AVClub: Hong Kong’s crime and action films have been likened to opera since before the rise of John Woo, though few recent movies earn that comparison more than Soi Cheang’s delirious and rousing SPL II: A Time For Consequences, which is being distributed here as Kill Zone 2. Mixing martial arts, cops and crooks action, and completely shameless schmaltz, the inventive and perennially underappreciated Cheang (Accident) keeps the movie in a state of exaggerated emotion; it opens with the choral “Lacrimosa” from Mozart’s Requiem and a slow-mo shot tinted arterial red, and rarely lets up from there. Given two staggeringly gifted martial-arts stars—Hong Kong’s Wu Jing and Thailand’s Tony Jaa—and an insane script about bodies being moved, damaged, and commodified that has zilch to do with the 2005 Donnie Yen vehicle SPL (a.k.a. Kill Zone), Cheang builds flourish upon flourish with a ballsiness that recalls Brian De Palma in his prime.
With the new The Crow remake coming soon, we take a look back at the 30-year-old cult classic original–and where the stars are now.
Kaam Chalu Hai Review: Based on true events, this movie is thought-provoking and inspiring
Rebel Moon Part 2 Review: This movie doesn't feel anything new or worth remembering, which is a shame.
