AlxSmits

Another in a recent trend of artsy girl-with-gun movies that tries to play to the male audience with hardcore girls 'n' guns action while attempting to attract the female audience with a love story framework and complex feminine psychology issues. As such, both genres are compromised, but the result is a fine looking and well crafted dramatic thriller.

A decidedly different role for the frail and tragically pretty Wu Chien Lien, as she plays a ruthless and dispassionate assassin desperately searching for her humanity. Surprisingly, she does a remarkable job with the material and presents herself as a complex combination of harsh conviction and fragile vulnerability. Unfortunately, her character is so cold and soulless that you never really connect with her or care what happens to her, which ultimately threatens the emotional impact of the film.

I've heard a lot of negative comments about this film, and in particular Jade Leung's performance, but I found it to be an exciting and seductively dangerous portrait of a policewoman who's torn between her corrupt superior officer and a reckless criminal. Jade Leung's stoic and disconnected performance perfectly reflects the frail psychology of her character as she slips further into desperation and recklessness.

The film resembles an art flick in its structure, tone, and execution, but the gritty action sequences that are sprinkled throughout help keep the film from becoming overly pretentious (Ms. Leung actually got severely burned in a mis-timed explosion during filming). Of course, maybe you have to be a Jade Leung fan or a girls 'n' guns fan to appreciate what this film is trying to accomplish.

Apart from the goofy and annoying antics of the obnoxious pimp character, I really enjoyed this femme fatale entry from action diva Jade Leung. In a genre that even the Hong Kong film industry is abandoning, Jade proves that she still has what it takes to kick some serious butt. She also shows a little more diversity as an actress and doesn't seem as wooden and stoic as many of her previous performances. Another welcome surprise is the inclusion of an intelligent and resourceful villain, who is just plain nasty and doesn't have to prove it with maniacal laughter and random acts of chaotic violence. A respectable budget, a decent plot, strong performances by everyone, and out of control action sequences make this film an action lover's treat.