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Review
by Kozo: |
It's fun for the whole family as Jacky Cheung and Max Mok
race rice rockets through the streets of Hong Kong. Cheung
is Lui, a bastard triad who's a racer supreme in his tricked
out compact car. His rival is Joe (Max Mox), a too-cute
mechanic who's hot for Lui's sister Ann (Loletta Lee). Lui's
triad activities are a point of contention for Ann, as well
as Lui's girlfriend Katy (Ellen Chan). Even more annoyed
at Lui's criminal life is his dad (Wu Ma), who also happens
to be a cop. Still, Lui continues to do what he does best:
race cars, run drugs and get pissed at anyone who cares
about him. When his race with Joe leads to the inevitable
complications, he comes to question his bad lifestyle. Meanwhile,
Joe and Ann begin to date in the most melodramatic way that
the filmmakers can muster.
Standard triad clichés
abound in this triad melodrama that's more overwrought than
it needs to be. Jacky Cheung goes postal with his acting
by glowering constantly and occasionally hitting his co-stars.
Loletta Lee fares better, but the paces she's put through
aren't very compelling. The love between Ann and Joe is
over-the-top and given to forced clinches and slow-motion
kisses. Maybe this was primo stuff twelve years ago (when
the movie was released), but now it just looks cheesy and
old. Unlike some of its contemporaries (A Moment of Romance
comes to mind), Off Track doesn't have much to offer
besides some effective car stunts (including one particularly
painful-looking stunt where a cop goes flying over Lui's
hood) and lots of face time for nineties faves Jacky Cheung,
Loletta Lee, Ellen Chan and Max Mok. Also, the film's climax
is so over-the-top depressing that some people may find
some entertainment value in it. The overused drama doesn't
really require everything to go to hell, but the filmmakers
go for it anyway. Considering the fact that none of the
characters were very likable, their tragic excess is oddly
gratifying. (Kozo 2003)
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