After the reopening of Hong Kong theatres in 2021, two Chinese and foreign films seized the majority of the screen. The re-cooperation between Herman Yau and Andy Lau, "Shock Wave 2", successfully broke through the box office of 10 million Hong Kong dollars (1.27 million US dollars), and won the Hollywood blockbuster "Wonder Woman 1984". In fact, the film was originally scheduled to be released in December 2020. Unfortunately, due to the impact of the epidemic, the theaters were closed and will not be released until February 2021. The film is overdue for release in the Mainland China and Taiwan, and the results are still satisfactory.
"Shock Wave 2" is a re-cooperation after the success of "Shock Wave" five years ago. The story and characters have been rewritten, but the same theme is used. Strictly speaking, it is another film. But this time Herman Yau recruited Lau Ching Wan and co-starred with Andy Lau as a pair of bomb disposal experts, which reminded me of the 1994 Hong Kong comedy "Bomb Disposal Officer: Baby Bomb" directed by Jamie Luk, also starring Lau Ching Wan. Interestingly, the first scene of "Shock Wave 2" it tells the tacit understanding of the two protagonists' mission to rescue a couple who were tied to a bomb. It originated from the first act of "Bomb Disposal Officer: Baby Bomb". It is unknown whether Herman Yau paid tribute to the director (Jamie Luk) of the same period. In fact, there are not many films about police bomb disposal experts in Hong Kong Cinema, and Jamie Luk's comedy can be said to be the first bomb disposal expert film to play a positive role. Five years ago, "Shock Wave" is believed to be influenced by this to some extent. Inspired by the old work, the explosion scene is set in the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, which is influenced by John Woo's early comedy "Plain Jane to the Rescue".
Many comments have said that "Shock Wave 2" has the characteristics of a Hong Kong action film. Among them, Andy Lau's undercover scene at the opening of "Shock Wave" turned into "Shock Wave 2" where the police turned into terrorist, then turned into undercover agent, and then turned into renegade terrorist. In the first action, in order to save a kitten hidden in a microwave oven, the protagonist lost a calf in an explosion and became a disabled person. His superiors transferred him to a civilian post and became paranoid because he could no longer go to the front line. A hotel explosion site was injured and lost his memory. His girlfriend, the chief inspector of the counter terrorism task force had his memory implanted. It was assumed that he was an undercover agent sent by the police to a terrorist organization. This scene appeared as early as in "The Accidental Spy" directed by Teddy Chan and starring Jackie Chan. After gradually recovering their memory, the audience now learns in flashbacks that the mastermind of the terrorist organization turned out to be a childhood classmate with the protagonist. In the end, the protagonist witnessed the former colleague being ravaged by terrorists, and "back to nature" to made sacrifices.
In fact, there are a lot of incomprehensible and offensive points in the film. The director uses the strengths of Hong Kong Cinema to reverse the plot, so that the audience has no time to think about whether it is reasonable or not. The so-called "fast to slow" formula controls the viewing rhythm, attracting the audience to watch it with action and spectacle scene after scene until the end of the film. Although the audience will recall a lot of incomprehensible and sloppy explanations after watching the whole film, the whole process is quite enjoyable, and they still leave the film satisfied and complete a pleasant consumption process.
As for Herman Yau, since he joined the big production, the performance of "Shock Wave" and "Shock Wave 2" is quite good, especially his rough and sloppy production in the past has been greatly improved, especially some of the bomb disposal and explosion. The scenes are all very detailed and beautiful. However, the Davy Crockett shell used at the end of the film is the smallest nuclear weapon in the world. It was deployed in the former West Germany during the Cold War. Its main task is to spread nuclear radiation and paralyze the enemy. The bombing function is not like the nuclear bomb during World War II. The tsunami caused by the bombing of the Tsing Ma Bridge in the film should be just what the plot needs.
On the other hand, the main brain of the terrorist organization "Resurrection Society" played by Tse Kwan-Ho is believed to be the weakest and unconvincing part in the film. The rich second generation and anti-social personality can only make waves on a small scale. It is a bit ridiculous to integrate Chinese and foreign people to join, and to have members like soldiers. On the contrary, Lau Ching-Wan and Andy Lau have gone from being partners to being hostile, and working together again. Although there are many emotional and unreasonable places, they are still credible in appearance. As for the girlfriend played by Ni Ni, she used Andy Lau to lose his memory and forcibly implanted the memory to complete the task, stepping on a steel line between good and evil. When accused by Lau Ching-Wan who learned the truth, she thought that her boyfriend's evil deeds would be redeemed. Pushing him to death/sacrifice wholeheartedly is the most dimensional plot of the film.
After "Shock Wave 2" was released in Hong Kong, because the film is set in Hong Kong and has the main elements of Hong Kong action films, it has received a lot of attention and praise in public opinion. It tells the story of a police officer who has changed from a good person to a bad person, and then becomes a hero of self-sacrifice. Get used to the comments analyzed by text reading, take what you need, and extend infinitely. As a master student of cultural studies, Herman Yau should understand the "mystery". (Herman Yau obtained a master's degree in cultural studies from Lingnan University (Hong Kong) in 2008) The film leaves a lot of space for all parties to "source". Ambiguous is a form of artistic expression, and it is also a kind of accomplishment, but it becomes artificial and awkward if it is too calculated. Here, I am reminded of the promotional short film "Guarding Our City" by Dante Lam for the Hong Kong police force, which also has the theme of terrorist bombing activities. Although it is different from the film that was released to the public, Dante Lam's simplicity and directness require more courage and strength. Off-topic, the police said that only Dante Lam applied for this promotional short film project that day, which shows how precious it was that he was willing to take on this hot potato.
Finally, back to "Shock Wave 2", the bomb disposal experts played by Andy Lau have become social elites with professional knowledge. They have mastered a lot of ability to build or destroy society, become paranoid in the face of setbacks, and can become devil-like terrorists at any time. In recent years, many people describe a group of highly educated professionals as "high-score and low knowledge". Maybe they are the elitist mentality, unable to accept the loss or no longer valued in reality, and paranoia is born from this, entering the so-called magical real world, and it is difficult to extricate themselves. This is my interpretation of the film, I hope the experts can enlighten me.
By Kam Po LAM (original in Chinese)
"Shock Wave 2" is a re-cooperation after the success of "Shock Wave" five years ago. The story and characters have been rewritten, but the same theme is used. Strictly speaking, it is another film. But this time Herman Yau recruited Lau Ching Wan and co-starred with Andy Lau as a pair of bomb disposal experts, which reminded me of the 1994 Hong Kong comedy "Bomb Disposal Officer: Baby Bomb" directed by Jamie Luk, also starring Lau Ching Wan. Interestingly, the first scene of "Shock Wave 2" it tells the tacit understanding of the two protagonists' mission to rescue a couple who were tied to a bomb. It originated from the first act of "Bomb Disposal Officer: Baby Bomb". It is unknown whether Herman Yau paid tribute to the director (Jamie Luk) of the same period. In fact, there are not many films about police bomb disposal experts in Hong Kong Cinema, and Jamie Luk's comedy can be said to be the first bomb disposal expert film to play a positive role. Five years ago, "Shock Wave" is believed to be influenced by this to some extent. Inspired by the old work, the explosion scene is set in the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, which is influenced by John Woo's early comedy "Plain Jane to the Rescue".
Many comments have said that "Shock Wave 2" has the characteristics of a Hong Kong action film. Among them, Andy Lau's undercover scene at the opening of "Shock Wave" turned into "Shock Wave 2" where the police turned into terrorist, then turned into undercover agent, and then turned into renegade terrorist. In the first action, in order to save a kitten hidden in a microwave oven, the protagonist lost a calf in an explosion and became a disabled person. His superiors transferred him to a civilian post and became paranoid because he could no longer go to the front line. A hotel explosion site was injured and lost his memory. His girlfriend, the chief inspector of the counter terrorism task force had his memory implanted. It was assumed that he was an undercover agent sent by the police to a terrorist organization. This scene appeared as early as in "The Accidental Spy" directed by Teddy Chan and starring Jackie Chan. After gradually recovering their memory, the audience now learns in flashbacks that the mastermind of the terrorist organization turned out to be a childhood classmate with the protagonist. In the end, the protagonist witnessed the former colleague being ravaged by terrorists, and "back to nature" to made sacrifices.
In fact, there are a lot of incomprehensible and offensive points in the film. The director uses the strengths of Hong Kong Cinema to reverse the plot, so that the audience has no time to think about whether it is reasonable or not. The so-called "fast to slow" formula controls the viewing rhythm, attracting the audience to watch it with action and spectacle scene after scene until the end of the film. Although the audience will recall a lot of incomprehensible and sloppy explanations after watching the whole film, the whole process is quite enjoyable, and they still leave the film satisfied and complete a pleasant consumption process.
As for Herman Yau, since he joined the big production, the performance of "Shock Wave" and "Shock Wave 2" is quite good, especially his rough and sloppy production in the past has been greatly improved, especially some of the bomb disposal and explosion. The scenes are all very detailed and beautiful. However, the Davy Crockett shell used at the end of the film is the smallest nuclear weapon in the world. It was deployed in the former West Germany during the Cold War. Its main task is to spread nuclear radiation and paralyze the enemy. The bombing function is not like the nuclear bomb during World War II. The tsunami caused by the bombing of the Tsing Ma Bridge in the film should be just what the plot needs.
On the other hand, the main brain of the terrorist organization "Resurrection Society" played by Tse Kwan-Ho is believed to be the weakest and unconvincing part in the film. The rich second generation and anti-social personality can only make waves on a small scale. It is a bit ridiculous to integrate Chinese and foreign people to join, and to have members like soldiers. On the contrary, Lau Ching-Wan and Andy Lau have gone from being partners to being hostile, and working together again. Although there are many emotional and unreasonable places, they are still credible in appearance. As for the girlfriend played by Ni Ni, she used Andy Lau to lose his memory and forcibly implanted the memory to complete the task, stepping on a steel line between good and evil. When accused by Lau Ching-Wan who learned the truth, she thought that her boyfriend's evil deeds would be redeemed. Pushing him to death/sacrifice wholeheartedly is the most dimensional plot of the film.
After "Shock Wave 2" was released in Hong Kong, because the film is set in Hong Kong and has the main elements of Hong Kong action films, it has received a lot of attention and praise in public opinion. It tells the story of a police officer who has changed from a good person to a bad person, and then becomes a hero of self-sacrifice. Get used to the comments analyzed by text reading, take what you need, and extend infinitely. As a master student of cultural studies, Herman Yau should understand the "mystery". (Herman Yau obtained a master's degree in cultural studies from Lingnan University (Hong Kong) in 2008) The film leaves a lot of space for all parties to "source". Ambiguous is a form of artistic expression, and it is also a kind of accomplishment, but it becomes artificial and awkward if it is too calculated. Here, I am reminded of the promotional short film "Guarding Our City" by Dante Lam for the Hong Kong police force, which also has the theme of terrorist bombing activities. Although it is different from the film that was released to the public, Dante Lam's simplicity and directness require more courage and strength. Off-topic, the police said that only Dante Lam applied for this promotional short film project that day, which shows how precious it was that he was willing to take on this hot potato.
Finally, back to "Shock Wave 2", the bomb disposal experts played by Andy Lau have become social elites with professional knowledge. They have mastered a lot of ability to build or destroy society, become paranoid in the face of setbacks, and can become devil-like terrorists at any time. In recent years, many people describe a group of highly educated professionals as "high-score and low knowledge". Maybe they are the elitist mentality, unable to accept the loss or no longer valued in reality, and paranoia is born from this, entering the so-called magical real world, and it is difficult to extricate themselves. This is my interpretation of the film, I hope the experts can enlighten me.
By Kam Po LAM (original in Chinese)