介绍:
Watching Hong Kong crime thriller "Helios" is like watching American TV series "24," or more precisely, the first few episodes of any season of "24."
At the centre of "Helios" is a weapon of mass destruction, a portable nuclear bomb stolen from South Korea and transported to Hong Kong. Here at the so-called international intelligence hub, a villain code-named Helios plans to sell the device to the highest bidder. But things don't work out as planned and the nuke ends up in the hands of the Hong Kong police, who in turn become the target of various intelligence agents.
Hong Kong actor Nick Cheung plays a local detective Eric Lee who resembles Jack Bauer from "24." Similar to Bauer's "ends justifies the means" approach, Mr. Lee resorts to intimidation, blackmail and plain violence to squeeze out every possible lead from captured suspects. Once a Royal Hong Kong Police officer, award-winning Nick Cheung could have sparkled with authenticity in this role, but all he achieves is a slightly more notable presence than other cast members.
Apparently Detective Lee's instinct of a bloodhound is not the only element that drives the narrative, Nick also has to share the screen time with local singer Jacky Cheung, Taiwan star Zhang Zhen, mainland veteran Wang Xueqi, and even South Korean heartthrobs Ji Jin-hee and Choi Si-won.
These heavyweights have been summoned to fill the roles on different sides as screenwriters and directors Longman Leung and Sunny Luk spin an enormous web of multiple narratives. On the surface the viewers are introduced to an unspecified high-ranking official from Chinese mainland, a weapon specialist from South Korea, an arms dealer in Macau and a local Hong Kong physicist, but working secretly beneath the complicated narrative, there are other players trying to get a hold of the lethal device.
To incorporate such complicated storylines while maintaining a sense of suspense is a test of the screenwriter's prowess. Longman Leung and Sunny Luk may have proven their skills with 2012 police thriller "Cold War," but in attempting a storyline of this complexity they've bitten off more than they can chew. When every character's lines are reduced to more than a few sentences at each encounter, viewers are not given a healthy amount of suspension to exercise their brains, but an irritating overdose of frustration.
And for many viewers that frustration haunts them all the way till the end, where no nuclear weapon is diffused and no bad guy is killed. The final showdown brings two of the many sides face to face, only to agree on the beginning of a new round in a sequel that may or may not be made in the future. It feels just like finishing the 8th episode of "24" and not knowing when the 9th will be available.
The failure to manage a sprawling story also impacts on the spectacle. Notably the first gunfight scene is the most impressive, while the ensuing action is scaled down as the story unfolds and the camps becomes more clear-cut. But this is not necessarily a bad thing if there were to be a sequel. With "Cold War" and "Helios", the directors have already proven their competence with office politics-based stories rather than action scenes, it won't be too late to return to their area of expertise in a make-up sequel. After all you can't really de-activate a nuclear bomb with a bullet.
