Gong yuan 2000 AD

"2000 AD" was actually better than I had expected it to be. So why wasn't I expecting much from it? Well because I am not really much fan of neither Aaron Kwok or Daniel Wu. But I will admit that Aaron Kwok actually did a good job in this movie.

The story is a cat and mouse chase type of movie with double-crossing and deceit, leaving you unable to know whom to trust or not. Peter Li (played by Aaron Kwok) and Benny (played by Daniel Wu) are two young gamers who end up in over their head in a web of conspiracies, lies and treason, as Peter' brother is dead, leaving behind a key that leads to a safe deposit box.

There is a good amount of action in "2000 AD", and it was nicely executed and filmed, so that was good and entertaining. Sure, the storyline was plagued by parts being predictable, but still, it turned out to be a good movie that was fun and entertaining to watch.

And appearing to light up the movie is a great appearance by Hong Kong heavy-weighter actor Francis Ng, and as always he did a good job, despite having only a small role in the movie. Phyllis Quek (playing Salina) did a fairly good job as well, although I don't think I've seen her in other movies aside from this.

For a Hong Kong action movie, then "2000 AD" was adequate, unfortunately it didn't really bring anything new to the genre or really stand out from many other action movies. But still, it is well worth a watch if you like Hong Kong cinema. And if for nothing else, Francis Ng makes it worth to sit through the movie.

Hong Kong used to be seen as the home of unintentionally comical chop-socky movies of interest only to kung-fu freaks and those too lazy to reach for the remote and, while that's not a fair assessment of that country's current output, it's not a totally undeserved one concerning its past. So it makes a refreshing change to see that Hong Kong – along with other Asian countries – has begun producing stylish and energetic efforts like 2000AD.

Hollywood is obviously a major influence on this film – not least in the fact that the writing credits are shared between director Gordon Chan and American screenwriter Stu Zicherman (Chan took Zicherman's English screenplay and translated it into Chinese, although chunks of English dialogue remain). The storyline is typical Hollywood high-tech nonsense, but it's engaging and exciting, and injects high-adrenaline action sequences that match anything that has come out of the States – or anywhere else for that matter – in the last ten years.

The complicated storyline focuses on Peter Li (Aaron Kwok), an immature, bespectacled computer geek, who quickly matures after witnessing the assassination of his older brother while in police custody, and finds himself sucked into an ever-widening morass of lies and deceit as he struggles to identify the killers. Able to trust only a handful of the numerous characters offering him support in the aftermath of his brother's murder, Peter soon finds himself the target of the assassins, and becomes immersed in a world that mirrors that depicted in the video games at which he is so adept.

The core of the plot regards the search for a computer program that can destroy the world's computer network with the press of a laptop button, but that's really just a plot device from which an explosive cocktail of explosions, shoot-outs, car chases and fist fights are developed. The story starts slowly, introducing us to a bewildering array of characters that take some little while to sort out, and it's only after the first thirty minutes that the action kicks in. Despite this, it has to be said there's not a lot of character development going on in those first thirty minutes: Peter transforms into a grim-faced avenger, mysteriously jettisoning his geeky spectacles, and adopting a sort of Bruce Lee persona that never quite rings true; but, apart from thirty-eight-year-old Kenneth Ng, who delivers a superbly understated performance in the regrettably small role of Officer Ng, a senior police officer approaching his sixties, the other characters are nothing more than cardboard cut-outs – especially Janet (the wonderfully named Gigi Choi), Peter's girlfriend, who is given absolutely nothing to do throughout the entire picture.

But, then, since when was characterisation allowed to get in the way of an action flick? Chan hasn't set out to create true-to-life people in a true-to-life world; he's attempted to recreate the breathless, high-speed pace of a video game, one in which his hero has to ascend various levels before the game can be completed ("This isn't a game", says Ng at one point, "you can't start over again").

Director Chan, an insolent little brother to the Hollywood high-rollers, delivers the breathtaking action sequences with no little style, eschewing the slow-motion ballet so beloved of John Woo and his many pale imitators (who now, ironically, count Woo amongst their number) for furiously kinetic displays of concentrated carnage. Chan's gun-battles somehow manage to illustrate the brutal violence and terrifying confusion of the moment without confusing the viewer, and he stages each massacre with flair and purpose and attention to detail that is unusual (the car park shootout is actually a homage to the notion of the samurai's sacrificing of their lives in Kurosawa's Ran). True, he overplays his hand, leaving little for the disappointing showdown with the villainous 'cowboy' (another dig at Hollywood?), and some loose ends are left hanging (presumably for a sequel that has so far failed to materialise), but if what has gone before hasn't left your appetite sated then you've probably never seen an action movie you've liked.

2000 AD is a big HK 2000 Lunar New Year (February) movie release, made to capture as large an audience as possible with its story of a struggling video game designer (Aaron Kwok) who gets drawn into an Asian shadow world of spies, counter-intelligence and killers. An opening sequence involving the bad guy's way of delaying the arrival of some officials employs great visual effects, supplied in part by the technicians who worked on Independence Day and Gen-X Cops. Gordon Chan, the director of this action movie, does a good job choreographing the shoot-outs, fights and car chases. The story borrows some plot elements from The Net, but unlike Sandra Bullock, Aaron Kwok is the chaser, after the guys who murdered his brother in a bloody sniper attack. It is not Shakespeare, but 2000 AD moves fast, has colorful Singapore location shooting (no caning sequence here) and introduces great looking Singapore actress Phyllis Quek as key player in the action. Except for some ultra-violent sequences during the shootouts, 2000 AD is a fine, action packed movie.

With 2000 AD, director Gordon Chan cements his status as modern Hong Kong cinema's "King of Gun Battles". While his peers seem intent on putting together shootouts which are either a) amateurish and poorly edited (Extreme Crisis, Blood Rules), or b) oblique and artsy (The Mission), Chan proves there is at least one director left in Hong Kong who can deliver thrilling and explosive gunfights like nobody's business. He's not a John Woo clone though. Unlike the slow-motion beauty of Hong Kong cinema's most successful export, Chan prefers a hard-hitting and realistic approach. Think of the gun battle in Michael Mann's HEAT, and you will get an idea of how Chan likes to shoot and edit. Besides the action scenes, 2000 AD is an average Hollywood-style thriller. The story won't change your life, but you will be amused and that's enough. Best of all, the movie is WELL-PACED! That's one skill the current crop of HK directors seem to lack - Their films are too slow. Not 2000 AD. Well paced, good acting, amusing story, and awesome action. What are you waiting for?

I watched the show for only one reason. Because Phyllis Quek is my fave singapore actress. But that did not stop me from enjoying the movie... it is truly entertaining. But, the plot shift to Singapore cause the otherwise great pacing to shift somewhat too. From a well-paced plotline in Hong-kong, the scenes in Singapore seemed really rushed...

Phyllis Quek is stunning, emoting without overacting (doesn't seem convincing from a fan, haha...), Aaron Kwok is alright, but it is tiring watching him act cute. Daniel Wu was great as his innocent friend, but the girlfriend, Gigi Lai, suck so bad. Special mention should go to Francis Ng, who once again proved himself to be one of the best actors in HongKong these days. James Lye, Lin Hoi and Cynthia Koh just provides extra eye candy.

Over all, the movie is promising, but falls flat at the end of the second act.