Cast Member: Jack Kao

‘Full Alert’ is more focused on crime and the effects of violence on the average man than it is on the dynamics of the police thriller.

Chen Singsing’s film is a gentle and often realistic portrayal of humans dealing with grief and loneliness.

For a low budget, rushed production, the emotional content of the film and the quality of its cast save the day providing us with a kung fu influenced ‘Shawshank Redemption’ wannabe.

There’s some very powerful visual displays of violence that pepper the film throughout, showing us that if you turn to the dark side you really will become slave to its master.

The quality increases as the film progresses and the viewer is more invested in the characters, meaning that it stands out as one of the more exciting swordplay films of recent years.

Despite Jing’s attempts to prove otherwise, ‘The Conman’ is really little more than a second rate attempt at remaking ‘God of Gamblers’.

If you like slick, glossy action flicks with lots of pretty boys posing, then ‘The Sniper’ is right up your street.

It may be To’s intention to slightly alienate the audience with characters stuck in limbo, without any explanations, but, if this is the case, he cannot be too surprised to learn that this is an uninvolving film.

Dizzying, dazzling, and no doubt divisive, ‘Time and Tide’ has lost none of its verve or kinetic creativity and shows a Hong Kong master at his most creative and impulsive.

‘What Price Survival’ is nice to look at on the surface but is ultimately very tedious and the action sequences make for insufficient compensation. All in all, dull and boring.