Review of Full Contact (1993) by Aaron L — 19 Oct 2007

This is the kind of movie that I remembered Chow Yun Fat the most; NOT the cineplex-friendly, Ang Lee flick best known as Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon--EXCEPT here, Full Contact showcases what CYF reminds me the most of growing up: the hardcore violent, yet still moralistic hero, in an otherwise nihilistic action movie. But even in its most post-modernistic sensibilities, there's always more than enough room for Chow Yun Fat's Godfrey, showing his better self, despite of how vengeance-crazy he can be with Anthony Wong Chau-Sang's Sam, let alone Simon Yam's flamboyantly gay, sadistic Judge.

And oh yeah; the violence is as grungy as the amorality in this Ringo Lam effort: hint, the nasty usage of a switchblade in the initial kukri fight, and subsequently with *SPOILER ALERT!* Chow loosing a couple of his digits--from the same hand he used in that knife fight! Yikes!

So if you're looking for another romantic, wuxia sweeping epic, keep looking... 'cause you won't see Zhang Ziyi doing anything like a cabaret striptease (albeit with a lot of imagination required), let alone having Michelle Yeoh acting like a ho-queen, inquiring Chow if there's any holes in her unmentionables.

*and oh yeah, have Chow respond by saying that he thought he saw something like crabs vomitting or foaming around the edges! A date movie this ain't!