Famed Hong Kong auteur John Woo (A Better Tomorrow, Hard Boiled, Face/Off, Mission Impossible II) directs this action flick (a remake of his 1989 film of the same name with Chow Yun-Fat in the lead) about Zee (Nathalie Emmanuel), a female assassin out to make amends for Jenn Clark (Diana Silvers), an American singer accidently blinded during a hit job.
Sam Worthington plays Finn, Zee’s handler, and the two seem to have very different moral codes. Zee wants to know that the people she kills deserve killing. A moral hitwoman? Why not? Zee was supposed to kill everyone including witnesses, but by taking pity on Jenn, she’s put herself in danger and put Paris detective Sey (Omar Sy) on her trail.
This is a John Woo film, so naturally well-choreographed violent mayhem ensues. Cue white doves in churches. As an action flick, it works and is a blast. Woo is a master of the genre, but I found the film rather nostalgic because he’s got such a distinctive style it felt like I was watching an ’80s film. Action flicks these days are grittier and the violence feels more realistic. Woo creates vicious poetry. At 77, he’s still got it. (126 min.)
—Glen Starkey
