Kill Zone (2005)

A near retired inspector and his unit are willing to put down a crime boss at all costs while dealing with his replacement, who is getting in their way. Meanwhile, the crime boss sends his top henchmen to put an end to their dirty schemes.

Director:

Wilson Yip (as Yip Wai Shun)

Writers:

Wilson Yip (as Yip Wai Shun), Kam-Yuen Szeto (as Szeto Kam Yuen)

Stars:

Donnie Yen, Simon Yam, Sammo Kam-Bo Hung

4 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Donnie Yen	...	Ma Kwan
Simon Yam	...	Chan Kwok Chung
Sammo Kam-Bo Hung	...	Wong Po (as Sammo Hung)
Jing Wu	...	Jack
Kai Chi Liu	...	Lok Kwun Wah (as Liu Kai Chi)
Danny Summer	...	Kwok Tsz Sum
Ken Chang	...	Lee Wai Lok
Austin Wai	...	Cheung Chun Fei
Timmy Hung	...	Drug Trafficker
Tat Chi Chan	...	Policeman (as Chan Tat Chee)
Jingke Liang	...	Wong Po's wife (as Liang Jing Kei)
Vincent Sze	...	Chan Wai
Kenji Tanigaki	...	Wong Po's Bodyguard
Ching-Lam Lau	...	Hoi Yee (as Lau Ching Lam)
Maggie Poon	...	Sum's Daughter (as Maggie Poon Mei Ki)

Storyline

Chan, an articulate senior detective nearing the end of his career, is taking care of the daughter of a witness killed by ruthless crime lord Po. Martial arts expert Ma is set to take over as head of the crime unit, replacing Chan who wants an early retirement.

---

Plot Keywords:

martial arts | false evidence | bad guy wins | retirement | inspector | 

---

Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film wasn't going to be part action film at first but that changed once Donnie Yen came on-board. As the film's action director, Donnie requested additional funds in order to shoot action scenes accordingly to the story. The result became the now famous alley fight and the last fight with Jing Wu and Sammo Kam-Bo Hung respectively.

---

Goofs

In the final fight Donnie Yen kicks Sammo Hung on to the bar. Sammo bounces off it, seemingly falling to the floor. But in the next shot, Sammo is standing up against the bar. The shot after it he is even lying on it, when Donnie does an acrobatic move to crush him into the glass holder.

---

Alternate Versions

In the mainland china version, five minutes was trimmed, it ends after Ma has beaten Po thus changing the entire tone of the whole film.

---

Connections

Featured in Films of Fury: The Kung Fu Movie Movie (2011)

---

Soundtracks

The Trick
Written by Liam Howlett
Performed by The Prodigy

User Reviews

thoughts on SPL

Definitely nihilistic and gritty Sha Po Lang is a good mix of cop drama and action film. I thought the direction was was quite nice although it seemed inconsistent, sometimes wandering into "art film" territory. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but I don't know that it worked 100%. Overall I thought the movie was 'alright'. The plot was seriously stretched thin, you don't really get into the characters or care much for them; Audience members laughed at scenes that were supposed to be touching or sad but every criticism I could lay at the movies feet is fairly much washed away by the fight scenes.

Donnie yen did a spectacular job with the choreography and MMA fans will be glad to know there is an energetic mix of all types of fighting styles including Jiu Jitsu complete with take downs and arm-bars. One of the main fight sequences is the most spectacular upon first viewing and then more-so on reflection as you find out that Donnie Yen and Wu Jing had no rehearsal and no direction; simply, they were told to "go for it". To this point, the baton that yen wields in this fight scene was replaced three times as it was broken on Wu Jing's head while filming.

Sammo is fantastic and I still marvel at how he moves at his age. I've always been a fan of Donnie Yen and this is definitely a great fighting film for him. Wu Jing is a relative unknown but trained in the same opera company as Jacky Chan and Sammo Hung,being taught by Wo Ping. during the Q&A, Wu Jing said his next film will likely be a prequel to Sha Po Lang.

I took a photo of the stage assembly and thought I would include it here if anyone wants to see it. They were exceptional and patient at answering questions. even the slightly embarrassing ones.

http://virtuafighter.ca/downloads/SPL01.jpg

left to right: Translator for Wilson Yip, Wilson yip, Announcer guy, Sammo hung, Wu Jing, translator for Wu Jing.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Hong Kong] (English)

Country:

Hong Kong Macao

Language:

Cantonese Mandarin

Release Date:

18 November 2005 (Hong Kong)

Also Known As:

Kill Zone

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$954,211

Company Credits

Production Co:

Abba Movies Co. Ltd., 1618 Action Limited, Greek Mythology Entertainment Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min 97 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1