Tsui Hark is widely regarded as the Steven Spielberg of Hong Kong cinema. As a writer, director, and producer, Hark has become one of the most prolific filmmakers in Asia. His directorial efforts include Once Upon a Time in China and Peking Opera Blues, two of the finest martial arts films ever made. As a producer, he has worked on some of John Woo's classics including A Better Tomorrow and The Killer. Hark has even spearheaded the use of Hollywood-style special effects with Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain. Sadly, Hark's ill-fated attempt to break into Hollywood itself resulted in the abysmal Double Team starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dennis Rodman, a pairing no one wanted to see.
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame is one of Hark's latest pictures, originally released in China in 2010 before receiving a limited run in the U.S. Shot on a budget of $20 million, Detective Dee is very much in the vein of Zu Warriors as it mixes traditional wuxia fight sequences with modern special effects.
Andy Lau stars as a fictional version of Di Renjie, an official during the Tang Dynasty, who became the protagonist in a series of detective novels by Dutch author Robert van Gulik. As portrayed by Lau, Dee is both a man of action and an analytical sleuth, much like Robert Downey Jr.'s Sherlock Holmes. The Mystery of the Phantom Flame is set in year 690AD as Wu Zeitan (Carina Lau) is about to be crowned Empress of China and the first female ruler. Her coronation is threatened when two high-ranking officials die of spontaneous combustion. These horrific and inexplicable deaths lead the Empress to reinstate Detective Dee, who has been exiled for speaking out against her. Not entirely trusting of Dee, the Empress teams him with one her most loyal handmaiden, Jing'er (Li Bingbing), and an albino officer named Donglai (Deng Chao).
Detective Dee features some spectacular visuals as Hark and his team have crafted a stylized recreation of ancient China. The highlight is a massive iron Buddha standing watch over the royal palace. The action choreography was done by Sammo Hung and the over-the-top fight scenes are reminiscent Ching Siu-Tung, who directed two Hark productions in The Swordsman and A Chinese Ghost Story. One of the film's coolest fights finds all three protagonists battling the mystical Imperial Chaplain in a spooky underground city. The robed Chaplain actually splits off his sleeves which are able to fight independently. There's also a thrilling sequence during the climax involving a series of pulleys and ropes that work as an early elevator.
Not all the fight scenes work. In the film's goofiest moment, Dee is forced to battle a pack of mind-controlled deer. Nothing like watching Andy Lau punch Bambi in the face to make your day. The deer also represent the movie's most poorly rendered CGI. When the killer's hapless victims burst into flame, their immolated bodies look fake as well.
The plot isn't exactly a tense and complex puzzle. The twists and turns in the story feel more like they were made up on the spot. By the time the third act rolls around, Detective Dee has descended into a series of confused revelations and hokey elements.
Andy Lau turns in a solid performance as Detective Dee though the role isn't too taxing on his acting skills. Both of the lovely starlets, Carina Lau and Li Bingbing, are good and aren't there as just eye candy. But, the best performance has to go to the other Tony Leung, Tony Leung Ka Fai (Election) as a former comrade of Dee's who is in charge of the Buddha construction.
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame won't go down as one of Tsui Hark's masterpieces. It has a lot of the same shoddy special effects and nonsensical storytelling that made Legend of Zu such a mess. Yet, the unique action and strong cast might be enough to interest diehard Hong Kong action fans.
Rating: ** (*****)
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