Winner for Best Action Choreography in Hong Kong and Golden Horse Film Awards, “Flash Point” marked the third collaboration between Wilson Yip and Donnie Yen, after the great “SPL” and the mediocre “Dragon Tiger Gate”, in an effort that, just as their first cooperation, signalled a return to the gritty action of the 80s HK action cinema.
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The movie shows its colors from the first scenes where Ma Jun, a criminal investigations detective who is frequently in trouble for his violent methods, raids the nightclub where brothers Archer, Tony and Tiger are discussing a drug deal with Sam, a rival gang leader. Ma Jun almost immediately attacks one of their subordinates, Wilson, who is, however, a mole planted by the police and actually his partner. The movie proceeds in the same fashion, with the two aforementioned gangs fighting with each other and the police. Tony, a rather skilled in martial arts criminal, emerges as a more than worthy opponent for Ma Jun, while Wilson and his girlfriend, Judy, find themselves in the middle of all the fighting, with the most dire consequences.
There are two elements in HK action/martial arts films that never fail to impress, essentially the ones that make the titles of the category from the particular country stand out so much. The first is that the police officers do not differ much from criminals themselves, being rather violent and having very little concern for the rules. Ma Jun in here is a characteristic sample, with the scene with the man who attacks civilians highlighting this aspect in the most eloquent and the most brutal way. The second is the amount of punishment both policemen and innocent people receive, to the point that even if the “good guys” are the ones that usually win, their victories almost always come at a great cost. “Flash Point” is no exception, with the aforementioned scene, but most of all, the fate of Wilson and Ruth being particularly vicious, and Louis Koo and Fan Bingbing playing the roles of victims to perfection.
Apart from that, the film thrives on its rhythm, with the frantic pace implemented by Cheung Ka-fai's editing fitting the relentless action to perfection, and Wilson Yip and DP Cheung Man-po setting the scenes in a style that reminds of the great works of Johnnie To. Slow motion, fast forwards, uncanny angles, and a number of scenes that fit the brilliant main theme by Chan Kwong Ming, result in a true audiovisual extravaganza. Just check the scene where Ray Lui is dancing inside his cell and you will get the point.
The movie, however, is first and foremost an action one and it is this aspect that truly makes it stand out. Donnie Yen is astonishing both as a performer and an action choreographer here, and also has the luck of being paired with an equally impressive Collin Chou as Tony. Their parallel paths into punishing their foes, but most of all, the rather lengthy, rather brutal, rather astonishing final fight is a true wonder to look at. Add to all that some car chases, some gun fu, a bit of humor mostly deriving from Koo, and a scene at the beach that can only be described as eye candy (before it is ridiculed on purpose) and you have the backbone of any great genre cinema.
“Flash Point” is a great action film, a title that highlights the abilities of all its cast and crew, and a must see for all fans of the category.
