Movielogr

Rating: 6.5 stars

Tags

Netflix Hong Kong revenge martial arts gun fight sniper cops mercenaries mercenary triads gangster car chase ambush criminal China

All movies seen on 11/16/2013

View on: IMDb | TMDb

Dragon Squad (2005)

Directed by Daniel Lee

Action | Crime | Thriller

Most recently watched by sensoria

Overview

A team of Interpol agents arrive in the city to testify against a local crime lord. However on the way to court the vehicle carrying the Triad boss is attacked and the crime lord snatched, not by his own people but by another foe.

Length 110 minutes

Actors

Vanness Wu | Shawn Yue | Xia Yu | Huang Sheng-Yi | Lawrence Chou | Sammo Hung Kam-Bo | Michael Biehn | Huh Joon-ho | Maggie Q | Simon Yam | Isabella Leong | Li Bingbing | Andy On | Philip Ng | Bey Logan | Yuen Wah | Gordon Liu Chia-Hui | Kent Tong | Hugo Ng | Liu Kai-Chi | Tony Ho

Viewing History (seen 2 times)

Viewing Notes

Very torn on this endeavor by director Daniel Lee. On one hand you have a collection of rising stars mixed with some great journeyman actors, which I love. On the other you have a film that’s too bloated with stylish flourishes that do nothing to add to the actual film.

Some terrific action setpieces esp. the alley gun battle and the cemetery scene with sniper versus sniper. But sometimes you wonder how or why the mercenaries do the things they do. Like either wasting time or odd judgment choices. Also question how that team can be so much better than everyone else in every facet.

Also Michael Biehn’s dialogue and delivery are so bizarre. Like really dumbed down for the Chinese audience. These are small nitpicks for a highly enjoyable film but they still weigh the film down and make it less desirable to revisit. I watched all the extras on the disc including Michael Biehn’s interview, which was insightful. Would have liked more interviews since they clearly talked to everyone for the making-of featurette.

Also find it interesting that Li Bingbing gets roles yet requires a voice actress to dub all her lines. Last note: not crazy about Maggie Q as a villain. I like her but prefer her with the good guys.

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