Hong Kong filmmaker Johnnie To has had a long and interesting career in the business. I first discovered his work back in 1993 with the release of his action classics The Heroic Trio and its sequel, Executioners, both released the same year. Those films left a major impression on me because even though they were continuing a story, they were both so different from one another.
Those films starred three of my all-time favorite actresses, Anita Mui, Maggie Cheung, and Michelle Yeoh. Throughout the course of those two films, we are taken on a crazy journey, but the characters drive the pictures, and that would be something that To would be known for as his career continued.
Arrow Video has put together a package for two of his later films (1999 and 2001, respectively) Running Out of Time and its sequel. I’d only ever seen the first film in this duo, but I remembered it quite fondly, and I guess the fact that there was a sequel sort of just went under the radar for me. It was an interesting ride to revisit the first, but that second one really doesn’t quite live up to its predecessor.
In Running Out of Time, Cheung Wah (Andy Lau) is a master thief who learns he only has 72 hours to live, and a score to settle. Close on his heels is Inspector Ho Sheung Sang (Lau Ching-wan) and the two men quickly jump into a cat-and-mouse game with high stakes and intense action.
With Running Out of Time 2, Inspector Ho (once again played by Lau Ching-wan) finds himself in another predicament, with a new thief named The Thief (Ekin Cheng), who has his own vendetta and a game to play with the inspector.
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There’s a massive difference between these two films, and both are enjoyable, but in the first one, you can really feel the tension and excitement. It’s more of that “edge of your seat” anticipation throughout, plus, Andy Lau and Lau Ching-wan have undeniable chemistry together, which seems to make everything feel more crucial. There are several surprises and an emotional connection, which the second film lacks.
Part two outdoes itself in an action sense, but there is an overabundance of humor that takes away from any real investment in the characters. The first film is by and large the true winner, but despite the flaws of the second, it still manages to at least be entertaining.
Arrow never skimps on the bonus content, so in addition to the high definition transfers, the English dubs, etc., you get audio commentaries, archival interviews, trailers, and in part two, a really cool look at the mythology of Hong Kong Cinema, with the 52-minute documentary Hong Kong Stories.
The set is now available, and if you’re a fanatic of HK films in general, despite the shortcomings of part two, it’s still a worthy piece to own.
