Cheap Killers
1998
Director: Clarence Fok
Writer: Wong Jing
Producer: Wong Jing
Stars: Alex Fong, Sunny Chan, Kathy Chow, Stephen Fung
Alex Fong and Sunny Chan play a duo of hired killers whose lives fall into disarray after Chan falls in love with Triad moll Kathy Chow.
You might think the reunion of the team that brought us Naked Killer might produce something a bit more interesting than this. It offers up a good amount of violence and a bit of sex but really nothing new. A lot of Wong Jing's movies seem rough and unpolished -- he doesn't believe is spending a lot of time on pre (script) or post (editing) production. Usually, though, his films get by with sheer visual visceral overload. Cheap Killers' Cat IIb rating seems to inhibit it a bit. I'm not saying that films need to be bloody to be good, but why do things half-way, especially when you are Wong Jing?
Cheap Killers isn't a horrible movie, just a bit on the boring side. If Wong had applied a little spit and polish, or a bit of gusto instead of just going through the motions, it might have been a better film. The core story, while not original, is handled well, giving enough twists to keep things interesting but not so much as to jumble the plot. Most of the actors (especially Alex Fong) give good performances, and the action is pretty solid. It's worth a look if you're into the action/crime genre.
RATING: 6
This DVD is available for purchase at www.hkflix.com
