Firestorm

The fact that Firestorm stars international idol Andy Lau (Infernal Affairs, A Simple Life) will be enough to lure a certain percentage of the audience. The over-the-top action will attract the rest. In this high-stakes extravaganza, Lau plays a cop battling a ruthless and cheeky kingpin (Hu Jun) while going toe-to-toe with a former schoolmate (Gordon Lam) who’s reluctantly trying to leave his criminal tendencies behind. Also in this ferocious mix: impeccably coiffed mad dog Paco (Ray Lui), poised to steal whatever he wants thanks to his rather insane personal arsenal. Writer-director Alan Yuen’s interests revolve around explosions, gunfire, car crashes, flashy graphics, dramatic music cues and intense slow-motion, all of which factor heavily into the film’s opening robbery, a spectacular armored-car heist that slathers a layer of steroid cream atop its influences (in addition to HK’s extensive action-film history, think American blockbusters like Heat and The Town). From there, the ride proceeds to careen to even further extremes, as Lau’s straight-arrow character chances a journey to the dark side, and a street war decimates Hong Kong’s central business district. If Firestorm sounds like too much, it is. (It really is.) It’s also seriously entertaining. –Cheryl Eddy