The distributors sure try their hardest to trick you into buying their stuff. I mean to go as far to call this film Hard Boiled 2 or even Hard Boiled III, while officially there has only been one Hard Boiled and has nothing to do with this film whatsoever. It's produced one year before Hard Boiled in case you are still doubting. Think about it. I know John Woo is brilliant but to travel back into time and than make a sequel to a film long before it's released? However even then it has raised expectations. So can Wong Jing deliver these?
Not by a long shot. There are some scenes that give you a glimpse of what could have been but then Wong Jing branches of into territories he has no business going into. He can't help himself infuse the silliest and worst jokes during completely serious and tragic moments. I have no idea why he does this. Is it to remind you that you are still watching a movie and you shouldn't take it seriously? Or doesn't he actually know how to balance out the several genres? In any case watching Wong Jing films is a required taste. Not to say that his films aren't enjoyable. Most of the time he does manage to reel you in despite his insanity. The Last Blood is no different. It interchanges real serious moments of action and sadism with comedy that simply don't blend well. Most of the comedy is insulting and inappropriate. The low blows are softened though by the charm and delivery by actors like Andy Lau. Still too often it detracts from the action since it minimizes the tension and gravity. John Woo also wasn't afraid to be comedic but never at the cost of the action.
Some of the action is nicely choreographed. But most of the action scenes are over before you know it. I kept waiting for that one long drawn out gun battle and am still waiting. It is clear that Wong Jing also doesn't understand how to build momentum. So he wants to make comedies. Fine. Crack jokes, be silly and whatever you think is funny. But please give us that one action scene that is so cool, slick and entertaining that makes me forget all the silliness. A good example of this is Tiger on Beat (1988). It was incredibly silly. But the final action scene was crazy cool. Speaking of finales. The Last Blood is very disappointing in this department. By the time you get there the majority of the bad guys have been discarded and only a few of them are left. If they had been ninja's or one man armies like Rambo then things would have been different. Here they are hardly threatening or menacing. And it is confusing as hell since up until the finale the bad guys had been smart, effective and very deadly.
Overall, it's not that bad but once again it's an action title that can't quite deliver on heroic carnage.
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