Chik yeung tin si (2002)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Corey Yuen

Writer:

Jeffrey Lau (writer)

Release Date:

12 September 2002 (Singapore)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Looks can be deceiving.

Plot:

A conflict of interest between two high-kicking assassin sisters is complicated as they're pursued by the criminals who hired them and an equally high-kicking female cop.

Plot Keywords:

Computer | Professional Assassin | Death | Cyanide | Sunglasses

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Qi Shu	...	Lynn
Wei Zhao	...	Sue
Karen Mok	...	Hong Yat Hong
Seung-heon Song	...	Yen (as Song Seung Hun)
Yasuaki Kurata	...	Master
Derek Wan	...	Master
Michael Wai	...	Ma Siu Ma
Siu-Lun Wan	...	Chow Nunn
Sau Sek	...	Chow Lui
Ki Yan Lam	...	Alice
Josie Ho	...	Ching (as Josephine Ho)
Sheung Mo Lam	...	Lai Kai-joe
May Kwong	...	May
Henry Fong	...	Dad (as Fong Ping)
Hee Ching Paw	...	Mom

Also Known As:

So Close (International: English title)
Virtual Twilight (Hong Kong: English title) (working title)
Xi yang tian shi (Hong Kong: Mandarin title)

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive violence and a sexual conversation.

Runtime:

UK:110 min | Poland:106 min (dvd release) | Argentina:111 min

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin | Cantonese | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Indonesia:Dewasa (DVD rating) | Argentina:13 | Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Philippines:R-18 | Finland:K-15 | Australia:MA | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Poland:15 (DVD rating) | Singapore:PG | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Company:

Columbia Pictures Film Production Asia

Goofs:

Continuity: Throughout the movie's fighting scenes Sue's boots keep changing from high-heeled to low-heels and back again.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Chacun son cinéma ou Ce petit coup au coeur quand la lumière s'éteint et que le film commence (2007)

Nothing original but still quite fun with some good fights and touches

Lynn and Sue are sisters whose father developed a cutting edge global surveillance tool before he and his wife were murdered for it. As a result of this the sisters became hired killers, with Lynn doing the killing and Sue guiding and advising remotely. When they complete a major job it leads to two events - firstly, their employer looks to silence them by killing them, and second, a driven cop, Hong, picks up their trail and begins to hunt them down.

As many of the audience for this film likely were, I was attracted to this film by the beautiful women on the dvd cover just as much as I was by the promise of martial arts action. The plot starts out as the standard thing with hired killers and `tough cops who are out to get them but also admire/relate to them', so nothing new there. Meanwhile the action is good but it will be standard fare for HK fans (in fact, for most of the world now thanks to Hollywood embracing it's style), although, having said that it is still entertaining even if I always find the very unnatural looking wire work to be a bit offputting.

The opening scene, where Lynn expertly moves through an office block to the strains of `why do birds etc' easily marks out the style of the film (not original, but fun) and the fights are good and have a good dramatic sense to them. The plot may well be seen elsewhere but it still has good touches and twists that will come as a surprise to many despite the familiarity of the plot basics. The cast are pretty good. The two lead actresses, Qi and Zhao, both play their roles with confidence and, needless to say, they are both very easy on the eye (and then some!). Mok is pretty but looks ugly next to these two - however she has a good character and has a fun, tough attitude. The support cast are evil bad guys and comedy sidekick cops, they all do what they are supposed to do, but to be honest the focus is always going to be the main women.

Overall, this film is not anything original or special but it is still quite good fun with plenty of stylish action. The plot has just enough going for it to carry it off, while the leads' good looks and appealing characters are a draw in themselves. Fans of the genre should enjoy it even if it doesn't stand out.