Review of Firestorm (2013) by Jesse O — 15 Oct 2014

Nam (Andy Lau) is a tough police inspector who is trying to take down a group of violent robbers. After failing to apprehend the criminals, the tired justice system of evidence and sleazy lawyers compels him to cross the moral line.

Starting off pretty strong, Firestorm's strengths are its intense action sequences and the main character's story arc. The movie does get a bit ridiculous with the visual effects, as heavy weapons fire has these trails and make them look like laser beams.

Its too bad the movie quickly dissolves into an overblown mess. There are more explosions and car crashes in this movie than a Michael Bay film, and that's saying something. The action at the end becomes so over the top, it almost seems like a parody, with Nam's character almost getting blown up about three of four times. Mix that up with a poor ending, and you get half of a good action thriller. The movie doesn't really get to have any real payoff, and it whimpers out and fizzles, for a very poor action film that only touches on what it could have been.