I sat down to watch "Big Brother" (aka "Dai si hing") because I am a big fan of Hong Kong cinema and usually Donnie Yen is in some pretty entertaining and action-filled movies.
Well, "Big Brother" was not your average Donnie Yen martial arts action movie. Sure there was fighting and martial arts in the movie, but it is nothing like his usual movies. He is trying to mature and branch out here with more dramatic acting and taking on a more wholehearted character that does more than just kick butt.
While "Big Brother" certainly was an entertaining movie, it just felt a little bit too forced and too sugar-coated. A former military man turning teacher and making it his sole mission to individually and personally see to it that each of his students pass class by any means necessary, even taking on MMA fighters in a locker room, just felt a little bit too cliché.
The martial arts and fighting in the movie was very nicely choreographed and equally so executed on the screen. This is a Donnie Yen movie after all, and he is usually spot on with these things. And so he is in "Big Brother" too.
It should be said that the acting performances in the movie were generally quite good all round for each performer in the movie, both main cast and supporting cast. One thing that was missing though, was more familiar and famous faces in the crowd.
"Big Brother" is by no means a redefining movie in the Hong Kong cinema. Actually it is a rather bland and generic movie, to be honest. And though it pains me to say, I think this movie will quietly fade into oblivion just as quietly as it managed to appear. Sure, fans of Donnie Yen will be familiar with its existence, but the rest of the audience might never know about it unless stumbling upon it by sheer, random luck.
