma
questions any and every person he can think of, each
time learning new information that expounds upon or
even contradicts the previous story. Our hero's problems
multiply when an old flame (the beautiful Ning Jing)
turns up dead at the home of her current lover. To Ma's
horror, the murder weapon is undoubtedly his stolen
pistol. Now a prime suspect in the brutal homicide,
Ma tries to piece together the clues before the killer
strikes again.
From a visual standpoint,
there's no question that first-time director Lu Chuan
maintains a certain bravura filmmaking style throughout
the picture. To wit, the movie is loaded with frenetic,
MTV-style camera tricks that amp up even the most routine
dialogue sequences. But as aesthetically pleasing as
these visual marvels can be, at some point they prove
to be not only annoying but also quite superfluous.
This conceit results in a movie that's a tad too showy
at times for its own good. One almost wants to yell,
"Get on with it!" during the film's most self-indulgent
scenes.
Mainland audiences not
accustomed to the techniques of Michael Bay and his
demonic hellspawn were likely enticed by Lu Chuan's
stylistic choices. However, it probably won't be the
visual style that captures the attention of Westerners;
they'll probably be more intrigued by the film's premise
itself. Although the phrase has become practically a
cliché, The Missing Gun actually will transport
its viewers, particularly Americans, to another world.
The most astonishing thing about the film—at least
from this American's perspective—is how the very
idea of a missing gun creates havoc not only for its
owner, but for his superiors, the townsfolk, and seemingly
all of China itself. There are no gun shows in China,
there is no second amendment, and there certainly isn't
an NRA. Thus, the characters have a very different reaction
to the prospect of a lost firearm than most American
characters would, and therefore, the consequences of
its disappearance have a far greater impact than they
would in a typical Hollywood film.
It's these little
differences that make The Missing Gun a treat
to watch. One of these little touches that stands out
is an entertaining high-speed chase that occurs towards
the middle of the film. Unlike the standard "hot pursuit"
scene in a big budget Hollywood blockbuster, both cop
and crook speed along furiously—not by car, but
by bicycle—with hilarious results.
Throughout the film, lead
actor Jiang Wen exudes a certain kind of stoic integrity
in his portrayal of Ma Shan, as he patiently questions
one oddball villager after another in order to unravel
the mystery. Amidst this somewhat simplistic narrative,
the director weaves in a subplot about Ma Shan's troubled
marriage and his wife's jealousy at the return of his
former lover to their sleepy community. These nuances
only add fuel to the overall mystery, making Ma Shan
a more rounded character, rather than a blank slate
detective whose only purpose is to solve the case.
The filmmakers sprinkle
the film with more than a couple red herrings, but they
wisely stop short of going for the obligatory shock
ending (which, of course, would render the finale not
shocking in the least). Alert viewers will notice that
the film toys with this possibility in its subplot,
but thankfully avoids committing to this twist, giving
the already stressed Ma Shan a villain that wouldn't
send the poor boy—and his faithful audience—over
the edge.
In the end, The Missing
Gun works more like a traditional mystery, at least
in terms of who the culprit turns out to be. And really,
the twists aren't so much about whodunit, but how Ma
Shan uses his skills as a police officer to flush out
the culprit. The film's conclusion will come as a bit
of a surprise, if not an outright disappointment to
some viewers, but the film's ending earns points with
this reviewer simply for trying something unconventional.
It's that desire to be innovative, along with strong
performances from its lead actors, that elevate The
Missing Gun a peg or two above the standard potboiler.
(Calvin McMillin, 2004) |
|
