THREE is another disappointment from Hong Kong director Johnnie To, an example of style over substance that offers a new kind of story but in a way which is implausible to most viewers. The setting is a hospital, but if you're hoping for a HARD-BOILED style action flick you'll be disappointed; there's only one shoot-out right at the climax and even that's mishandled, although admittedly shot in a novel format. For the most part this is a twisty-turny enterprise charting mixing sub-plots between a handful of lead characters: Lam Suit's cop on the hunt for a traitor; Louis Koo's handling of an injured patient and criminal; Zhao Wei's doctor and her Hippocratic oath. I'm a big fan of Wei and Koo in particular but they're underutilised here as the story feels dragged out and regrettable. The ending, which should have been exciting, becomes reliant on awful CGI with that high-rise stunt in particular looking ridiculously poor.
Review of Three
