Indonesian martial arts film that I'm really mixed about.
The plot has young man leaving home to make his way in the world. He can only return when he has mastered worldly things. Once he gets in the big city he meets a young kid who is trying to steal his wallet. By saving the kids sister from being beaten by her boss, he ends up running up against a Eurotrash human smuggling ring as what little plot is left is thrown away for action.
The film starts off like a deep meaningful TV movie of the week and I was groaning.Had I seen this in the theater I would have walked. It then begins to work its very clichéd way through several unremarkable fights (there is a rehearsed nature to many of them). Then something happens about an hour in when the action suddenly begins to work with a construction site/motorcycle fight and you sit up and go "hello".
Okay at that point its not perfect but at the same time its breaking with cliché and convention and its pretty good. Then you get a sequence in an elevator and suddenly I was like Okay this movie is turning out to be pretty good.
Then things wobble as the final sequence involving a rescue of the sister from a shipping container yard and the convention is back as our hero takes on way too many men in a not wholly impressive fight sequence. Then the film shifts gears again and the final battle between our hero and the main bad guy happens and its interesting again, with an ending I didn't expect.
and I'm left torn.
Some of this is really good, but most of it kind of misses. Its been there and done that and way too soapy. Its worth seeing but you really are going to need some patience to get through a chunk of the film at the start. I mean I really liked a chunk of this but at the same time I'm not a fan of other bits. Its probably a third really good to two thirds okay at best.
My attitude is its a rental with friends, or a cheap DVD purchase.
The plot has young man leaving home to make his way in the world. He can only return when he has mastered worldly things. Once he gets in the big city he meets a young kid who is trying to steal his wallet. By saving the kids sister from being beaten by her boss, he ends up running up against a Eurotrash human smuggling ring as what little plot is left is thrown away for action.
The film starts off like a deep meaningful TV movie of the week and I was groaning.Had I seen this in the theater I would have walked. It then begins to work its very clichéd way through several unremarkable fights (there is a rehearsed nature to many of them). Then something happens about an hour in when the action suddenly begins to work with a construction site/motorcycle fight and you sit up and go "hello".
Okay at that point its not perfect but at the same time its breaking with cliché and convention and its pretty good. Then you get a sequence in an elevator and suddenly I was like Okay this movie is turning out to be pretty good.
Then things wobble as the final sequence involving a rescue of the sister from a shipping container yard and the convention is back as our hero takes on way too many men in a not wholly impressive fight sequence. Then the film shifts gears again and the final battle between our hero and the main bad guy happens and its interesting again, with an ending I didn't expect.
and I'm left torn.
Some of this is really good, but most of it kind of misses. Its been there and done that and way too soapy. Its worth seeing but you really are going to need some patience to get through a chunk of the film at the start. I mean I really liked a chunk of this but at the same time I'm not a fan of other bits. Its probably a third really good to two thirds okay at best.
My attitude is its a rental with friends, or a cheap DVD purchase.