Not often will you see a kung fu movie this well directed. Almost a perfect movie. This is the same director who made masterpieces for the Shaw Brothers like Secret Service of the Imperial Court and Bastard Swordsman. Though director TOny Liu has absolutely zero budget here, he doesn't let that stop him. He gets amazing performances from all of his actors. It is a dark movie. The cops are crooked, the heroes are poor, and bad things happen to all of them. The one flaw about this movie is that the story is about a missing dog. The cops want a retarded man to confess, but he doesn't know anything about the dog. I just don't see how I'm supposed to believe that all this fuss is over a dog. But if you can get past that, everything in this movie is perfect. The final fight is spectacular. The villain from Drunken Master, HWang Jang Lee, gives IMO his finest kicking performance in this movie. There's a raw energy in the final fight that will force any action/fight fan to watch in amazement. Just remember to breathe.
