UNDERCOVER PUNCH & GUN – Review

Fasten your seat belts for this high-octane Hong Kong crime story. In UNDERCOVER PUNCH & GUN (aka UNDERCOVER VS. UNDERCOVER), Wu (Philip Ng) is an undercover cop, firmly embedded in the upper echelon of the local smuggling and drug trade. There are several factions with tenuous associations and rivalries, all poised to switch on short notice. Or less. As is often the case, Wu not only faces the constant concern over having his cover blown, but, as is often the case for these dramas, develops personal relations with some of his targets that add layers to the suspense.

Don’t worry about the story; nothing new intended or to be found there. It’s all a setup for the slew of action sequences which are a whole ’nother matter. But for those who care about such things, Wu stays undercover for longer than originally planned because he’s risen to become the main dealer/smuggler’s right-hand man, and heir to the throne. He’s also fallen in love with the boss’ lovely, relatively innocent, daughter. He aims higher on the bust count (arrests, not breasts),  pursuing not only the dragon lady who manufactures most of the crystal meth they distribute, but an even bigger, badder player who is trying to take over from the others and expand the territory to the rest of Asia, Infinity and Beyond. Alliances ebb and flow along the way to resolution, making the film even more complicated (not good), but setting up more action sequences (very good).

This flick offers some of the most exciting chases, fights and shootouts one can find anywhere. Every conceivable location, from high-rise buildings, to docks, warehouses and construction sites, to ships at sea hosts one or more of these fast-paced scenes, offering all the adrenaline rush genre devotees hope for. A parkour-esque foot chase is reminiscent of the thrilling full-on parkour chase by Daniel Craig’s James Bond near the beginning of CASINO ROYALE. The only thing missing is snakes (or Wesley Snipes) on a plane. Wenjuan Feng and Carrie Ng contribute the good and evil sides of eye candy. Several good and bad guys chip in bits of comic relief during and between the mayhem moments. If you need a fix for a Jet Li or Tony Jaa type of experience, this delivers, with the bonus of some new faces with bright futures.

UNDERCOVER PUNCH & GUN, in Mandarin and Cantonese with English subtitles, is available on streaming, DVD and Blu-ray on June 8, 2021.