NYAFF XXIII Review: In Herman Yau’s CUSTOMS FRONTLINE, Tse And Cheung (Mostly) Get The Job Done
TW: This review discusses self-harm, mental illness and suicide.
TW: This review discusses self-harm, mental illness and suicide.
Filmmaker Herman Yau has been cooking in the early 1980s working as a cinematographer in the Hong Kong film industry, ultimately working his way into the director’s chair. His shelf life has proven positive for him as well, especially in the age of social media where the action genre continues to nuture an immensely active community celebrating the achievements of numerous laureates and auteurs of late. Yau, with his accomplishments is no different, following the recently completed Mission Moscow and upcoming Nicholas Tse starrer Customs Frontline, and more to the point with his latest trilogy installer, The White Storm 3: Heaven Or Hell, which had its North American in-person only premiere last summer at the New York Asian Film Festival.
CMC Pictures is taking the reigns with select releases in multiple territories for action adventure, Moscow Mission. Rejoiing screen leads Andy Lau and Zhang Hanyu since Feng Xiaogang’s A World Without Thieves and Zhang Yimou’s The Great Wall, director Herman Yau’s latest is based on a true story set in 1993, and centers on a pair of Chinese detectives on a mission to hunt down ruthless robbers plaguing the trans-Siberian railway with violence and chaos.
China Lion Film is heading up the North American release of Herman Yau’s new pulsating action adventure, Raid On The Lethal Zone. The film stars Yu Haoming, Ou Oho, Jason Gu and Huang Yau, and opens in select theaters this Friday on September 8.
We’re at the final leg of the current campaign for the international releases of The White Storm 3: Heaven Or Hell from CMC Pictures. A new “ultimate” trailer is now out this week as the film readies to hit screens in North America, Australia, New Zealand and the UK on July 20, on the same day of Louis Koo’s on-hand intro of the film’s NA premiere at the Walter Reade Theater for the New York Asian Film Festival. Here are the programming notes via NYAFF:
Rough weather is abound once again with the upcoming release of The White Storm 3: Heaven Or Hell. Herman Yau’s return to the hard-hitting non-linear crime franchise now has an official trailer to show for its efforts, following a teaser preview earlier this year.
Actors Louis Koo, Sean Lau, and Aaron Kwok are ready to heat the summer with Universe Films dealing out another in the discursive action franchise that is The White Storm. Enter director Herman Yau succeeding his role for a second time after inheriting the keys from Benny Chan to helm 2019’s second installment, with an exciting new teaser now online for The White Storm 3: Heaven Or Hell, following poster and image reveals several weeks ago.
Director Herman Yau’s newest action-thriller comes tethered with the bolstering influence of none other than Nicholas Tse for Emperor Motion Pictures’ entry, Customs Frontline. Tse joins Jackie Cheung for a production that ultimately sends off the studio as a major success in the spotlight of this year’s events at FilMart having reportedly produced up to 27 titles since the pandemic, a factor which ultimately put things in motion for Yau’s production to take necessary alternatives.
One of the most propulsive action crime sagas ever made in the last decade remains on track for a third entry in its non-linear layout with The White Storm 3: Heaven Or Hell. The Herman Yau-directed thriller starring Louis Koo, Aaron Kwok, and Sean Lau will release in local cinemas this summer on July 28, as announced by AMTD Digital Inc. on Wednesday.
Herman Yau (Shock Wave, Shock Wave 2, Ip Man: The Final Fight, The White Storm 2: Drug Lords) is at the microphone once more as cameras roll for War Customised. Actors Jacky Cheung (Bullet in the Head) and Nicholas Tse (Raging Fire) are heading the cast from a script by The Empty Hands and Shock Wave 2 scribe Erica Li.
Filmmaker Herman Yau returning to the director’s chair for a sequel to his 2017 thriller, Shock Wave, was the smart thing to do, particularly if the intent was to do something different with the same actor getting top billing. For fans of actor Andy Lau in this case, there shouldn’t be too many complaints – by the time he shot this movie, he’d been an entertainer for close to two-thirds of his life, and at 59 years young, he’s still killin’ it.
Finally slating a December release, Shock Wave 2 will mark the latest pairing for respective actor/director duo Andy Lau and Herman Yau who worked together on the inaugural 2017 crime thriller, which boasts earnings of up to $63 million dollars at the China box office.
Director Herman Yau clearly has every intention to turn the page from his 2017 hostage thriller, Shock Wave. With its sequel now in route, the first official trailer is making the rounds and you can bet what you see happens to actor Andy Lau’s character is only a smidget of the upheaval and danger that awaits.
Lest I go into too many specifics for those who haven’t yet seen the first, director Herman Yau is back in the saddle with Hong Kong-based distributor Universe teasing a summer sequel release of Andy Lau starrer, Shock Wave 2.
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