Review of Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010) by Jesse O — 18 Nov 2012

Pulpy, thrilling fun, "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame" is one of the most overlooked films of 2011. Most people, including me, thought that the Hong Kong actioner genre was dead, but thankfully this film brings back the great stuff we've been missing all this time-- plus more.

The plot is comic-book perfect: after a series of men combust in the middle of the day, Empress Wu (Carina Lau) calls upon the imprisoned Detective Dee (Andy Lau) to try and solve the strange mystery, with the aid of her protege Jing'er (Bingbing Li).

At first, Dee believes it to be the work of the Empress, but the farther he looks into the case, the more unexpected the results are. "Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame" is a title that suggests a dumb, kids movie, but at the hand of able action director Tsui Hark, the film becomes more than meets the eye.

It features stunning fight choreography, with yes, lots of flying and slow motion, and gorgeous set pieces and cinematography, but unlike many martial arts films like this one, it has a very intriguing story to back it up.

Murder mysteries are always fun, but this one is so intricate and complicated that you're guessing until the unforgettable climax. With the aid of Andy Lau's masterful performance as Dee, every fight scene is lots of fun, but a simple interrogation of a villain is delivered with the work of a professional.

Also featuring Bingbing Li as the femme fatale and Carina Lau as the mysterious empress, not one second of "Detective Dee and the Mystery of Phantom Flame" isn't entertaining. It may at first sound like a guilty pleasure, but this is really one of the better kung fu films.