2000 AD

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.

When 2000 AD first came out I was quite excited for it! Starring the gorgeous Aaron Kwok and directed by Gordon Chan - who had impressed with some great titles previously - it was bound to be pretty damn good! The trailer had me hooked with its fast editing that showed non-stop action and some pretty cool shots. Then finally, it got its release in the UK via Hong Kong Legends...

And it certainly didn't disappoint!

While its first 5 minutes features some impressive jet flying which leads right to the attack of a passenger plane over the city - the following 30 minutes is definitely a slow burner as it introduces the characters, mostly in scenes without any music or atmospheric sound that starts to get boring as the story rolls along, but stick with it.

Because right after that, we are treated to a fantastic chase sequence as the yummy Kwok chases down sniper Ken Lo who has just attacked his brothers car (played by Ray Lui) with some close calls, fantastic shots and nice choreography courtesy of Yuen Tak. This change of pace thankfully shakes things up as gamer-geek Aaron starts to lose his cool in trying to find his brothers killer, all while trying to avoid the police team led by the great Francis Ng (who for once isn't playing a nut job)...

I really like 2000 AD. While it may annoy some viewers by taking its time here and there, it equally surprises with sudden outbursts of violence and action, delivered in style via some inventive gunplay and martial arts along with some very nice cinematography and editing that enhances the tension!

The music and sound editing itself did annoy me somewhat. While not terrible, it just seemed less polished than the rest of the film which really stood out to me - that, and a few odd editing choices during the more dramatic stuff and cut scenes that just looked out of place compared to the rest of the film. The wonderful Daniel Wu (Into The Badlands) plays Aaron's closest friend and gets to throw a few moves but ultimately, this is all about Kwok being the action hero. I do like Andrew Lin as the villain of the show. He looks and move well and comes across as a toned down version of his role in The Black Sheep Affair...

Yes the script and story may not be the greatest, and some co-stars and roles may seem oddly miscast and out of place, but I do think 2000 AD holds up as a great Hong Kong action thriller that (to me) is Gordon Chan's last great film as a director!

Overall: Although dated in some respect, 2000 AD is stylishly made with some incredible action and a lot of fun!!

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?

"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.

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.