See piu fung wan

When I was given the chance to watch "Black Ransom" (aka "See piu fung wan"), I did of course sit down to do so. Why? Well, given my love for Asian cinema and Hong Kong cinema in particular, and also because it starred Simon Yam.

I hadn't even heard about this movie before late in 2019. But taking the time to sit down and watch it was a good thing, because "Black Ransom" turned out to be an entertaining thriller. Sure, writer Jing Wong played a lot on traditional methods of building a thriller, and director Kwok-Man Keung brought it nicely to the screen. However, the movie does differ somewhat from the usual Hong Kong police vs. triad movies, because there are some nice twists to the story along the way. That was something that definitely made the movie more enjoyable.

There is a good pacing to the movie and it progresses nicely from start to end, gradually building up to a fulfilling finale actually.

The movie stars Simon Yam, whom is a good actor, and if you are familiar with Hong Kong cinema, then he should be a familiar face. And opposite him is Kiu Wai Miu whom really brought something unique to the movie and to his particular character and role, and that worked well in favor of the movie.

There is a good combination of storytelling, character development, action and suspense to the movie, which all works out well enough when mixed together.

"Black Ransom" is an entertaining action thriller, one that plays on the way they used to make action thrillers, and it works out nicely. I was genuinely entertained with the movie from start to end.

My rating of "Black Ransom" is six out of ten stars.

There are so so many action films these days, the bland and dull ones all seem to mush up together in a week blob of goop. So whether it's Hong Kong or Hollywood, it takes something really special for an action movie to stand out these days. For me, THIS FILM IS ONE OF THOSE SPECIAL MOVIES! And trust me, I watch a lot of films, so it takes quiet a bit for a movie to get my love.

Why this movie so awesome? To be honest, it's really quiet hard to put to words. I guess I just love it, I don't really have a reason you know, this movie is just awesome.

This movie hits all the notes. Simon Yam is absolutely brilliant, his character is so bloody damn cool. A very Hong Kong Jack Bauer aura to him. And Michael Miu is an absolutely show stopping villain, I absolutely fell for him. Only the most truly special action movies can get me to REALLY truly route for the bad guy, this was one of those movies. Plus Andy On is in this movie, I love that guy! I love him when he's fighting!

Plus, the gun fights are PIMP. And as an extra bonus cherry on top, the Martial Arts fights are bloody damn awesome (this coming from a guy who watches a lot of martial arts films, and has really high standards) ! The pacing and story telling is also extremely thrilling and keeps you entertained throughout! This movie basically blood has it bloody damn all! Oh yeah! And there are hot girls in this movie too! Like REALLY HOT! Nice body and stuff, and face you know.

Conclusion, this movie is DOPE! Watch it! You will have a bloody good time!

I have no idea why the rating of this movie is so low here. While not quite the all star cast as the "Naked Soldier", the "Black Ransom"'s production is at similar high level.

It's another Wong Jing and company's production, and I can see that he's gaining traction with this movie ( Considering how he seem to have slowed down in the early 2000's ). It's a blessing to a society to have talented people who can raise the bar of the industry no matter what the situation is, and Hong Kong is certainly fortunate to have talent like him. It's also a blessings for the society to have talents like Simon Yam who can bring focus to any story. He can put emotion into any story like no other actor. Generally, male actors seem to have longer career, as the greats from the '80s and '90s are still active in Hong Kong cinema, but hardly any female actors are still active. We still don't see the next generation of actors that can equal or better these greats.

The story is vivid, and the action very real in this movie. While not ground breaking in any ways as far as the story is concerned, it's definitely interesting to watch.

I just hope that they stop using the green blue filter they seem to put on every movie that's produced in Hong Kong these days. It changes the hue of the actor's flesh tone, and makes the movie look cheap. Fire the cinematographer, and bring in some new talents !

7.5/10