A staple of the action genre

Rating: 9/10 (25 August 2007)

When you add John Woo to a script as clever as this you know the finished product will be outstanding. The script is inspired beyond belief. It is a scary concept when you think about it and Woo uses this to his advantage.
The story here deserves as much praise as the fantastic action. This premise is so disturbing that this could have worked in more than one genre. It could have been a drama,horror or a cat and mouse thriller and it would have worked each time. Woo is able to have fun with the action but he creates a story with a real hero in it.
Sean Archer is one of the great action heroes. He isn't a John McClain or a Rambo, he's a real human being who went through hell. You feel great pain when he shows the wound that he wishes had killed him so his five year old son would have lived. When offered this bizarre assignment to save Los Angeles from destruction, he hesitates. Is it worth becoming the man who killed your son to save lives? He is torn psychologically. The best scene in the film is where he looks at a picture of his son through the face of the man who killed him.
Troy isn't a great villain but when he is shown against the very likable Archer we despise him. The scene where Troy and Archer meet up at the maximum security prison gives you chills.
I know a lot of people only really care about the action(Which is fantastic like all other John Woo films) but this story is what makes the movie not the action.
My only few complaints deal with how Troy is portrayed. He is a sadistic clown when he should be downright evil. The final battle between Troy and Archer draws out a little long too but we can forgive Woo for that.
Great picture,definitely pick up that new DVD of it.