Despite the cheesiness of story and the formulaic Rocky plot, this commercial actioner from Andrew Lau and alter ego
Ekin Cheng is an enjoyable, entertaining ride. Cheng is Sky, a spoiled brat who
races cars illegally on HK’s city streets. He receives his
comeuppance when his girlfriend Moon (Kelly Lin) dies during
an important race with the top underground racer (Simon Yam).
When
he’s framed for various crimes, Sky flees to Thailand and
searches for his dad (Blackie Ko), a legendary racer who disappeared
when Sky was just a youngster. Once in Thailand, Sky learns
hackneyed life lessons and Karate Kid metaphors which
allow him redemption and passage back to HK just in time to
win the big race.
If only life were as simple as a
BOB production. This is a tried-and-true formula that’s
been done to death in Lau and Cheng’s previous Young and
Dangerous movies. Nothing new here, just enjoyable commercial
fluff which should be enough to please most of the fans. This
is a welcome return for Andrew Lau, who brings back some of
the stylish verve that he couldn’t use in such earnest epics
as A Man Called Hero.
Furthermore, the presence of blazing
new star Cecilia Cheung as Sky’s biggest admirer can only
help things. With her rough voice and appealing innocence,
she brings a freshness to the movie that Lau’s usual starlets
Shu Qi and Kristy Yeung would be hard-pressed to match.
That
said, Lau reuses some of his more familiar faces, such as
Jerry Lamb and the aforementioned Blackie Ko. This movie is
basically Young and Dangerous on wheels, which isn’t
such a bad thing when you consider Ekin Cheng’s limited dramatic
range. As commercial HK Cinema goes, this is a better-than-average
effort. (Kozo 1999) |
