Get ready to be carried by a shock wave in Herman Yau's explosive stand-alone sequel to his big commercial success from 2017, with Andy Lau slipping in the role of Poon Shing Fung, a former good guy seemingly turning a bad guy to be rehabilitated again. In this spectacle of collisions and bomb attacks, Yau returns to his domain of entangled stories turning into attention-grabbing, adrenaline-pumping thrillers. More precisely, while the original had a more linear narrative with a clearer structure, “Shock Wave Hong Kong Destruction” strays from the straightforward storytelling in favor of more action. If some things remain unclear, and other a dash illogical, the story rolls its way, not giving a damn about such trifles. The same happens with the viewer – the realization about the missing link in the main protagonist's transition from Hong Kong Explosive Ordnance Disposal Bureau's hero to a super-baddie might hit you only after you've chewed through your fifth nail, but you'll be to busy deciding which one to bite next instead of searching for the answer. Lau's maniacal tempo doesn't leave much time for the full brain activity, but luckily – most of the answers will be served in the film's second half, some more comprehensible than others.
Buy This Title
When Fung appears at the beginning of the film, he is the superstar of the Hong Kong anti-bomb squad. The city is still in shock after a big terror attack that killed many people in an explosion that destroyed the international airport, but an end to the dread is nowhere near. Someone is very keen on causing more mayhem, with a much bigger body count. Super self-confident due to his experience and success rate, Fung is gradually dropping his guard, which goes well for a while until he loses his leg in one of the defusing operations. This won't initially kill off his optimism – he believes that hard training with his new prosthetic leg will see him return to work after the rehabilitation, but things look much different: a public praise and a decoration for his heroic deed is all he will get. He is expected to move to administrative duties because he would never pass the strict physical for EODB with a disability. Both Fung and the writers (the script was penned by Lau, Erica Li and Eric Lee) beg to differ: he is faster as Hicham El Guerrouj, and he beats Javier Sotomayor's record by estimated 20 cm.
The stunts in “Shock Wave: Hong Kong Destruction” are impressive, but the computer generated animation is strangely unbalanced. Most of the scenes involving the chase, Fung's severed leg and terrorist attacks are impeccably well done, but there are others that raise eyebrows like in the case of train collision at the airport: when both of speeding vehicles clash, the impression of seeing the physical models in the process of the scene's making of will be inevitable.
A huge chunk missing from the story is explained by Fung's loss of memory after a lethal bomb attack on a 5-star hotel during a special event organized by the Real Estate Development Association, way after he was officially dismissed from EODB. That particular action-packed part of the story is the film's most problematic: for a very long time, the viewer will not be clear if Fung was wholeheartedly participating in a secret joint operation by the FBI and Hong Kong intelligence Service to bust the dangerous terrorist organization known as Vendetta, or if he played along. Smartly, there are a couple of interpretations presented, and the seen contradicts the spoken with only one detail being crystal clear – Fung's memory was erased, and new implanted by the intelligence, in order to manipulate his actions. The constant switch from one to other possibility makes “Shock Wave: Hong Kong Destruction” challenging to follow, but not to the extent of turning it into an annoying enigma that plays on visuals.
A subplot concentrates on Fung's personal relationships – to his former partner Tung Cheuk Man (Lau Ching Wan) and ex girlfriend Pong Ling (Ni Ni), also a police officer, who is also the mastermind behind the plan to rehabilitate her ex.
“Shock Wave: Hong Kong Destruction” is Andy Lau's dance floor with everyone else holding his beer. There is no one who can deliver a counterpunch, not even the leader of Vendetta Ma Sai Kwan, a “rich anarchist” with obsession to destroy corporations and institutions. But, it is still one of the most exciting action films released in the recent time.
