A super slick thriller from Benny Chan (Heroic Duo, Gen-X Cops, A Moment of Romance) - but easy on the melodrama!…
Siu-yan Suen (Aaron Kwok, 2000 AD, Saviour Of The Soul, China Strike Force), the hardened cop who never got over the mysterious disappearance of his fiancé, even after 10 years. Coke (Daniel Wu, 2000 AD, Purple Storm, City of Glass), the ruthless assassin who’ll work for anyone if the price is right. Hou-sung To (Ekin Cheng, Heroic Duo, The Storm Riders, Tokyo Raiders), the lawyer who must battles internally with defending the guilty as well as the innocent.
Three separate, very different, lives - until Coke assassinates a witness under Suen’s protection, due to testify against Ting-chung Yiu (Lo Ka Leung - as Gallen Lo - Those Were The Days) who is in turn being defended by Hou-sung. Then they begin to find out just how much they have in common.
when Yiu’s pop-star son goes missing, Suen finds an unlikely ally in Coke, but can he uncover the truth? And why does Hou-sung’s wife Amy (Angelica Lee - as Lee Sinje - The Eye, Koma) look the spitting image of Suen’s missing lover?
Divergence is an exceptionally slick piece of filmmaking, even with director Benny Chan’s existing reputation with films like Heroic Duo, Gen-X Cops and New Police Story. The immaculate production design by Cheung Suk Ping, the Infernal Affairs, post-Chris Doyle style cinematography by Anthony Pun, even the tight editing - it’s all top notch and the equal of anything Hollywood has to offer.
One extended pursuit sequence in particular sticks in the mind, as Suen chases Coke over busy roads and through the crowded Central Market. It uses real locations in a way Hong Kong filmmakers seem to do best, and is (almost) as credible as it is exciting as cars swerve narrowly avoiding them you can’t help but join the actors as they breathe heavily at the end.
It’s helped greatly by solid performances from the ensemble cast, particularly Aaron Kwok who won best actor at the Taiwan Golden Horse awards for his role as Suen. Indeed, the pretty-boy pop star whose previous acting career has been patchy at best (2000 AD with co-star Daniel Wu being one of his highlights), seems to have convincingly grown into the part.
Daniel also pulls off his role as a ruthless assassin with believable reasons for wanting to help Suen, without becoming affable. (Why is he always best as a bad guy?) Ekin, on the other hand, isn’t given much to do except look moody - which perhaps is for the best. There’s also a likable cameo from Eric Tsang (Infernal Affairs, Golden Chicken, Three) as the boss of the Missing Persons Bureau - you can’t imagine he has time for much else nowadays.
The plot is the epitome of what the post-Infernal Affairs and Oldboy Asian audience expects, with as many twists and turns as you could possible want. Ivy Ho’s script deals them out pretty effectively, but the only snag is the amount of melodrama thrown in, even by Hong Kong and Chinese standards the level is pretty high. It rather grates with what is otherwise a thrilling - if by no means original - ride of an action film. Though such melodrama has always been a part of Hong Kong films, you can’t help but wonder if filmmakers aren’t taking themselves a little too seriously nowadays.
It’s a good action flick that misses out due to overplaying the melodrama, but it’s still highly enjoyable.
DVD details
Distributor: Universe (Hong Kong)
Superb transfer of picture and sound quality on the Universe Hong Kong edition give this action film the presence it needs on the small screen. The subtitles are good with few grammatical mistakes, and better yet writing and signs are also translated.
The double disc edition includes usual Making of, Gala Premiere and trailers - unfortunately though none have English subtitles. The feature disc, however, includes a director's commentary with cast members Aaron, Daniel and Ekin which DOES have English subtitles - a real bonus for an Asian DVD!
