The Shadow's Edge

You would think this was a Hong Kong movie but it's not. It got all the flair from a classic Hong Kong action packed movie, but this is actually a mainland China movie, set in Macau, has nothing to do with Hong Kong. It does have a mix of Hong Kong, South East asians and mainland chinese actors. Most notably ofcourse the Hong Kong actors Jackie Chan and Leung Kafai. The director is Larry Yang who is a chinese national from Hangzhou. The script is very smartly written, as you are thrown in the action right away, with not very much information about the antagonists whom their motives and their origin story are unknown, but oddly enough you are immediately invested in them from the very first second they hit the screen. What you do know is that the band of criminals are very determined in achieving their goal. Leung Kafai as the main villain has a very convincing edge to him and ofcourse Jackie Chan being the veteran police inspector did a very well job in portraying a caring mentor for his apprentice Qiugou, the role of Zhang Zifeng. The cat and mouse plot between the villain and the undercover police were engaging and exciting to watch and the siege of the police station by mercenaries was a cool adrenaline rush. Even though there were too much happening on screen to take in, but you get a sense of severity in the plot. This movie action quality is not lesser than from for example well established directors like Hong Kongs Dante Lam. And the action scenes not any less than any Hollywood Michael Bay movie. If this is the direction of mainland chinese action movies for the coming near future, then we have some exciting times ahead!

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Jackie Chan and Tony Leung face to face in the Chinese remake of Eye in the Sky, made in 2007. Even if the storyline seems to stretch a bit too long at some point, this typical thriller/action movie smells that old Hong Kong spicy flavor, offering a compelling plot, two great action stars and a large casting of decent new faces. A solid Jackie Chan performance, definitely worth the watch.

The film is weighed down by excessive melodrama, an overly long runtime, and an overcrowded cast, many of whom are underdeveloped.That said, this is the best work Jackie Chan has delivered in a long time. It’s refreshing to see him in a dramatic role once again. Tony Leung Ka-fai is phenomenal as the antagonist, delivering a genuinely menacing performance. The film also features impressive fight choreography, thrilling cat-and-mouse chase sequences, and some well-handled quieter moments.Hopefully, we’ll get more films like this from Jackie Chan in the future.

The Shadow's Edge wasn’t a bad watch, but it also wasn’t something I’m gonna remember for long. It has that very “throw it on at night and casually watch it” kind of energy. The movie moves fast enough to avoid getting boring, and some of the action and visual style are genuinely solid, but emotionally it never really grabbed me.What kept me watching was mostly the atmosphere and pacing. The darker tone, neon lighting, and tense confrontations give the movie a decent vibe, especially during the nighttime scenes. It clearly wants to feel slick and gritty, and visually it succeeds more than the story itself **** problem is that the characters feel pretty thin. You follow what’s happening, but you don’t really get attached to anyone. A lot of the dialogue sounds familiar too, like you’ve heard versions of these conversations in ten other thrillers before. It’s never offensively bad — just very standard.Still, I can’t say I was bored. The film knows how to keep moving, and that alone makes it easier to enjoy than a lot of slower action-thrillers lately. It’s basically the definition of a “middle shelf” movie: decent for one evening, probably forgettable a week **** me, it lands at a simple 5/10 — not great, not awful, just an okay late-night watch.

Storytelling is messy as the way fighting scenes are filmed (close up shots, so much cut and too shaky). Too bad, because the photographia is good and actors are great even if the "strong woman" pattern is annoying. The movie is mid and for 11€ the theatre ticket, it really bother me.