Hey folks, Harry here with a look at one of the Toronto films... and from the sound of this raving rave's rave... you ought to just love this flick.... Once again though... different tastes for different folks... All I wanna know is... Does a monkey kill a cobra? Do two dogs eat one another? Does a kittycat kill a cobra? Ask these 3 questions about all films... It's important. Here's Jan....
Hi Harry,
My name is JAN CHIK. I'm a crazy film addict who goes to Toronto Film Fest every year and watches at least 30 films every time. I've checked their film schedule and found out that I already saw some of their selected Hong Kong films (THE MISSION, JULIET IN LOVE and LITTLE CHEUNG). And THE MISSION is the best of the best and let me say this: IT IS A GREAT, GREAT FILM! I feel it's my obligation to do whatever I can to promote this film!!!!!
But let me be honest to you first: I got my own homepage reviewing films and so my following film review is directly pasted from my homepage. I wanna be clear to you first becuase I do NOT want you to feel I used your website to promote my website. I just wanna promote THE MISSION! So, I'm not telling you and your readers my URL address and stuff but just wanna more people to see THE MISSION in this year's TIFF.
Anyway, this is my film review for THE MISSION.
FILM REVIEW: "THE MISSION" directed by Johnnie To
"The Mission" is one of the rare cinematic experiences I have been waiting for a long time. Johnnie To, a veteran Hong Kong director whose films are often above the par, has made a film that is so precise and subtle that is absolutely flawless. Yes, I'm not exaggerating -- "The Mission" is so flawless that there is no waste of a single frame or even a single dialogue in the 90 minutes.
The story of "The Mission," like many Hong Kong action movies, is about the gangsters; what is unusual, however, is that the story itself is more like a situation. A gangster boss is challenged by an unknown enemy and his life now is in danger. His brother, Frank (Simon Yam), recruits five hit men and assigns them a mission: Protect the Boss and find the enemy.
These five men, however, look like an unlikely combination -- Curtis (Anthony Wong) is a formidable gangster but is now "retired" as a hairdresser; James (Lam Suey) is a loner who spends most of the time eating peanuts but is indeed a gun expert; Mike (Roy Cheung) is another ex-killer but has recently become a pimp for living; Roy (Francis Ng) is a new rising gangster who is the most impulsive among the five; and Shin (David Lui) is Roy's sidekick who helps Roy to keep their "district" clean from the cops and their local rivals from another gang.
Although they are uneasy with each other at the beginning, they start to admire each other's skill during the gun battles. They are different in terms of their characters and reputation; however, they work together as an effective team. They are professional hit men who don't talk much but show their dedication to the group simply by practically solving problems for each other. We can feel there is a strong male bonding between them by observing the way they make little fun with each other. My favorite scene is the one they quietly play a little soccer with a piece of paper on the floor. But once their boss appears, they instantly stand up, stop playing and are ready to go.
After wiping out their enemy, the story is not finished yet. There is another crisis -- one of the five men has an affair with the wife of the boss. According to the Rule, this guy must be killed. This time, these five good friends have to point their guns to each other.
Unlike most other Hong Kong action films, the gun battles in "The Mission" are very COLD. In other words, you can't see the gangsters using machineguns to shoot everything into pieces. Nor can you see the killers jumping around and making excessive and unnecessary shots like those in the John Woo's films. When the boss is under attack in the shopping mall, every hit man is involved and works as a team -- one protects the boss, one guards the escalators, the other three stays put and hides behind in different positions to cover the boss. Every gunshot they make is necessary and strategic. Everybody is playing calm and professional there.
The other achievement Johnnie To has accomplished is the use of dialogues and the carefully constructed screenplay. There are not many dialogues in the movie between the five killers; yet, their characters are sharply portrayed by observing what they do and their reactions to some situations. Their performances are so good that are almost invisible: Francis Ng, as Roy, is bad tempered whose emotion can erupt at any moment; David Lui, as Roy's sidekick, is the most cheerful kid who feels excited and enthusiastic about the mission; Roy Cheung's character is the most friendly and helpful guy to keep the group together; Lam Suey, who plays the mean-looking James, is the most quiet but also the most sacrificing to help out each other in the final confrontation; and Anthony Wong, the head of the five, plays Curtis as the calmest but also the most formidable among the five. And Simon Yum too -- he has brief appearances in the movie but is still able to establish a character who is obnoxiously flamboyant and you can't tell whether he is a good or a bad guy.
While most people may think Hong Kong action films are simply violent extravaganza, "The Mission" sticks out as an exceptionally high style, delicate and effective action film that should deserve much more respect and attention. I've seen this movie more than once; the more I saw the movie, the more I realized what a great film it was. The ending is a triumphant surprise too -- it requires the audience to closely pay attention to see how the five killers handle the crisis through untold communication although at least one of them has to die in their last dinner.
Although the Hong Kong film industry is struggling recently, "The Mission" fires hopes to show that some director talents, like Johnnie To, are still making great films in Hong Kong. This movie is as good as or even better than those movies shown in some international film festivals. After seeing this movie, I really felt that it's my mission to bring this movie up to ask you readers to see it. So, please don't miss "The Mission."
Jan Chik
