January 2003

I've been anticipating the release of Tsui Hark's Black Mask 2 for some time now. With the option of a cheaper vcd release of the movie in Singapore, I decided to get it and see if the movie justifies a dvd version in my collection. I won't waste time giving my own version of the movie synopsis so here's the version on the vcd cover art:

"BLACK MASK 2: CITY OF MASKS is a thrill-a-minute sci-fi adventure from Tsui Hark, the director of Knock Off and Double Team and Yuen Wo Ping, the martial arts director of The Matrix. Andy On takes on the role Jet Li made legendary in this action-packed sequel to the 1999 genre classic. Also starring Traci Elizabeth Lords (Blade, Virtuosity), Tyler Mane (Joe Dirt, Sabretooth from X-Men), Jon Polito (The Man Who Wasn't There, The Tailor of Panama) and WWF Superstar Rob Van Dam.

While searching for a cure for the biological abnormality that gives him super powers, Black Mask (On) stumbles upon a terrorist group intent on dropping a DNA bomb on the human race. But in order to put a stop to their devious plan, he must first battle a group of chemically enhanced professional wrestlers with the ability to morph into monstrously powerful mutants... and they won't stop until the chemical makeup of the entire population is tweaked forwever."

My immediate reaction to the synopsis is like Keanu Reeves in The Matrix: "Whoah." Is Tsui Hark only best known for Double Team and Knock Off? Perhaps they being Hollywood movies serve as better credentials for Tsui Hark than Once Upon A Time In China and The Blade. And Jet Li's Black Mask character was legendary? How about Jet's portrayal of Master Wong Fei Hung? Laughable indeed and I've not even begun to review the movie!

As the movie unfolds, we learn that Black Mask is a super soldier engineered by an entity known as Zeus. Why I call it an entity is because Zeus is basically a huge brain in a water tank and we don't know if it's alien or not. Zeus orders Dr Lang, his other super soldier to apprehend Black Mask (who apparently escaped from the Zeus facility in part one). From what I see, Zeus is a rip off of Master X (of the evil Galactus organisation) from the anime, Gatchaman. "The stage is set", I thought, with the villain established but wait! Suddenly we're catapulted into 'B City', a fictitious country in the movie. There's a BIG wrestling match going on and the B Citizens are absolutely nuts about it. Enter villain number two, a mad scientist who poisons the wrestlers and turn them into monstrous freaks in accordance to their wrestling namesakes: THORN (Tyler Mane), IGUANA (Andrew Bryniarski), CLAW (Rob Van Dam), WOLF (Oris Erhuero), SNAKE (Robert Bonecrusher Mukes) and CHAMELEON (Traci Elizabeth Lords). Dr Lang sees the genius in the mad scientist and teams up with him to create a DNA bomb. What they're after is the same as what Magneto wanted in X-Men, to turn the human race into mutants. But what Dr Lang really wants is to lure Black Mask out and kill him.

Now Dr Lang and the mutant wrestlers are really cardboard characters waiting to get their butts whipped by Black Mask. Dr Lang probably has the worst lines in the movie. Sample these: "He's MINE..." and "Now, you'll DIE!" Sheesh! While the CG scenes are slightly above average, the prosthetic make-up for the mutant warriors makes the movie look like an un-aired episode of Power Rangers or Guyver! Stuntman Blacky Ko Shou Liang has a cameo in the movie as a dectective. While his character reminds me of Takakura Ken, all he really does is run around yelling: "Go go go!" or "Get him! Get him!" How sad. In addition, Andy On and the lead actress, Teresa Maria Herrera have near zero chemistry which only makes the movie less watchable. With Yuen Wo Ping choreographing the martial arts, one would be sorely disappointed if he's expecting the same level of energy seen in Iron Monkey. The only fighting scene worth mentioning is perhaps the showdown between Black Mask and Dr Lang. I don't know what else to say about this movie. ARGH!! It's the same feeling as watching John Woo's Black Jack, starring Dolph Lundgren. *sigh*

Honestly, after 30 minutes into the movie, my fingers were itching to press STOP on my remote. The lame plot coupled with the blend acting simply makes the movie an ordeal to sit through. Right after Tsui Hark restored the confidence of fans with The Era of Vampires, Black Mask 2 literally dragged him back to the abyss of uncertainty. The movie is screening in Hong Kong at the moment with an impressive A-list of Hong Kong actors and actresses lending their voices to a Cantonese dubbed version. At the time of writing, Black Mask 2 is number three on the weekly Top 10 Hong Kong movie charts. Are Hong Kong movie goers so hungry for Tsui Hark fare that they can no longer discern whether a movie is bad? To all Tsui Hark movie fans, I solemnly advise you to avoid Black Mask 2 like a plague. If you have to watch it, borrow from someone who has already bought the dvd or vcd. It may come as a surprise to a number of people that I've openly snubbed Tsui Hark and his latest work. But I'm doing this because I'm a true fan of the wizard.