Tony Leung Chiu Wai (the Hard Boiled one, not the Dragon Inn one) takes a refreshing break from his usual serious roles to play a detective who wears a jacket full of neat toys and swings a mean umbrella. The oft-ridiculed Ekin Cheng (not the worst actor I've ever seen, but there is definitely room for improvement) is a roguish, ass-kicking interior decorator, and Kelly Chen is Macy, the lead female who spends lots of time unconscious, drunk, drugged, or just plain helpless. Cecilia Cheung and an assortment of Japanese cuties show up in somewhat insignificant supporting roles, making the film seem like a strutting peacock saying "damn I look good" while showing off its glamorous feathers. People who (rightly) say that aesthetically gifted individuals (especially women) are pretty much the only ones who stand a chance of succeeding in show business regardless of their talent (or lack thereof) will find plenty of ammunition here. Whether that's a good or a bad thing is up to you. I can picture guys jerking off to that one shot of Cecilia swinging those black leather-clad legs of hers over the side of the car without too much difficulty...not because I WANT to, but because the camera makes such a big deal of it.

The thin but serviceable plot about a missing Japanese gang lord (Macy's fiance) and his affair with the wife of his partner in crime is punctuated by a spiffy "salsa techno" soundtrack (Mom loved it) and plenty of action sequences; outstanding amongst these is the golf club fight (it's about time that stupid game started earning its keep) and car carrier scene near the middle of the film. I didn't much like the "double take" editing trick that kind of makes it look like the DVD is skipping (I have had more defective Hong Kong DVDs than I have had bowel movements), but that's just part of the movie's overall style. Patches of implausibility, like some very conveniently-placed exploding barrels during the motorboat chase, only add to the mindless fun factor.

Note that Cantonese and Japanese are both spoken in the film and if you can't tell the difference just by listening, you'll have to figure out who's speaking what within the context of the story...which should not be the least bit difficult, but, you know...there ARE stupid people out there. THEY can listen to the English dubbed track (which I haven't heard, for reasons which, I hope, are obvious).

Macy defies her powerful Hong Kong investment banker father by eloping with her Japanese beau, Takahashi to Las Vegas.

Unfortunately, Takahashi doesn't show up. When Macy returns to Hong Kong to look for him, she crosses paths with an interior decorator named Yung , who is also trying to track down Takahashi over a bounced check.

Together, they head to Tokyo to track down the wayward groom, where they have an unexpected run-in with local yakuza boss Ito and his henchman. Luckily, Yung happens to be a master of kung-fu and is able to keep Ito's men at bay long enough for them to be rescued by a private detective named Lam.

Aided by a quartet of the Chinese "Charlie's Angels", Lam is also on the lookout for Takahashi. Together, they embark on joint effort to unravel the complicated trail left in the wake of Takahashi's disappearance, one that soon involves the yakuza and some international espionage.

This was a great movie. The beginning alone, made up for the rental fee. The first 10 minutes is straight fighting.

But like all HK movies, they suffer from 10 minutes of awesome fighting then 20 of boring talk and plot advancement, Tokyo Raiders was able to lower the talk/plot advancement down to 10 minutes, which made the movie fly by.

Most video stores won't get in HK movies cause there's little market for them over here, but lately they've been coming in by boatfuls, and Tokyo Raiders is on the best I've seen so far.