Click to read the article
So Close (2003)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:37
Fresh:30
Rotten:7
Average Rating:6.7/10
Consensus: This HK actioner oozes with style.
Rated: R [See Full Rating] for pervasive violence and a sexual conversation
Runtime: 1 hr 51 mins
Genre: Foreign Films
Theatrical Release:Sep 12, 2003 Limited
Synopsis: The brothers Chow Nunn and Chow Lui’s giant computer company is facing a tense crisis – a powerful computer virus is rapidly wiping out their computer network. At the last minute a cyber-friend... The brothers Chow Nunn and Chow Lui’s giant computer company is facing a tense crisis – a powerful computer virus is rapidly wiping out their computer network. At the last minute a cyber-friend arrives to join the battle. The mysterious “Angel.com” battles the virus and saves the company. Invited by Chow Lui for a visit in person, Angel.com arrives in the form of the beautiful Lynn (Shu Qi). But it turns out Lynn is a professional assassin with amazing high-tech and kung fu skills. She kills Chow Lui with cyanide hidden in a pair of sunglasses. She’s aided by her sister Sue (Zhao Wei), who operates the pair’s World Panorama surveillance system, which allows them to tap into any video security system in the world. Young cop Kong Yat Hong (Karen Mok) and her partner Mark are put on the case. Hong has a brilliant mind and immediately senses she’s dealing with a killer with very special skills. Realizing they are facing a tough adversary, Lynn and Sue become fascinated with Hong as well. Lynn runs into Yan, the cousin of an old friend who died. Lynn and Yan shared an unspoken love in the past which is now rekindled in the open, and Lynn begins to question whether she wants to continue to be an assassin. Chow Nunn was behind his older brother’s death. He hired Angel.com to kill Lui because Lui opposed Nunn’s business plans, and also because Nunn is carrying on a secret affair with Lui’s wife. But when Hong’s investigation starts to point to Nunn, Nunn becomes worried and decides to hire Angel.com for another hit – only so he can double-cross them, wipe them out and prevent them from leading the police back to him. Yan tells Lynn he loves her and wants to marry her. After battling an attack by robbers with her amazing martial arts skills, she tells Yan her family’s history. Her father invented the World Panorama for use by the authorities, but was turned down. Suspiciously, word of the device got out to the underworld and both parents were brutally killed in front of the girls’ eyes by criminals eager to get their hands on the invention. Bereft at the loss of their parents and disillusioned with the law, the sisters turned professional assassins, killing criminals for other criminals. Lynn tells Sue she wants to stop their criminal life and get married – she won’t accept Chow Nunn’s order for the second killing. But Sue, angry and feeling abandoned by Lynn, decides to carry out the killing herself. Lynn realizes what’s happening and rushes to save Sue, who doesn’t have the skills to carry out the hit. They are attacked by Chow’s men but escape. Now the assassin and the cop must join forces – so Sue can avenge her sister’s death and Hong can prove her innocence in a spectacular confrontation at Chow Nunn’s headquarters... -- © 2002 Screen Gems [More]
Starring: Shu Qi, Zhao Wei, Karen Mok, Michael Wei
Starring: Shu Qi, Zhao Wei, Karen Mok, Michael Wei, Seoung-Heon Song
Director: Corey Yuen
Director: Corey Yuen
Screenwriter: Jeff Lau
Producer: Chui Po-chu
Studio: Strand Releasing
Get This Movie
Reviews for So Close
Action scenes make the 'acting' scenes look vacuous, and you wonder why Yuen bothered with mushy memories, emotive close-ups and lyrical injections of They Long to Be (Close to You).
Has moments of style and audacity, but the script is a shameless muddle and the shifts in tone -- from gooey romance to hard-driving, hyper-pop action -- give the impression that the movie was directed by six or seven people in alternating shift.
With the exception of some of the battles, which have the angry desperation of Mr. Yuen's inspired martial-arts choreography, Close is a nominal effort.
This is all nonsense, of course, which wouldn't be a problem as long as the film kept the energy and humor going. But it doesn't.
Hong Kong's answer to Charlie's Angels has big guns, hot chicks and cool gadgets -- hooked into a junky killers-for-hire narrative so nonsensical it practically neutralizes any guilty-pleasure positives.
I didn't really understand what was going on, but I loved every stylized minute of it.
full of slick moves, quick cuts, and nasty surprises for hapless victims who smile smugly until the tables are irrevocably turned on them
It has hot chicks who kick a**. Is there any other conceivable reason why you would see this movie? Excels thanks to some innovative action sequences and the charms of its leading ladies.
Part of the feedback loop created when The Matrix, which co-opted Hong Kong filmmaking styles, began to influence Asian cinema itself.
Luscious superstar Shu Qi and action expert Corey Yuen prove that Hong Kong movies can still deliver the goods Hollywood can't.
The action in So Close is so giddily relentless that it makes you realize how stodgy most American tough-guy movies are.
So Close is executed with so much style and expertise that it's bound to end up a guilty-pleasure favorite.
Latest News for So Close
November 01, 2006:
Fantastic New Pics from Yimou's "Golden Flower"
I'll keep this short and sweet: If you're a fan of movies like "Hero" and "House of Flying Daggers," you probably have a rather large interest in seeing... More...
September 05, 2006:
Trailer Bulletin: Zhang Yimou's "Curse of the Golden Flower"
Yimou Zhang, the man who brought you "Hero" and "House of Flying Daggers," has another epic adventure in the works. The new one is called "Curse of the... More...
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 77% 77% | The Hangover |
| 88% 88% | Inglourious Basterds |
| 66% 66% | Public Enemies |
| 24% 24% | G-Force |
| 44% 44% | Night at the Museum: B… |
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie |
|---|---|
| 90% 90% | District 9 |
| 86% 86% | 500 Days of Summer |
| 63% 63% | Extract |
| 06% 06% | All About Steve |
| 78% 78% | It Might Get Loud |
RT On Current TV
DIRECTV 358 | Comcast 107 | DISH Network 196 | More...
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
CloseSponsored Links
Fresh Links
Featured

Last week, MSN gave us their top 09 films. Now see what their favorites of the decade are!

Here's a list of the 50 best movies of 2009, according to the good people over at Moviefone.

Hollywood.com takes a stab at determining who in movies will be on Santa's naughty list in 2009.

TIME chimes in with their own list of the best films released this year.

Click through to see which movies BuzzSugar placed in their Best-of-Decade list!
Promos

Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!



Top Critic



