Movie Digest
Poon Shing-Fung, a bomb disposal officer, was caught in the blast and lost one of his legs when a bomb went off unexpectedly during a police operation to disarm it. Poon is suspected of being involved in many bombing assaults in the last two years, three years after leaving the force. Poon suffers from Post Traumatic Amnesia, which makes it difficult for him to recall his past or even his own identity. He intends to flee in order to discover the truth. Meanwhile, knowing the terrorist organization’s plans to destroy Hong Kong landmarks, Poon, as the primary liaison between the police and the terrorist organization, has the potential to save or destroy the lives of innocent residents in the city.
The Feel-Good Part
The passion of the plot captures you from the beginning. It never slows down and keeps you engrossed every second until the conclusion. This film’s production quality is out of this world. Shock Wave 2 excels at misdirecting the spectator and then surprising them with a twist or two. It does an excellent job of exploiting these surprises to reveal the levels of cunning and deception at work throughout!
The Disappointing Factor
What disappoints you right off the bat is that the “2” in the original title of this Hong Kong-action thriller suggests it is a sequel to the 2017 film Shock Wave. In truth, there is no narrative thread that connects the films. CGI is used in the scenes of explosions and widespread destruction, although the quality is highly variable. That’s disappointing in a film with this kind of budget, especially one focused on explosions.
In-Depth Analysis
Despite the fact that there is no relationship between the first and second films, the end result is a consistent drumbeat of suspense followed by explosions throughout. It’s one lengthy tick-tock-boom symphony, which provides fascinating entertainment. With all of the medical discussion regarding brain trauma, the plot becomes redundant and a touch old. Despite a few modern tweaks, this feels very old-school, and not always in a good way, even down to the repetitive views of people running away from fireballs in the background. Yet, they manage to carry the plot through and end up delivering a good enough performance.
Star Power
The powerful duo of veteran actor Andy Lau and Director Herman Yau strikes again. Accompanied by Ching Wan Lau and Ni Ni, Andy Lau manages to carry the movie single-handedly till the end. Andy Lau deserves a lot of respect for doing many of his sequences with a prosthetic leg and his genuine one strapped up and hidden. As I watched him, I kept thinking about the old cliche about a one-legged man competing in an ass-kicking contest. His escape from the hospital is the highlight. He’s trapped between cops and terrorists, and he has to fight both on one leg until he can find an artificial one. It’s not quite the Hard-Boiled hospital scene, but it’s still remarkable.
Overall Opinion
Despite, its shortcomings ‘Shock Wave 2’ still manages to do a decent job as an action film. The story is engaging enough plus the actors managed to do a great job. The performances were all spot-on and compelling, and the fight scenes were nearly flawlessly orchestrated. For the most part, the V/SFX was extremely good, with only a few shoddy CGI moments. So, if you want something filled with drama, action, and suspense then get ready to get ‘Shocked’!
