Flash Point

Were it not for the inclusion of several jaw-dropping action scenes, Flash Point would hardly be worth mentioning; the film’s tedious storyline seems to have been cobbled together from other, better action movies (including, but not limited to, Lethal Weapon 2), while the myriad of characters remain so thinly developed that it takes a good half hour to figure out who’s who. One can’t help but wish that filmmaker Wilson Yip had devoted even a fraction of his attention to Flash Point‘s quieter moments, as it’s clear that he’s channeled all of his energy and enthusiasm into the undeniably amazing fight sequences. The movie, which follows rebellious cop Jun (Donnie Yen) as he breaks virtually every rule in the book to take down a sinister villain (Collin Chou’s Tiger), consequently comes off as a total bore during its non-violent moments, despite the inclusion of a few admittedly effective and downright suspenseful interludes (with a scene featuring a bomb planted inside a cooked chicken the most obvious example of this). The confrontation between Jun and Tiger that closes the film is as spectacular and enthralling as one might’ve hoped, and there’s certainly no denying that Yip could teach contemporary directors such as Len Wiseman and Rob Cohen a thing or two about action – but, bottom line, Flash Point simply possesses too few attributes designed to hold the viewers interest in between moments of mayhem.

**1/2 out of ****