SPL - Donnie's Back!

Ah, Donnie Yen, he's back!!! And he's good!!!!!

One of my favourite kungfu stars from the Orient, his latest offering doesn't disappoint. He's put on some weight, but his kicks are still awe inspiring. SPL, starring Donnie Yen, Simon Yam and Samo Hung, go watch it if you're a fan of the police and thief Hong Kong movies and have been hoping that such movies return to their former glory. SPL is just about there.

There are many posing "act cool" scenes. I don't really like such scenes usually but this time round, they just struck a chord. The uber cool Simon does a watchable cat walk in the police station corridor while togged in a dapper suit. And as they pose after bashing a baddie with baseball bats on a rooftop, you can't help but feel the rush from the cocktail of righteous violence, brotherhood and justice.

The show does get abit lost here and there, especially when we see how Donnie quickly switches sides with just a simple cooked up explanation by the script writers.

SPL, however, is not truly the run of the mill police and thief movie. Intentionally or not, the show seems to be saying that "in the good, there is some bad; and in the bad, there is some good". We see one of Simon's man dumping the crook's money in his car boot with a smirk, only to realise that he kept the money for a worthy cause - criminal act, yet admirable. And then there's Simon's desparate attempt to frame the evil head honcho, Samo Hung, just so as to see justice finally meted out. On the other hand, there's Samo Hung's dual personality of baddie at work, doting father and husband at home.

But, but, the real deal about paying $8.50 for this movie is to watch Donnie kick butts. My God! I'd pack my bags and leave for Hong Kong if he's willing to teach me some. To look and kick like that after all these years is no mean feat, I say.

The final part of the show was a one-to-one between Donnie and Samo's bodyguard, followed by Donnie and Samo. More could have been done to showcase the bodyguard while I felt Samo is too old for such scenes. But all in all, the fight scenes were fantastic.

And of course, the show taught us about karma. There's instant karma and there's long-term karma. In this case, Samo had instant karma. Go watch it. You may wanna pick up some martial arts after that.


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