REVIEW: Raid On The Lethal Zone (2023)
Herman Yau shows off what he can do when you take the budget away from him!
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Not many movies get a chance to release theatrically after they’ve been scheduled for a web-only premiere - but that’s exactly what happened here with this patriotic Herman Yau action thriller!
PLOT
Based on a series of true event that occurred in 1999, a flood hits a bordertown in China that is surrounded by mountains. In the mountains lives a dangerous gang of drug runners that have constantly evaded police detection, but with an impending flood causing landslides, the gang seizes this opportunity of chaos to move their largest ever shipments of drugs.
Training in the town is the 8077 squadron, a special border police team that is engaged to action when the narcotics departments receive a tip off regarding the location of the drug runners route out of the mountains.
In a race against time, as flood waters fill a reservoir to bursting level, the squadron must intercept the drugs before they reach their final destination.
They have shoot to kill orders, and arresting the criminals is not high on their list of priorities.
TALKING POINTS
The fact that this is a web movie clearly shows, it’s just not good enough to be released theatrically. Plot holes, spotty VFX and missing the overall oomph and polish of other Yau blockbusters hurts this movie’s potential.
Herman Yau did the best he could with the budget allocated to him. The movie still has crazy action scenes, but they aren’t quite at the typical Yau level as seen in his recent movie The White Storm 3 Heaven or Hell.
There is a lot of drama in this film, and it makes me wonder if this was actually a two- or three-part mini-series that been recut into a feature movie. There are lots of drop in-drop out characters and moments that aren’t explained to the audience which would lead credence to this theory.
It looks authentic! Set in 1999, you get a feeling of the era with the cars, technology, clothes and backgrounds. A credit to the crew for that element.
Sandwiched theatrically between The White Storm 3 and Death Notice, this movie is purely hoping to take advantage of Yau’s name to make its money back. On the other hand, when was the last time Yau had some many movies released theatrically in such a short time frame?
What are my overall thoughts?
For what it is, it’s actually pretty decent. Don’t go looking for a massive blockbuster, because that not what this movie is about. But you could do a lot worse lately than giving this movie a chance.
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Genre Action Thriller
Director Herman Yau
Starring Hao (Oho) Ou, Jason Gu
Original Title 绝地追击
Country of Origin China
Release Date August 25 2023