|
|
| KUNG FU MOVIE REVIEW: HIGH RISK (1995) |
|
|
|
|
Billy Chow/The General Dude From Fist of Legend rocks in this movie. He sports big sunglasses, bigger awesome headbanger hair, and he pees like a firehose. Jacky Cheung is both hilarious and talented. His comeback at the end really does make you root for him. Chingmy Yau is a cutie. The main bad guy, The Doctor, is sort of a doofus. Fortunately, at the end of the movie, he loses and Kit Lee wins. Oh! Did I give something away? High Risk is a great mix of ludicrous stunts (both an economy-sized hatchback and a helicopter make an appearance in the penthouse level of a luxury hotel), insanely fast-paced action sequences, and strange detours into comedy and non-reality (a yellow Bruce Lee jumpsuit & handfuls of snakes magically appear, and bits of newspaper flutter cinematically in the air for the last 30 minutes of the film). It has many insider HK jokes at Jackie Chan's expense, apparently, though I am mostly unaware of them, and mostly don't care, either. It's a fucking good movie. - Tom, July 29 01
|
|
|
SCENES
FROM HIGH RISK:
|
|
|
|
|
|
AT
A GLANCE: HIGH RISK
|
|
|
UNNECCESSARY: The little boy's peepee. NO-SHADOW KICK? Something very close. WORTH OWNING? Yes. SEE ALSO: SPEED, DIE HARD, then SPEED again. Then MY FATHER IS A HERO and BODYGUARD FROM BEIJING |
|
FEEDBACK: |
|
High
Risk is the movie that taught me that kung
fu was a measurable quantity, ie "Less than 20% of his kung fu
is left". Jet Li shines in this one, flying across the
screen in only slightly under-cranked action sequences that really
rock. Referred to throughout the film as either "Kit",
"Bold", "Corny Man", or "Hubby" (and
on the videobox as "Guts"), Li plays an ex-bomb squad leader,
his tumultuous past (and ultimately the much-needed plot point for
revenge) is expertly pooped out in the first five minutes of the film,
Hong Kong style. I have an undying love for the HK interpretation
of the American screenwriter's impulsive need for character backstory.
It's generally told in a matter-of-fact tone, knowing damned well
the audience it's playing to cares about as much about the character's
history as it cares about a love story. They are mostly brief
nods to convention, but then quickly dive into the action. It's
fucking superb. Am I drifting?
