Director: Jingle Ma

‘Butterfly Lovers’ is a forgettable version of a legend that deserves a definitive screen portrayal – it has moments of interest, but proves to be an unevenly yoked movie.

Unfortunately for Jingle Ma, ‘Europe Raiders’ is dated in a way that the nearly twenty years old ‘Tokyo Raiders’ isn’t, a production old before its time despite the 2018 bells and whistles.

‘Fly Me To Polaris’ makes no excuses for its obvious emotional machinations and a storyline clearly designed to tug at the heart-strings.

‘Happy Birthday’ is a slickly packaged vehicle for its two stars, but utterly uninspiring at the very same time.

Although this didn’t set the Hong Kong box-office alight, it is still recommended viewing.

Despite being obsessively devoted to the rom-com rule book – so much so that you can almost pinpoint the exact minute of each expected twist – this is something of a refreshing surprise.

It never quite capitalises on a spirited beginning, eventually becoming more of a leaden-footed drama than a blood and thunder action flick.

‘Seoul Raiders’ is not only a disappointment in comparison to ‘Tokyo Raiders’, but also a worrying reminder of the recent lack of sparkle in Hong Kong action cinema.

Though there’s far less of the ghastly CGI that marred ‘The Touch’, ‘Silver Hawk’ still continues to remind the viewer of the chasm between the choreography of the 80s/early90s and today.

Much of the problem with ‘Speed Angels’ is its apparent contentment with clichés and a dogged determination to be utterly mundane.

While ‘Summer Holiday’ has no major weaknesses, it is a traditionally clichéd romantic comedy that doesn’t attempt to throw anything more challenging into the blend.

‘Tokyo Raiders’ therefore is a top-notch piece of entertainment that, with a little more care in certain departments, could have been even better.