Wicked Game

As a 90 minute experience, it is not up to the standard of `Drive', as the actors clearly learnt their trade at the `Who Am I?' academy, while the action sequences are generally no better than those in the superb Mark Dacascos beat 'em-up. However, those who enjoyed `Drive', (and I thought it was wonderful!), will undoubtedly enjoy this too. You certainly won't rewind back to the start and watch it all again, but you will definitely flick back to some of the action scenes for a long time to come.

It is refreshing to see that the art of quality fight choreography is still being practiced, even if not in Hong Kong, and I would love to see what these guys could do with the budgets, time and respect afforded to the likes of Yuen Woo-ping and Corey Yuen Kuei. If you sit through the first half hour and aren't sent crazy by the atrocious dialogue then you are in for a treat. Bosch is magnificent, and can really bust a move with some magnificent acrobatics, kicks and simple acts of bravery.

If you are fortunate enough to be within 500 miles of a copy, then track it down and watch it. It's not Shakespeare. In fact, it's less articulate than Coolio in `China Strike Force', but you will be impressed with both the moves on display and the pain felt by the stunt team - (I'm pretty sure there's no safe way to land directly on your head, or be forced to head butt a wooden roof by a speeding car!?).

When I first saw this movie I got the impression that it was a vehicle for some stuntmen trying to turn actors. After looking at IMDB I realized I was not far off. I would not even be surprise to find that some other Power Ranger folks were also involved. The plot is a simple get something from bad guys and fight bad guys off. The sets are unrealistic much like those on the aforementioned Power Rangers. Nothing was truly outstanding action-wise either. All in all although there are action flicks worse then this movie there are many that are far better.

Okay, let's get this out of the way early – this movie is terrible. It features horrible acting, annoying characters, a clichéd script and shoddy shot-on-video cinematography. So why on earth would I recommend this to anyone? Because of the amazing fight scenes. Co-directors Koichi Sakamoto and Makoto Yokoyama may not be immediately recognizable names to action genre enthusiasts, but chances are you have seen their work. Both supply the action choreography for the US versions of the POWER RANGERS. However, Koichi's main claim to fame is that he was the stunt coordinator on Steve Wang's THE GUYVER 2 and DRIVE. Anyone familiar with those films will know what I am talking about. With this film, both Koichi and Makoto's stunt teams (Alpha Stunt and AAC respectively) combine to create some strong stunt work.

Whereas celebrated HK veteran Yuen Woo Ping's Hollywood efforts have become increasingly airborne and unrealistic (THE MATRIX films are a perfect example), this team's style is reality based and hard-hitting. Some of the stunts in this one are absolutely amazing. Fights break out every 10 minutes or so and they are flawlessly choreographed. Major set pieces include a fight on top of moving cars, a skydiving gun/fist fight and the obligatory warehouse fight where guys bump off the equipment as if it were rubber. Lead Johnny Yong Bosch (formerly the Black Ranger on the POWER RANGERS) does a majority of his own stunts and is amazingly agile. One wishes he would get more work to showcase his martial arts talent. There are also three instances of stunts gone wrong that made it into the final film (you will know them when you see them).

Were it not for the amazing stunt work in this film there would be very little to recommend it. Shot on a minuscule budget, as evidenced by the use of disused warehouses and wide-open spaces for the majority of the shooting, Extreme Heist aka Wiked Game is essentially a show reel for two stunt teams. The production quality may be poor and the narrative weak, but the creativity and expertise of the Alpha Stunt Team and AAC is certainly adequate compensation. Following a formula similar to the far superior Drive (Steve Wang, 1996) this is something of a companion piece, co-directed as it is by that film's choreographer Koichi Sakamoto. He and Makato Yokoyama (director of the awesome Shadow Fury (2002)) have had steady careers working on the Power Rangers franchise (still going since 1993) but have never made the action hit fans have always longed for. Sakamoto and Yokoyama obviously made Extreme Heist in between Power Rangers episodes and even roped in Johnny Yong Bosch (The Black Ranger) and Jason Narvy (bad guy Skull), to star in their venture. Like Marc Dacascos before him, Bosch demonstrates skill and agility that screams out for more elaborate and high profile work. Sadly Bosch's career hasn't hit the heights of Dacascos's. The action scenes which make up the majority of the film are superb, a testament to the way talented filmmakers can produce something from nothing. Action seems to have been choreographed from whatever was affordable, with shoddy shacks and cars serving as both locations and props for the performers. The stunts are both physical and vehicular, with many sequences bringing the two into close contact. Bosch fights off hordes of minions and has a showdown with the tall villain at the climax, but even in the quieter moments he adds impressively unnecessary flourishes to his actions. Not content to sell the film solely on fights and vehicular stunts, Sakamoto and Yokoyama injected the theme of extreme sports into the story by opening and closing the film with impressive skydiving sequences. The ending is especially notable, including an interesting attempt at gunplay as they plummet to earth.

The problem with Koichi's film is that while people like Jackie Chan and Jet Li can get away with weak scripts and acting (or even singing), they possess a certain charm that Koichi does not. The action sequences and "charm" in their films make up for any weaknesses in the script. Koichi doesn't realize this and instead say's "look at my stunts!". He has others put themselves in grave danger to advance himself. Great stunts don't make a movie, which is why Jackie Chan and Jet Li films are entertaining and Koichi's films are almost frustrating to watch. Even when he tries to be funny, it falls flat, because he has no sense of humor. On top of everything else I've written, if Koichi wanted to be a "star", he would star in his own films, but he does not, because he knows he is a bland, unattractive person, as opposed to Jackie Chan or Jet Li. If he stuck to stunt coordinating and not "success", he might make it in the film industry.