Dragon Squad (2005)

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

DRAGON SQUAD is a no-brainer for me: a Hong Kong action film in which Interpol agents battle criminal gangs, with warfare on the streets. Martial arts battles with machetes, sniper stand-offs, daring heists, and a revenge-fuelled storyline are all par for the course for this genre, so this should be an easy film to like. Unfortunately there's one big problem which drags it down to a barely enjoyable level: Daniel Lee's direction.This is the worst directed Hong Kong action film I've seen in many, many years. DRAGON SQUAD is over-edited to within an inch of its life. The editing is super fast throughout, with constant shaky-cam work and headache-inducing montages. It makes the film look dated and amateurish and the 1990s-looking captions don't help either. I mean, why on earth did Lee think it would be a good idea to keep showing black-and-white stills of the characters during the suspense scenes? It's ridiculous! Had the direction been restrained, oh I don't know by actually allowing the actors time to act and the combatants to show off their skills, then this would have been a lot better. As it stands, Lee is the cinematic equivalent of a bratty kid at a birthday party, jumping up and down and shouting "Look at me! Look at me!".I've seen other works by the same director (THREE KINGDOMS: RESURRECTION OF THE DRAGON, 14 BLADES) and they were nothing like this so I can only hope he learnt his lesson by his mistakes here. Otherwise, DRAGON SQUAD is fun film; plenty of action and one hell of cast to really get your teeth into. Among others this movie features Maggie Q as a sniper, Sammo Hung as an elder cop with an Alsation, Michael Biehn as the villain, Simon Yam as the chief cop, Li Bingbing as a love interest, Andy On as a bad guy, and Shawn Yue as one of the heroic cops. A shame about the charisma-free (and oddly-named) Vaness Wu (yeah, he's a guy) as the Emo-style hero, but then you can't have everything. I just wish the director hadn't messed up so bad on this one.

At the end of "Dragon Heat," all I could think of was why I bothered sitting through the whole thing.The film's premise is interesting and that - as well as Maggie Q - is what attracted me to the film in the first place. But was I ever disappointed. Writer-director Daniel Lee can't hold a candle to the likes of John Woo, Ringo Lam and Corey Yuen.This has to be one of the most annoyingly-directed films I have ever seen. Lee is so wrapped up in his visual style - and I use that phrase incredibly loosely - that he fills the film with completely needless black-and-white stills, freeze frames, slow-motion, fast-motion and other visual nonsense. I suppose he did all that to make up for the lack of a good story or dialogue.The action scenes are nothing special and play out like some hopped-up music video more than anything else. There is little to care about any of the characters - including two supposedly professional snipers who couldn't hit the broad side of a barn from the inside! - who are then laden with some of the cheesiest dialogue I have seen in one of these Hong Kong actioners.The plot is devoid of any twists and turns - from the initial set-up, everything unfolds in predictable fashion - and Lee feels the need to keep reminding us of the characters' back stories in case we didn't get it the first several times. This is awfully amateurish writing and film-making and wastes the talents of Sammo Hung, Michael Biehn and Maggie Q. Though, to be frank, I am hard-pressed to remember Biehn being in any good film that was not directed by James Cameron.If you really are in the mood for a great Hong Kong actioner, you are much better off sticking to some of the staples - John Woo's "The Killer" (1989) and "Hard-Boiled" (1992), Ringo Lam's "City on Fire" (1987) - which Quentin Tarantino stole for "Reservoir Dogs" (1992) - or his "Point Blank" (1967) remake, "Full Contact" (1992). Or, even check out Yuen's "So Close" (2002), a supremely entertaining, yet preposterous, popcorn flick. And there's always the terrific French police actioner, "The Nest" (2002).True, most, if not all, are a bit over-the-top, but they were films that remain exciting, thrilling and even suspenseful. They have characters we care about and mind-blowing action sequences."Dragon Heat," on the other hand, is just terribly mediocre. The trouble is that Lee has not made a bad action film, he has made a dull one.

Interpol agents assembled from all parts of the globe have built evidence against a criminal known for armed robbery and drug trafficking, Panther Duen(Doi-yung Ng), cooperating with the Hong Kong Police force, operating under Commander Hong Sun(Simon Yam). But, a criminal alliance desire payback towards Hong Kong mafioso Tiger Duen(Ken Tong) who runs the Duen Syndicate getting rich off of gambling, drugs and prostitution..Tiger killed a man named Dominick(..along with others who participated in an armed robbery)whose brother, Petros(Michael Biehn), a former Captain for the Colombian army, seeks revenge, aligning himself with former Korean colonel, Ko Tsung Yuon(Jun-ho Heo) and his intimidating staff of talented killers. Soon the agents will join forces with a transportation cop, Kong Long(Sammo Hung), a demoted former Sergeant on the police force who cost the lives of six officers disobeying orders in a shootout with Ko Tsung Yuon and his men during a bank robbery, in an attempt to stop the criminal alliance from getting their hands on a roll of film containing the bank account number and password for all the firearms and drug dealers in the possession of Tiger's ex-lover, Yau Ching(Bingbing Li), for whom Petros gets romantically involved(..he instigates the relationship, at first, to get his hands on the film, but soon actually falls in love with Ching).When I noticed this movie at a local Blockbuster, I was quite taken aback regarding the very eclectic cast in this movie. It seems to feature the who's-who of Asian cinema. And, this has a really great part for Michael Biehn, who is still in fine form as a difficult adversary for the young, green(..but impressively talented)agents out to get him and his gang of highly skilled assassins. Maggie Q has a nifty role as a silent(..and deadly) sniper, working for Ko, often exchanging gunfire with Yu Xia(..as the agents' ace marksman Luo Zai Jun), including one superb sequence in a cemetery as gravestones are blasted apart, not to mention the phenomenal action set piece where both teams partake in an epic shootout within an alley. Vanness Wu is the inexperienced, but courageous(..also brainy)Wang Sun Ho, who becomes Petros main foe, with their highlight shooting match featured during the climax of the film. Talking about exciting, Sammo Hung and Jun-ho Heo have two classic fights, one in a locker room, another in an abandoned warehouse..Heo carries a mean sword and how Hung combats him without one has got to be seen. Even though Hung might be overweight, smoking away on his cigars, this man has some very fast hands(..I think one can tell, thanks to clever camera techniques and editing that Hung, no matter how athletic he might be, used a stuntman sometimes)and his work opposite Heo is a marvel to experience.Rounding out the cast of Interpol agents are Shengyi Huang as the agents' lone female teammate Pak Yut Suet(..her fate is heartbreaking, bringing a lump to the throat), Lawrence Chou as James Lam, and Shawn Yue as Hung Kei Lok. Accompanying Ko's gang are the brutish, hulking former Navy Seal Joe Pearson(Mark Henderson)and martial arts(..and gunner)expert Lee Chen Pei(Philip Ng). There are splendid shootouts between rival groups with lots of ammunition wasted without anyone even hit(..kind of amusing in that both teams are so talented they know how to keep from getting killed), although the casualties that result in the alley set the stage for the spectacular mall sequence featuring Biehn's Petros making life very difficult for agents Sun Ho and Lok as they attempt to halt his recovery of the roll of film. Also, the film features an exhilarating entrapment of Commander Hang Sun's police force where Ko and Petros somehow eliminate their enemies, allowing Tiger Duen to escape. Director Daniel Lee also provides characters with backgrounds and stories, fleshing them out as human beings..particularly Kong Long(..whose estranged daughter wants nothing to do with him, and his guilt losing officers thanks to a hasty decision on his part), Petros(..his willingness to kill whoever it takes to get his revenge, yet having a code of honor in regards to lying to anyone), and the talented young cast have moments devoted to their roles. Lee also provides the characters with B&W vignettes dedicated to each one's particular skill along with a brief description of who they are. There are times where Lee allows the film to get carried away with hyper-kinetic camera work and quick-cut editing, but there are still some awe-inspiring moments of sheer genius, plus some stunningly developed set-pieces. A real heart-pounding, cold-blooded, ultra-violent actioner from Daniel Lee.

The anticipation I had for this film sparked a major interest in Asian cinema and for that reason alone, I am glad this film exists. On finally seeing Dragon Squad, it is obvious that is not one the best written or best acted films but it is a highly entertaining, fast paced and well directed action piece. Perhaps for me, this film was a victim to my own expectations.Dragon Squad is immensely stylish and Daniel Lee does a tremendous job to grab the audience's attention via clever use of camera wizardry. In some scenes, he overdoes the slow motion and cut backs, but overall, he is extremely impressive. The way he integrates news report like flashes within the film is very clever in terms of pace as it saves on huge chunks of exposition to explain what is happening and characters' background. Whilst it is a fresh approach, I've always been in favour of setting the scene and character development. Lee would have done well to remember that these are the basics when it comes to a good plot.With the exception of Petros (Michael Biehn) and Ching's (Li Bing Bing) story, the character stories are somewhat neglected and rushed. Sammo Hung's relationship with his daughter could have been explored much more and would have given good contrast to the bloodshed that was occurring elsewhere in the film. There was an attempt at background explanations for the 'Dragon Squad' and although they were good and went to some length to explain the characters, there was hardly any closure on the issues. The plot as a whole however, is very good. The tale two groups chasing one man for different reasons is very compelling and the way the groups interact with each other is very good. To put it one way, Dragon Squad has a great body but not quite enough bones to hold it all together.Negativity aside, the action in the film is brilliant. Some of the best shootout scenes I've witnessed (and that's a lot!) are on this film; it is stunning to watch. Biehn, Shawn Yue and Maggie Q all really shine in these scenes. Their weapon handling is brilliant and they do a fantastic job of adding personality to the action scenes. The sniper battles are very good as they add tension and also means the action on the ground can flourish uninterrupted. Dragon Squad really sets itself above its peers with these scenes as it doesn't stray in to the realms of nonsense like Hard Boiled did and instead, tries to remain on a more realistic level.The cast is somewhat mixed. Shawn Yue is very good in all of his scenes, he is likable and the scenes with his paralysed brother are very touching. The rest of the 'Dragon Squad' however, are all pretty bad. Vanness Wu in particular was extremely wooden and definitely should have stuck to doing pop songs. Sammo Hung was a much needed cast member. His movement in the fight scenes was very good and he certainly shone when compared to the main characters. Michael Biehn as the lead villain was excellent. These are the kind of roles he loves and really took this one by the reigns. Biehn makes his villain a sympathetic and likable one but is also totally ruthless. This is one of Biehn's best roles in years and he was a joy to watch; definitely the stand out performance. Maggie Q was slightly underused in this film but her role was the silent but deadly sniper so she fitted perfectly in to the requirements of the character. Simon Yam was also good in his small role as the chief of police. He adds another dimension to Hung's character and gives a very generous performance.The music in the film is brilliant. The drum score is at the heart of Dragon Squad's atmosphere and it is so effective at putting the audience on edge. This is classic Hong Kong action music and the length of time this particular sound has lasted further shows how effective it is. There is extreme contrast within the music as on one hand there are these intense instrumentals and on the other, there are slow, emotional pop songs. Lee really uses music as part of the film and it is brilliant at heightening Dragon Squad's impact.Overall, this is a very good film despite its many flaws. With a little more attention to character development, this could have been one of the year's best films. The director, however, focused more on action set pieces and these alone take the film to a very good level. Dragon Squad has quality stamped all over it and deserves much more recognition than it's been given.