Hon zin

This film is about two Deputy Commissioners of Police dealing with the mysterious disappearance of a police car along with its five police officers.

"Cold War" wastes no time in building up suspense and thrill. Within a minute we already have an explosion in the middle of the most popular hang out place in Hong Kong. After that, the action never stops. The plot is very fast paced, it twists and turns in unexpected directions every few minutes. It is so engaging, the story is so grippingly told, that I was completely transfixed. My mind was blank with no distracted thoughts. I was simply in awe throughout the film. "Cold War" is so brilliant, from the intelligent plot, the star studded ensemble, the intense action, beautiful cinematography and great acting. Everything about "Cold War" is outstanding.

I have heard great things about "Cold War". Not only does it live up to its expectations, it certainly surpasses every single praise I have heard. In fact, "Cold War" is undoubtedly, undeniable the best Hong Kong film I have ever watched. I never even imagined Hong Kong cinema can be this excellent. Words fail to describe how outstanding "Cold War" is. I unreservedly recommend this film to anyone.

COLD WAR is a Hong Kong police thriller spearheaded by an all-star cast who go some way in making it surprisingly compelling viewing at times. The story begins choppily as a van full of low-ranking police officers disappears, the cops presumably kidnapped, but gradually we figure out that this is less about action heroics than the internal politics of the Hong Kong police division. Aaron Kwok and Tony Leung lead the way here and both are very good indeed, particularly in one crucial scene that showcases their acting skills. The worst thing is the direction which could be better, but it doesn't detract from a fun little film.

And from the get go, we see Mongkok being bombed in a terrorist attack, before an EU squad mysteriously disappears from the police radar, together with five cops being held hostage for millions of dollars, threatening to blow this case wide open for the police, and become their PR nightmare. The safest city in the world is now under threat from forces and criminals unknown, and is now up to the highest echelons of the force to get their act together to crack the case, putting aside differences that have been festering for the longest time.

The first third of the film has an extremely political slant to it, where internal bickering, testing of loyalties, and the protection of fiefdoms in organizations rear their ugly head. Anyone working in any private or public sector organization will be able to see parallels that both Lok Man Leung and Sunny Luk had drawn upon to set their characters in, with supporting acts from Lam Ka-Tung, Chin Kar Lok, Andy On and even Charlie Yeung playing various department heads, being drawn into the deep divisions, where on one side, Lee takes over in brash fashion, only to come up against the more brooding, thinking Sean, the latter plotting a coup de tat to wrestle control and to instill some semblance of reason. After all, Lee has personal conflicts of interest and Sean is banging on that to relief the former of his position.

The second half becomes the Aaron Kwok show, with the police operations code named Cold War undergoing full swing, and the directors setting up plenty of action, with typical criminal- cop phone call conversations, and keeping things tight for the audience in wondering just who the perpetrators may be, in addition to rewarding everyone with a fairly realistic highway shootout scene. But the final act is where the prestige comes in, with the introduction of Aarif Lee as a fairly inexperienced ICAC officer who may have stumbled onto some secrets behind Cold War, and convinces his bosses to allow him to spearhead an investigations into the two deputy commissioners of police, turning the film into one investigative drama complete with red herrings and good old fashion police work.

If only that was expanded upon, instead of speeding it through, which was what some quarters were restless about that Mainland China may have influenced the outcome of the film in some way, given that the good guys have to come up on top as a requisite. It's most unfortunate that the final act turned out to be its weakest, since it's never about the destination, but the journey in getting there, and there's where the screenplay fell through with gaping lack of information, perhaps primed for expansion in a separate film altogether, and a flow that was rather choppy, as if glossing over details had severely knocked the wind out of what could have been a very strong finish.

But story aside, I felt that the perennial struggle between Scholar and Farmer was something that would be instantly identifiable with anyone in Singapore, where success with grades would guarantee being airdropped into a cushy job in any government organization. And clearly, Aaron Kwok's Sean Lau is one such scholar, promising and the youngest ever to be made deputy, and primed for the top job in what would be a railway ride to the top, barring any cock ups from this operation. This is clearly in contrast with one who rose through the ranks through sheer grit, determination and hard work in the case of M.B. Lee, being out there with operational experience with the men, versus someone brought into management and wielding presentation slides instead of risking his neck out there in the field. Debunking their respective stereotypes, is what made the characterization of both leading protagonists a joy to sit through and discover.

While we are largely aware of Tony Leung Ka Fai's versatility, and looking quite the bad ass with his bald and bearded look here, I felt Aaron Kwok has really matured and aged well like fine wine, and with it came loads of improvement in his acting chops as well, charismatic to a fault in his portrayal of Sean Lau as we get put through which side of the fence this chap is really sitting on. Despite big names like Lam Ka Tung, Chin Kar Lok, Andy On and Eddie Peng, all of them were severely underutilized, which is a pity given the ensemble, with the likes of Charlie Yeung to balance the testosterone level in what would be a stereotypical role of being the PR chief for the police. Look out for Andy Lau in his few minutes, where he really chewed up the scenery as the secretary of security, primed and ripe for an expanded role if a sequel does come true.

If only the ending wasn't so blatant as to leave it so open for a follow up film to be made, since it had left the door wide open to just how far the rot in the police force goes, despite being one of the safest cities in the world, that the organization tasked to keep the law and order gets bogged down by its own protocols, processes and power struggles. Still, as a first film effort, Cold War is still a very slick affair technical wise, with the leads propping the flimsy final act up on their shoulders with the promise of more. Recommended.

The ending of the story can be more circumscribed. Such a film should also be organized by the relevant departments to have a look at it and give the fat-minded animals a unique education in law popularization.

I wouldn't agree with the "absolutely nothing" that follows in that particular song, but then again it does only refer to war, which itself is a solid sentiment. But this movie is worth something, even if it is not up to par, with other productions we are now almost accustomed with. Still better than any average US Hollywood action movie, this gives you what you want from it.

And that is action and suspense primarily. Not the best stunts I have seen, but with a stellar cast and a story that is trying to be as tricky as possible (especially morally wise), this does entertain and keep you guessing until the end. A more than decent effort which can be recommended