Crime films come in all shapes and sizes. They are a big part of the American Film landscape but also a huge part of the Asian Film market as well. I Did It My Way is the latest movie with a crime-centric storyline from director Jason Kwan in it. It is a crime thriller with a twist which makes it all the more interesting and entertaining than the average crime movie.
Ho Sau (Gordon Lam) is an undercover cop who has infiltrated a crime organization in Hong Kong led by a corrupt lawyer played by Andy Lau. A secret police operation led by a special crimes unit focusing on cyber crimes led by Eddie Fong (Eddie Peng’). He hopes to bring this organization to justice before his inside man is caught and killed by these ruthless men. That’s easier said than done.
This movie has a great use of technology on screen. The use of computer screens and cell phones as well as technology in general play a huge part in this storyline. Both the police and criminals use technology to speak with people via Zoom or use it as tracking devices and so much more. Kwan infused this element as a big part of the story. It helped the film be more set in a realistic world. I felt these aspects make the movie better to watch.
Another element that made the film more realistic is its cinematography. The camera work in this film from the director of photography was first-rate. I felt like this movie was going on in real-time while I was watching it. It was that realistic. The landscapes like water and overhead shots of Hong Kong were all impeccably shot. I felt like I was watching a Michael Mann movie in some regard. His movies look like they were shot in the real world.
Kwan assembled a pretty good cast of Asian actors that included Andy Lau, Lamborghini Ka Tung, Eddie Peng, and Cya Liu. All of them were very good in their roles. With this story being so complex these actors had a lot of dialogue and many difficult scenes to shoot. As seasoned professionals, they knocked their roles out of the park. This cast was a big part of why I enjoyed this movie so much. They were familiar faces I remembered from other films I’ve watched before.
One of the best parts of the movie was the action set pieces. There were a lot of them involving car chases and fight scenes but the end action scene was pretty crazy. Kwan used his special set of skills to make these scenes extra special. The gun-fu, car fu, and various other styles of gunplay and fight scenes were used to make these action sequences extra special. This film relied on these sequences and it benefited from them so much. They are amazing.
I DId It My Way is a good action film with a terrific crime storyline. Kwan infused this film with technological aspects that helped progress the story forward. The cast of known Asian actors were very good in their roles. They all played characters in a way that made sense in the context of the film. The action scenes were a huge part of why this movie succeeds in its goal as a good crime thriller. Fans of great Asian action films like Infernal Affairs and others will surely enjoy this one as well.
3 ½ stars
Dan Skip Allen
From the Fourth Row! 
Leave a comment