master of action john woo delivers once again with his hard hitting and action pack thriller ` hard boil and star chow yun fat a a veteran cop know a ` tequila and hong kong answer to san francisco own ` dirty harry . in this one and an undercover officer infiltrate a gangland triad deal arm and and when a rival gang threaten to take over and tequila join in the melee and and once it begin the action never stop until the last of the credit have roll off into the recess of the darkened screen . along the way there be test of loyalty and mistaken identity and a staggering display of superbly choreograph violence . there a couple of plot twist and but it a rather straightforward story and and a usual and woo meld it with the action with his trademark style and perfection . the action sequence be incredibly well stag and deliver and but so exceedingly violent that it pass beyond reality at time ( especially during the climax ) into a somewhat surreal state of be and only to be ultimately draw back in again by the grounded core of the story . it a fine line that woo tread successfully time after time in an arena in which many other ` action director have founder . a consummate professional and woo know exactly what he want and what work and and he doesn not quit until he get it . among the director of the ` action genre and he be quite simply the best there have ever be . a the somewhat jaded and ` hard boil cop and the charismatic chow yun fat demonstrate that if jackie chan can team up with chris tucker and he most certainly could find a place at eastwood or gibson side . he have the attitude and the look that make his character credible and which help anchor woo art in reality and albeit a rather violent one . a with the ` dirty harry or ` lethal weapon movie and it give the audience someone to whom they can relate and root for . and it all buoy with symbolism and metaphor and woo impeccable sense of timing and deft and spar use of slow motion and which in his hand become an extremely effective tool . the support cast include tony leung chiu wai ( alan ) and teresa mo ( teresa chang ) and philip chan ( superintendent pang ) and hoi shan kwan ( mr. hui ) and philip kwok ( mad dog ) . the true brilliance of woo film lie in the fact that he never sacrifice story for action and but instead blend the two together to create a whole that be artistically render ( his action sequence be something akin to visual poetry ) and substantial and rather than have an action film that like so many others of the genre be hollow inside . like his early film and ` the killer and which also star yun fat and ` hard boil push the envelope and will keep you on the edge and right along with the character in the film and right until the very end . a with all of woo movie and this one be a satisfying foray into the intense and cut edge ` action world of one of cinema master director and and a must see for any true film buff . i rate this one positive .