Protégé
(2007/Genius/Dragon Dynasty DVD)
Picture: C+
Sound: B- Extras: C Film: C
Though it started out well, the police thriller Protégé (2007) eventually trades its
suspense for formula, cliché and even wallowing in the drug use it should be
busier with the storyline it started with.
It even has some critical acclaim, which makes it al the more
disappointing. Director Derek Yee can
direct, but he eventually just tries to juggle too much and it catches up with
him by the first third.
Can the hero (Andy Lau) break a drug ring, take it over as
an undercover entity or get killed and lose it all? It is an intriguing idea, but it gets too
sidetracked too often to be totally effective.
I even liked the cast, locations, editing, look and certain nuances, but
the overall result after 109 minutes seems too short in some ways and long in
others. For fans only, Daniel Wu, Louis
Koo and Zhang Jing Chu also star.
The anamorphically enhanced 2.35 X 1 image is slightly soft
throughout and has aliasing errors and pale shots that affect the color, which
can be pretty good at times. The Dolby
Digital 5.1 mix is the highlight in either language and I was surprised
Cantonese DTS was also not included, but these will suffice we guess. Extras include trailers for this and other
DVDs, deleted scenes, an extended scene, interviews, behind the scenes footage
and weblinks.
- Nicholas Sheffo
