Flash Point (film)

Infobox Film
name = Flash Point

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caption = Hong Kong movie poster for "Flash Point" in Mandarin
director = Yip Wai-Shun
producer = Nansun Shi
Donnie Yen
eproducer = Raymond Wong Bak-Ming
Yu Dong
Zhao Guo Guang
Wang Chang-Tian
aproducer = Liu Li-Juan
Shan Dong-Bing
writer = Szeto Kam-Yuen
Nicholl Tang
starring = Donnie Yen
Louis Koo
Collin Chou
Lui Leung-Wai
Fan Bingbing
music = Chan Kwong-Wing
cinematography = Cheung Man-Po
editing = Cheung Ka-Fai
distributor = flagicon|Hong Kong Mandarin Films Distribution Co. Ltd.
flagicon|China Polybona Films
flagicon|Singapore Golden Village Pictures
flagicon|USA Genius Products (DVD)
flagicon|USA The Weinstein Company (DVD)
flagicon|USA Dragon Dynasty (DVD)
released = flagicon|Hong Kong August 9, 2007
flagicon|Singapore August 2, 2007
runtime = 88 min.
country = flagicon|Hong Kong Hong Kong
awards =
language = Cantonese
budget = HK$8,000,000
gross =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
amg_id = 1:416239
imdb_id = 0992911

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"Flash Point" (zh-tspcy|t=導火線|cy="Dou fo sin"|p="Dao huo xian"|s=导火线) is a 2007 Hong Kong martial arts action film directed by Wilson Yip, and featuring action and fight choreography by the film's producer and star Donnie Yen.

Yen portrays a police sergeant who plants his friend and partner (Louis Koo) as a mole to take down a Triad gang led by three Vietnamese brothers (Collin Chou, Lui Leung-Wai, and Xing Yu).

For his conception of the film's major fight sequences, Yen relied on the use of mixed martial arts. His work as a choreographer won him Best Action Choreography awards at the 27th Hong Kong Film Awards and the 2008 Golden Horse Film Awards.

Initially hailed as a prequel to 2005's "", "Flash Point" was released in Hong Kong on August 9, 2007. It was a box office hit during its two-month theatrical run in China, and received generally good to mixed reviews, with the action sequences receiving high praise. The film was later released in the United States by The Weinstein Company as part of Dragon Dynasty's DVD collection.

Plot

The film takes place in pre-1997, before Hong Kong's handover to Mainland China. As the film opens, brothers Archer, Tony and Tiger are discussing a drug deal with rival gang leader, Sam. Ma Jun, a serious criminal investigations detective, along with a gang of police officers, raids the nightclub for investigation, and winds up fighting against his partner, Wilson, who has been planted a mole.

The three brothers are later attacked by Sam and his gang who are impatient over receiving the drugs from Vietnam. Archer and his brothers later threaten the elder leaders of their gang, when they attempt to get involved with the situation.

Tiger is later assigned to kill Sam out in public, but the plan backfires when Wilson intervenes. While in hospital, Sam agrees to testify in court against the three brothers. On the night of their mother's birthday, the brothers plan to recover their drug money. As the heist is being performed, Archer is arrested by Hong Kong police, while Tony and Tiger discover that there is a mole within their gang. Wilson manages to escape the gang after his cover is blown.

While in court, Archer is forced to turn in all of his travel documents, in the hopes that he will not flee from Hong Kong before his hearing. Tony and Tiger brutally murder Sam along with several other witnesses and crime figures crucial to the police's investigation.

After their first plan to kill Wilson backfires, Tony and Tiger decide to sneak into the Hong Kong Police Department. Ma discovers that Tiger, disguised as a janitor, is in the building and goes after him. Tony, having kidnapped Wilson's girlfriend, Julie, threatens to kill her, if Wilson, now a sole witness, testifies in court. Ma squares off against Tiger inside a restaurant, and brutally beats him to death in front of a crowd. During the court hearing, Wilson refuses to testify, and the case is dismissed for lack of evidence. Wilson later attempts to rescue Julie, but is captured by Tony and his gang.

Once Archer walks free, Ma holds him captive, and calls his Tony for an exchange of hostages, leading to a confrontation in a Chinese village, where Ma singlehandedly takes on the remaining Triad gang. After eliminating the gang members, he engages in a gruelling fight with Tony, arresting him by the film's end.

Cast

* Donnie Yen as Det. Sgt. Ma Jun
* Louis Koo as Wilson
* Collin Chou as Tony
* Fan Bingbing as Julie
* Lui Leung-Wai as Archer Sin
* Xing Yu as Tiger
* Kent Cheng as Inspector Wong
* Xu Qing as Madam Lau
* Ha Ping as Tony's Mother
* Ben Lam as Sam

Production

The film marks the third re-teaming of Louis Koo and Donnie Yen after 2005's "" and 2006's "Dragon Tiger Gate". The film was co-written by Szeto Kam-Yuen who also co-wrote the script for "SPL".

"Flash Point", originally titled "Po jun" or "City of No Mercy" was often hailed as a prequel/spin-off to "SPL", yet the film shows no relation to the earlier film.

Fight Choreography

The fight scenes were choreographed by Yen, who combined Mixed martial arts, an interdisciplinary form of fighting utilising elements of Jujutsu, Judo, Karate, Boxing, Kickboxing and Wrestling, with his trademark Wushu and Tae Kwon Do. This method of fighting is something Yen considers to be the greatest development of martial arts in his lifetime. According to the film's official website, Yen admits that his challenge during filming was to communicate the essence of these techniques in the dramatics of the film. To ensure that the action scenes stood out, Yen not only hired martial artists from around the globe but also invited Collin Chou to join the cast. [ [http://asianfanatics.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=360077&st=0&p=3610205&#entry3610205 Flash Point (2007) - AsianFanatics Forum ] ]

Reception

Festivals

A promotional video highlighting "Flash Point" was shown at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and the 2007 Hong Kong Film Awards.

It had also premiered at the "Midnight Madness" program of the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival in September that same year, at the Ryerson University Theater, with director Wilson Yip attending the premiere.

Awards

27th Hong Kong Film Awards
*Won: Best Action Choreography: (Donnie Yen)"'Golden Horse Film Awards
*Won: Best Action Choreography: (Donnie Yen)

Box Office

"Flash Point" opened in Hong Kong on August 9, 2007. In Mainland China, "Flash Point" grossed a total of RMB15 million ($1.98 million) in its first 3 days of release, according to its Hong Kong production and sales house Mandarin Films. [ [http://www.varietyasiaonline.com/content/view/1835/53/ "Flash Point" ignites China box office - Asia entertainment news from Variety - varietyasiaonline.com ] ] However, it had underperformed drastically in Hong Kong, grossing only HK$3.89 million (a little under US$500,000) on its opening weekend.

Distribution

South African film distributor Distant Horizon acquired North American rights to the film. The movie's release in all English-speaking territories is handled by The Weinstein Company which released the film on DVD as part of their Dragon Dynasty collection.

References

External links

* [http://www.flashpointthemovie.com "Flash Point" Official Website]
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