| With Dante Lam's debut feature, it's hard not to head into it thinking it's standard, generic SDU, or in this case, Special Branch-action. That expectation is something Lam takes advantage of as he instead offers up a cop soap opera where the action and police plotting in a way becomes secondary. Something that really is a theme that runs through the film as well as the characters inner wishes, in this case the other halves of the various relationships that are left in the background in favour of the work, is to become primary. Heck, even the title Option Zero rings true of some poignancy.
What saves Lam's movie from becoming sappy to a nauseating degree is also a refreshing quirky stance towards the material (even within the action directing), mostly thanks to Anthony Wong (here seen as his larger self during his sickness). Option Zero ultimately falls short of its goals though as it's a little bit too scattershot to be thoroughly great as a quirky action-comedy or as a serious love drama. A bland Julian Cheung in the lead doesn't help either as he simply lacks the chops to carry the movie. It comes to the point where it's hard to distinguish him from any other of the cop characters.
Dante Lam's debut effort is very much appreciated and unexpectedly good though. However hard it is to admit. Also with Carman Lee, Monica Chan and Michael Wong. |
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