Hu meng wei long

Some bandits hijack a boat to steal some $#!+. Red Wolf is a HK action movie that rips off Die Hard/Under Siege but what separates this film from those aforementioned films is the fact that Red Wolf is very very dark as rather than the hero trying to save everyone he can, he pretty much let's everyone die. Well, a majority of them die, I think. Well, whatever. Red Wolf is filled with human misery and suffering, and that's all that matters. Despite being a rip off, I was very pleased with the action which was bloody and well choreographed. The story works for what it is, the acting is silly and above all Christy's butt is nice.

Well, for a Hong Kong action movie of this type, "Red Wolf" was sort of a mixed viewing pleasure on my behalf. I enjoyed most of the movie, but the movie was severely crippled by a horrible dialogue and some really lame attempts to incorporate humor into the movie (talking about the scene with the pile of food on the plate and the scene where the two women were fighting and Lai was resorting to some comic book/childish fighting of sorts).

The story in "Red Wolf" takes place on a boat (yeah, with similarities in plot to a mix of "Speed 2" and "Under Siege"), where security guard Alan (played by Kenny Ho) is left to thwart the plans of some terrorists. However, he gets help from the waitress Lai (played by Christy Chung).

I will say that the plot wasn't all bad. Sure there were holes here and there, but in overall it was enjoyable enough. But the movie had really, really bad dialogue which was at times painful to witness. The fight scenes were actually well executed and choreographed. And there is also a good amount of gunfights in the movie, so there is a little bit of everything for everyone.

The movie was really carried by the performance of Collin Chou (playing the first officer).

Just don't expect too much from this movie, or you might just set yourself up for disappointment. "Red Wolf" doesn't bring anything new or innovating to the Hong Kong action genre. And at times you wonder if this movie is a tribute to certain Hollywood movies; a rip off of certain Hollywood movies, or if it is just a coincidence. I will leave that decision up to the individual viewers.

"Red Wolf" is not amongst the greatest of Hong Kong action movies, and I doubt it will be high on the 'to watch' list of most people, unless really a fan of any on the cast list or if a die-hard fan of Hong Kong cinema. I will say that there are far better action movies from the Hong Kong cinema vault available.

"Red Wolf" gets off to a rather shaky start, but once the action kicks in, it is nonstop. The fight scenes are among the best I've ever seen; they are on the level of the rooftop climax of Jackie Chan's "Who Am I?", except they're not limited to one sequence, but they occur every 5 minutes or so. There is also a lot of shooting, and A LOT of shattered glass. But it's not a mindless movie; the characters often have to use their smarts to escape from sticky situations. Kenny Ho is a great fighter, full of intensity and conviction, and he appears to be doing all of his own stunts. Elaine Lui (who plays the BAD girl, NOT the hero's sidekick as others have said) is absolutely dazzling, a goddess of evil. Judging this movie on its own terms, I give it ***1/2 out of 4 stars. Sure, it's an "Under Siege" rip-off, but that's no reason to miss it.

Red Wolf is a mid-90s actioner from director Yuen Woo Ping that steals the basic plot from Steven Seagal's Under Siege, adds various elements from Die Hard and throws in lot of bone-crunching martial arts and gun-play. Woo Ping, no slouch in the action choreography department, ensures that when the fists and feet fly, fight fans get exactly what they want.

Unfortunately, it takes a good half an hour of rather tedious plot development before things really take off and this dreary beginning spoils what might have been a very memorable movie; however, when the action finally begins, it doesn't let up until the closing credits roll.

Kenny Ho plays Alan, chief of security on a high class leisure cruiser that is taken over by terrorists. The bad guys are after some uranium that is on board and they will do whatever is necessary to get it. When Alan rumbles their plot, he fights back, aided by a beautiful cruise employee played by Christy Chung.

Of course, the wafer thin plot is nothing more than an excuse for loads of martial arts mayhem, and once the action kicks off, the blood and bullets fly thick and fast. The villains are a suitably vicious bunch of miscreants; innocent hostages are shot on a whim and the baddies take sadistic pleasure in the killing. The cabaret singer/terrorist, played by Elaine Lui, is particularly good, grinning maniacally as she kicks and blasts her way through the hapless passengers and crew.

There are some nice inventive fights using the various rooms of the ship, my favourite being the one that takes place in the sauna area — Alan spills soapy water on the floor and straps rubber mats to his feet; as his foe slips and slides uncontrollably, Alan is able to stay upright and unleash a flurry of unstoppable punches and kicks.

Woo Ping spoils things slightly towards the end with a ridiculous finale involving a small girl with a bomb strapped to her, and he is unable to resist throwing in some OTT wire-work which spoils the realism of the final fight.

Red Wolf isn't a classic martial arts film by any stretch of the imagination, but proves to be passable entertainment despite its flaws.

Don't expect too much - the action is good, but hongkie buffs have seen it all before. Also, the story is a UNDER SIEGE rip-off (rather than DIE HARD, as mentioned in another review above). If you want me to compare it with others of this kind - I personally prefer HIGH RISK (this! was the DIE HARD rip-off, fella). the webhamster sez 4/10.