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Executioners
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by Image Entertainment
Sales Rank: 119617
Price: $19.95
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This film's prequel, The Heroic Trio, end with a triumphant mood as the sexy trifecta of Wonder Woman, Invisible Girl and Thief Catcher make good and rid China of a demon from Hell who threatened the very existance of mankind. When Executioners opens, it would seem that no one was paying attention to the evil people who lived on Earth because China (and the rest of the world by extension) is devastated in a post-holocaustic setting without clean water and with very little future to look forward to. The Trio comes out of semi-retirement to battle the evil forces of monstrous megalomanics and military murderers. Throw in a couple of superhuman freaks and the battleground is set. But fans of Heroic Trio should be forewarned: even though Good must always defeat Evil, there are very few happy endings in Executioners. It's a very sad film that emphasizes the need for sacrifice in order to acheive the Greater Good. And this film has sacrifices in spades. <p>On the bright side, it's well acted and Anita Mui stands out in a stunning performance that features her mercurial beauty and her martial arts guile. Michelle Yeoh is Michelle Yeoh and there's no greater compliment than that. Maggie Cheung treats the film as though she's slumming with a B-script instead of starring in an A-level art film but she's still a treat whenever she's chewing up the scenery with her grumpy outbursts. Anthony Wong provides the necessary touches of Evil that make you yearn for the Heroic Trio to hasten his demise. Damian Yau will make you cry.<p>The music is, as always, a plus in any HK film that features Mui.
Don't sit back and expect a rollicking good time. This is heavy duty fare here. But's it's probably the most-layered and intense HK film that you'll see in a good long time.
Viewer Reviews
Note: Chinese with English subtitles.
Synopsis: The '93 release of `Executioners' reunites the fab Heroic Trio for one last go against the forces of evil. If you thought the storyline in the first film was rather grim wait until you see this one. The three heroes now dwell in a dark and dismal China, a place where mankind is barely surviving after a nuclear holocaust. Shadow Fox (Anita Mui) has retired her mask and cape and now fills her time with taking care of her husband and little girl. Invisible Woman (Michelle Yeoh), no longer possessing her cloak of invisibility, works tirelessly to protect essential supplies coming into the city for the suffering masses and Chat (Maggie Cheung) is still making a living as a thief catcher for hire.
If things weren't bad enough, dwelling in the shadows of this devastated landscape resides a sinister, masked madman known as the Black Knight who is determined to rule the world. With the military under his control and the fresh water supply cut off from the city it's only a matter of time before he takes over. That is unless the Heroic Trio rise up and make things right.
Critique: while I enjoyed seeing these three lovely and talented ladies together again I was somewhat disappointed to see that the overall feel of the film had lost that campy, superhero vibe so pervasive in the first movie. What remains in its place is a highly post apocalyptic study on madness, disorder, the corruptive nature of power and the amoral reasoning methods used by both sides of the conflict. There's a lot going on here so the storyline takes a long time to unfold, leaving little time for the delightful martial arts sequences that made the first film so popular. Sadly, the Heroic Trio doesn't get back together as a fighting until the last twenty minutes or so of the film, much too long a wait if you ask me.
Overall an interesting film but I wouldn't recommend it for children. There are some pretty disturbing moments such as; a despondent young women committing suicide with an automatic weapon and a beheading to name a few. The scene of the starving Anita Mui and the rat was definitely not for minors. However if you're a fan of Hong Kong cinema and the fabulous Mui, Yeoh and Cheung enjoy!
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Executioners
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