智齒
Action thriller
Cantonese, English and Czech subtitles
Directing: Cheang Pou-soi
Starring: Gordon Lam, Cya Liu, Mason Lee, Hiroyuki Ikeuchi
Distributor: Mandarin Motion Pictures Limited
Rookie police officer Will Yam (Mason Lee) and his partner, a veteran cop (Gordon Lam), are pursuing a mystery serial killer in this textbook example of a stylized neo-noir genre. The black and white Limbo shatters Yam’s illusions and proudly goes back to the times when Hong Kong cinema was dominated by films with the highest Category III rating. The director Soi Cheang is merciless and torments the audience just as much as the characters. All that to the sound of music by Kenji Kawai, the author of the soundtrack to Ghost in the Shell.
In 2019, Filmasia already introduced Cheang’ SPL II: A Time for Consequences that breaks the boundaries of straightforward action films and Limbo is similarly careless to the conventions of investigative narratives. Its elusive genre can be defined as anything from a neo-noir crime story, a harrowing thriller, a horror story or even an over-the-top exploitation. Everything is further emphasized by a highly aesthetic contrast between black and white, as well as the vision of Cheng Siu-Keung, a cinematographer who frequently collaborates with Cheang’s mentor Johnnie To. Limbo provides a unique opportunity to see a modern Hong Kong crime thriller that will get your heart racing.
