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THE
CORRUPTOR
AKA:
N/A
Year:
1999 Reviewer: Phil
Mills
Chow
Yun
Fat's first attempt at the American market, 'The
Replacement Killers', was a real disappointment for fans
as despite the abundance of action, it just tried too hard to mimic
the style of films that he had done before.
Thankfully, 'The Corruptor' concentrates more on the film
itself rather than working around an image for one of the
stars.
Detective
Nick Chen (CYF) is something of a celebrity in Chinatown, New
York. He has busted quite a few cases in his time and
received commendations for his efforts. The main problem
for him in this part of town is the ongoing war between the
two biggest Triad groups, the Tongs and the Fukienese Dragons,
and Chen is firmly involved in trying to stop the two.
When he is assigned Daniel Wallace (Wahlberg), a white cop
placed into his Asian task force, he is obviously more than a
little annoyed. Wallace's lack of experience is evident
in their first gunfight so Chen takes it upon himself to show
this rookie the ropes. In the meantime, the young and
ruthless leader of the Fukienese is leaving a bloody trail of
dead bodies behind him and the Tongs are looking for revenge.
Maybe if they adopt some assistance from a few friendly police
officers they can use it to their advantage. The
question is, who is the corruptor and who is the corrupted?
This
movie would have to be classified as a thriller as the action
involved really is used primarily as a means to further the tale rather
than a call for mindless violence. This is not to say
that it lacks in the bloodletting department as bullet holes
are never a pretty sight whichever way you look at them but it
does focus more on plot rather than action. The
directorial tactics applied are really back to basics which is
a refreshing change for a movie that employs the talents of a
Hong Kong movie star these days. During the action
scenes there is little or no fancy camera work (thank god, no
more slow-mo) and the most adventurous tactic is the use of a
handheld camera to follow the actors whilst they are in the
thick of it.
The
acting is akin to some of the classic cop
partnerships with the well oiled machine for an officer, Yun
Fat, playing off the new kid on the beat played by Wahlberg.
Whether or not Wahlberg has really cut his teeth on any major
grindstones as far as acting is concerned is debatable.
I have seem him play the innocent and supposedly stupid role
in most of his movies to date and the part he plays here is of
a similar nature. He certainly meets the requirements
though and plays it to a degree of satisfaction even if
his dialogue delivery is often a little tame. However,
Yun Fat was definitely the major draw for me and I'm pleased
to say he doesn't disappoint. It has to be said that
Chow has not looked his best in recent times and is beginning
to show his age but I think he can play the action man so
suavely that no one can touch him. Another benefit for
him here is that he gets to cut loose with an abundance of attitude
as well as showcase his ability for comical expressions which have always
been great assets for him throughout so many of his past
glories.
As
is to be expected, 'The Corruptor' is not completely faultless
and the most irritating factor involved would have to be that
the majority of the Chinese characters have some sort of
serious flaws in their ethics. They are either all out
criminals, a bit on the dodgy side or entering the country
illegally which doesn't exactly do wonders for the Chinese
stereotyping. Another noticeable niggle was the use of
so called Chinese customs that sometimes provide some real
clangers in the cheesy dialogue department, particularly when
it comes from the rather weedy sounding Wahlberg.
Lastly, but by no means least, how could the inclusion of a
rap based soundtrack go unmentioned. It is beyond me
what the connection between rap and Chinese inspired American
movies is but once again it feels out of place to include this
kind of music.
In
conclusion, 'The Corruptor' is an enjoyable film that stands
up to repeat viewings and is far superior to Chow's previous
introduction to an international audience. This is
mainly due to an above average script with some nice twists
and the use of Chow's acting talents rather than his gun
toting ability. It's not as action packed or as dramatic
as some of his HK films but I would highly recommend it to
those of you already enjoying Yun Fat's previous work as well as
newcomers to his many facets.
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