All Film Reviews

The film boasts a truly stellar cast and good production values, but sadly the saga had run out of steam.

‘Adrenaline Drive’ is often hilarious, sometimes filled with genuine tension and with a humanity at its core that is a delightful addition to the many other strengths.

‘After The Storm’ doesn’t quite hit the heights of ‘Our Little Sister’, but it is another world class contribution to cinema by one of the modern masters.

A well made drama that follows the lives of a small group of characters after an horrific event, ‘Aftershock’ may disappoint those looking for the regular disaster movie tropes but those in the mood for a rewarding character piece should check it out.

It’s all very pleasant as a celeb-spotting exercise though it does remind you of the much better films these stars have already been in, productions you should be watching instead.

For a change, ‘Alien Vs. Ninja’ is an amusingly titled, low budget action movie that actually lives up to expectations.

For those willing to explore other genres of Hong Kong films though, ‘All About Ah Long’ is a quality film that continues to have a resonance after it has ended.

When the main story takes centre stage, the viewer’s interest is likely to be lost and the plot-holes difficult to reconcile.

‘All About Women’ is hard work, something I never thought I’d be writing about a Tsui Hark film.

‘All For The Winner’ is a fun all-round movie with a particularly pleasing performance from Stephen Chow.

‘All Night Long’ is a vehicle for four fine actresses and a film-maker who may not have made a significant contribution to Asian cinema, yet shows with this production that his skills are worthy of merit.

It’s such a shame that one of Lam’s more appealing roles is hamstrung by unusually poor direction from Tsui Hark.

Despite the weakness of its central performance, ‘All The Wrong Spies’ does incorporate the zest of the Cinema City films that dominated the early 80s.

It has to be admitted that there are some decent moments within the film and it certainly brings more smiles to the face than many a Chinese New Year comedy of the past.

‘All-Round Appraiser Q’ is a winning crime film with a brilliant heroine and a very pleasant dynamic between her and the adoring acolyte Yuto.

There’s still enjoyment to be had in this Hong Kong comedy though as long as the potential viewer is willing to forgive its various shortcomings.

Chow Sing-Chi completists may want to seek it out, but everyone else should divert their attention to his many more accomplished films.

Exquisite cinematography, immense talent behind the lens as well as a superb lead performance all add up to create an inspirational masterpiece.

Once again, Wu Ma has delivered an independent genre flick that is involving, utilising his excellent cast well and making a very predictable story about revenge something a little different.

The best advice I would give to anyone is to stick with this excellent production through its slower moments as there is much to savour here.

This sumptuous work was lauded on its release and in this reviewer’s mind was not deserving of quite the reception it got at the Japanese Academy awards.

It is a diverting 90 minutes with a few well constructed scenes scattered throughout, but this hardly compensates for its waste of potential.

Somewhat frustrating due to its fractured narrative, yet compelling within its aesthetic and themes, Eddie Fong’s directorial debut remains a unique experiment of its era.

This highly acclaimed romantic drama proves once again that Hong Kong cinema can be very subtle and is far more varied than some would have the public believe.