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.

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Plot Keywords:

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

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Wilson Yip originally planned to shoot a lengthy intro sequence showing a close relationship between Wong Po and Jack. But the budget was limited so the idea was scrapped.

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Goofs

Despite taking place in the late-1990s, Donnie Yen plays The King of Fighters 2002: Challenge to Ultimate Battle, first released in 2002.

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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.

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Connections

Referenced in Attack of the Yakuza (2008)

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Soundtracks

The Trick
Written by Liam Howlett
Performed by The Prodigy

User Reviews

Woah, woah...don't get too carried away y'all!

Despite what others may claim Sha Po Lang is not up there with the best HK movies of it's kind made during the golden period of the 1980s, when the likes of Jackie Chan, John Woo and Ringo Lam were in their pomp. In fact, there have been better cop films than SPL released in more recent times in the territory, Infernal Affairs and Running Out of Time to name just two. What SPL does do successfully is tap into the style and tone of the type of films that made Hong Kong action film popular with western audiences during the 80s and 90s. In SPL, the line between right and wrong, good guys and bad guys, is blurred to the point of it almost becoming invisible (often a feature in John Woo's output). The fact that the film's most likable(?) character is a brutal mobster shows how there is no black and white in the world of Sha Po Lang, just differing shades of grey. It's Sammo Hung's excellent performance as gangster Po, committed family man yet also a ruthless, violent crime boss, that is at the heart of the film. Against him all the traditionally good cop characters seem to have to sacrifice their innate sense of right in order to achieve what they see as justice being done; resulting in them becoming more like the man they're trying to bring down. It all leads to regret, violence, death and a shocking finale that should live long in viewers memories. As for the action sequences, they are well executed if a little too brief, but none of them would make it into a ten (or twenty!) best HK fight scenes list. Simply put, Sha Po Lang is a well put together police thriller with decent action and a satisfyingly bleak, film noir-esquire tone. It's well worth seeing and if it kick-starts a return to the classic action style of Hong Kong cinema, even better!

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