Black Mask Reviews

Heavens above, Hong Kong cinema is awesome. To be fair, Hong Kong action pictures are never especially smart or original, yet they are nonetheless blessed with a solid entertainment value. This leads us to 1996's Black Mask; a campy, entertaining Hong Kong action extravaganza constructed around a plotline which ostensibly takes inspiration from 1992's Universal Soldier. If you like action served up with a good story and interesting characters to accompany, though, you're shit out of luck with Black Mask. Directed by Daniel Lee and starring action super-star Jet Li, the movie provides nothing but high-flying, old-fashioned action replete with blood, explosions, bullets, mayhem, and Li's martial arts expertise. It's a solid, R-rated guy movie.

Tsui (Li) - or Simon, in the English version - is the product of a government experiment to create super-soldiers impervious to pain for an army fighting force. Once it becomes clear the soldiers are uncontrollable, though, Tsui and his fellow fighting machines are scheduled for termination. Unwilling to let his execution take place, Tsui escapes and adopts a new life as a meek librarian. One of Tsui's only friends is a police inspector known as 'Rock' (Wan Lau), who has started investigating a series of murders and attacks. As it turns out, these attacks are linked to members of Tsui's former unit (all of whom he thought had been decommissioned) who aim to control the underworld. When Tsui realises this, he springs into action as the masked vigilante "Black Mask".

The plot is pure garble which you will not care about, and throughout the course of the narrative a lot of proverbial clichés pop up, including the obligatory romance with an annoying female who exists solely to be rescued. It's doubtful that more than a weekend was spent working on this poor script. When it comes to the action, however, Black Mask delivers with an adrenaline-pumping kick - the amusing comic-book violence and over-the-top, campy action scenes come thick & fast. Jet Li's speedy and flashy stunt-work is jaw-dropping. Added to this, the fights were choreographed by the best man in the business: Yuen Wo Ping, who went on to participate in The Matrix and various other action films. Ping outdid himself here with a series of breathtaking, creative and ultraviolent fights that must be seen to be believed. Since a number of the characters cannot feel pain, they fight ruthlessly when they should be dead.

Li submitted a charismatic performance here, while Ching Wan Lau (billed as Lau Ching Wan) exudes a cool machismo as Inspector Rock. Added to this, Kong Lung is hysterical in his role as the commander - seriously, he's like an Asian Ozzy Osbourne with his yellow sunnies and long hair. Meanwhile, Daniel Lee's direction is adequate for this type of motion picture, and his stylistic camera set-ups captured the balletic fight choreography with consummate skill. Additionally, the film's campy nature is further emphasised by the cartoonish CGI. Equipped with (probably unintentional) hilarity around every corner, Black Mask is a blast, but it would be foolhardy to expect something to challenge your mental acuity.

The greatest problem with Black Mask, though, is the trite plot and at times woeful scenes of exposition, yet the spectacular action should distract you from these shortcomings (it's also worth noting the film was dubbed into English for mainstream audiences, and the dubbing is dreadful). All things considered, Black Mask is neither gripping nor meaningful nor emotionally fulfilling. It was made to fill a niche and give action hounds a fix, and to this end the film delivers something satisfying. If you enjoy a loud, blood-soaked good time, Black Mask fits the bill nicely.

5.9/10