Guerreiros do Passado

I really like this beautifully shot and choreographed action-fantasy/time travel yarn from Clarence Fok, the director of the moody "Gun and Rose" and the highly regarded "Naked Killer". It is an ambitious, rich production that boasts several stunning martial arts sequences and not a few jaw-dropping stunts. It is such an aesthetically rich and varied piece of entertainment that it never fails to please.

Yuen Biao plays the film's hero, a Ming Dynasty palace guard who resumes his pursuit of a nasty rapist/butcher, the great Yuen Wah ("Eastern Condors"), in the 20th century after their bodies, long encased in ice, are thawed. There are elements of Schepisi's wonderful "Iceman" here and aspects borrowed from Mulcahey's "Highlander", but, despite the film's varied influences, this is a fresh, fascinating synthesis of its raw elements and a damn great example of energetic film-making.

Biao is excellent as the naive palace guard who comes into contact with sweet-natured callgirl Maggie Cheung. He is totally believable as the fish out of water and stunning when asked to demonstrate his extraordinary physical skills. A fight atop a crane is masterful, as is a snow-bound sword fight, a duel inside a museum and a heart-stopping leap over a speeding car on a freeway. Yuen Wah, whose character warms immediately to 20th century firearms and criminality, is also amazing in his demanding, bone-punishing role.

Fok, who always brings a strong visual style to his movies, directs the sometimes brutal action with consummate professionalism and fills the cast list with memorable character actors and assorted beauties. A great score helps, too.

A gem.