San ging chaat goo si

There is always a suspicion when films come out with "New" in the title and particularly here, when you've had variations on the Police Story numbering over the years. Does it mean that the whole franchise has changed completely? Is Jackie Chan trying to pass on the mantle? How different is it really? Well, put it this way. The only thing that has changed is that it's better than the previous instalments.

New Police Story tells of Wing (Jackie Chan), a super-cop who has managed to solve the toughest and roughest cases for the Hong Kong police force. So much so that he gains a bit of cockiness. When a group of young guns led by Joe (Daniel Wu) start a crime spree by robbing banks and gunning down cops for fun, Wing declares that he would catch the criminals in just 3 hours. However, his plans bite the dust as his team are gunned down following a leak of his plans. Wing is knocked into drink and depression and rookie Fung (Nic Tse) come to egg him into revenge.

This film follows the style of the previous Police Story series in that it is gritty and dramatic as opposed to Jackie's comedic style. However, this film is very much darker than the previous ones. The usual stunts are there - including a bus sequence which reminds you of the original Police Story - but each stunt has been brought a new lease of life with some perfectionist choreography. I was impressed by Nic Tse's martial art stunts, which certainly were not easy, but mastered flawlessly. Daniel Wu caps off a very good year for him with a very good performance as the enemy. Credit goes to Benny Chan also, who really has pulled out all the stops for this movie.

This is one of Jackie Chan's best films and following some recent dismal Hollywood attempts, I'm really glad that he can still pull it off, particularly when there is a good script for him.

One to see the old master back at his best.