Running Out Of Time: Viewer Comments

Viewer Comments:
Running Out Of Time
All Content Used With Permission.

TIP: Log In to enable enhanced Interact features.

NEED HELP?

by AH1706

"Running Out Of Time" is a very smart and immensely entertaining crime thriller from one of Hong Kong's finest filmmakers, Johnnie To.

The plot is very straightforward. A lonely man (Andy Lau) is diagnosed with a terminal illness, resulting in him playing a cat-and-mouse game with a police negotiator (Lau Ching Wan). The negotiator is also a lonely man that dedicates all his time to his job, having no personal life at all. The two form a bond, or even an awkward friendship, as Andy Lau continues to outsmart and be one step ahead of the police. This motivates Lau Ching Wan, who guarantees he will make an arrest, as Andy Lau is determined not to die in a police station. But some conflict arises as both men realize that their supposed enemy may really be the only friend they have in their otherwise lonesome existence.

"Running Out Of Time" has a great story and some superb acting. Andy Lau is excellent in this role, and Lau Ching Wan continues to prove why he is one of Hong Kong's most underappreciated actors. The score is also tremendous, which is often a strongpoint in a Johnnie To film, and will stick in your head for a long time. Another great aspect of the theme song was that it was only used in key situations, so it never got boring or repetitive. This is also a great film to see Andy Lau in various different disguises, which was well done. Other Johnnie To (Milky Way Productions) regulars, such as Lam Suet, Hui Siu Hung, Yoyo Mung Ka Wai, and Ruby Wong Cheuk Ling, can also be spotted throughout the film.

"Running Out Of Time" is an excellent film with a great concept and story that will probably be discovered and exploited by Hollywood some day.

Highly Recommended!

AGREE?	READER COMMENTS	AUTHOR
Y	This film plays to Andy Lau's strengths - charm, self-confidence, naughty wit and a sense of dignity under pressure. Lau Ching Wan is almost always good, and this film is no exception. The sequel is unnecessary and inferior.	Jeffrey Frawley

by JV47842

A clever movie! Another amazing achievement from director Johnnie To--"Running Out Of Time" is a true masterpiece about a clever criminal and a hard boiled cop playing a game of cat and mouse. I first saw this film in 1999 and wow does this film still hold up--everything about it still stands. The movie has it all, from great action scenes to drama, plus a lot of laughs, the two leads are tremendous. 5 stars to this classic flick. I love this film!

by LG43358

by JAY LEE

Not at all what I expected, but man was I happy I bought this flick. It just keeps you guessing, and the score is awesome! Johnnie To should make more movies like this! Full props to Andy Lau and Lau Ching Wan for this one!

by Laurel Lette

Sometimes touching and often hilarious, this film walks the difficult and narrow line between pathos and humour with outstanding results.

Andy Lau is the man with the mission - to avenge the death of his father, and play a tense mind game with a cop while he's at it. He has less than four weeks to live and he uses this time to plot a revenge so clever it keeps the police guessing from the opening frame. More importantly, the viewer is also kept guessing, a crowning achievement in this type of film where the outcome is usually telegraphed in the first ten minutes.

Lau Ching Wan, as the cop targetted by Lau's character, is note perfect from start to finish. His scenes with his superior officer, the inept Commander Ho, are laugh out loud funny. It's a treat to watch his face as he fumbles with a pair of wires in the hopes of opening a fire alarm door, or when he winces in embarrassment as he watches his commander tumble over in a public bowling alley.

It's also a lot of fun to see Andy Lau appear as both as an old man and a power-suited woman. It's a credit to his acting skill that it's equally sad to watch him weaken and frequently cough up blood as he gradually dies from cancer.

This film is a pleasure from start to finish experience, and stands up to repeated viewings. Unreservedly recommended.

by Bee Xiong

This is a very good movie; and when I first saw it, I very much liked it and watched it over and over. Andy is my favorite actor of all Chinese actors. I wish to see him once in my lifetime. I've watched his movie since I was little, and now I still do. I've got both of these movies: part one and part 2. They are both good movies.

by Antonio Brown

I don't know where to start with a movie like this. It has Action, Suspense, and Comedy, and Drama.

Synopsis: This movie is basically about a guy who only has two weeks to live because he is in his final stage of terminal cancer. Knowing that he is going to die, he decides to use what little time he has left to take revenge on some ex-triad leader, and lead the police on a pulse throbbing CAT and MOUSE chase. This movie will be unlike any movie you will ever see.

Action-----5 out of 5: Some movies these days spice up action scenes with a lot of special effects. This movie didn't look like it had any special effects. If it did it had very little. All the action took place in real-time, which was very original. During the action scenes, Just when you think you know what is going to happen next, you then figure out that your wrong. This movie has a lot of great action scenes. From an action scene on a roof filled with explosives, to car scenes that keep you second guessing, and, Even a really nice scene inside of a bowling ally which features 3 different groups of people dueling off against each other. This I how action movies should be made. Only Jonnie To can make a terrorist take over a building just because he wants to talk to on the entire police squad, threaten them, and then walk out without them doing him anything.

Drama-------5 out of 5: While your watching this, you see that the main character of the movie is a terrorist, gangster, criminal...etc. But what you also know is that the main character is going to Die, You don't know exactly when but you know it is going to happen. While you watch this movie, you are totally drawn into the main character, as if it was you itself, then at any given moment your view on this character suddenly changes. I love The drama captivates you and keeps you interested; although it doesn't make you breakdown and cry.....until you reach the very end of the movie that is.

All in all. this movie is superb. Best movie ever made. Anyone could watch this movie, except of course a criminal genius who is looking for fresh new ideas. This movie has everything, best of all, everything goes together well without any unexplained story lines.

If you lived your life only seeing one movie....and this was that movie....Then you pretty much lived your life to the fullest

by Heung Wah Sum

Running Out Of Time takes on a different perspective of the protagonist and antagonist. It is essentially a cat and mouse game between a police negotiator and a criminal. Many bits are somewhat unrealistic, but the entertaining plot makes up for it. The character lineup is first class with Lau Ching Wan and Andy Lau, along with the attractive YoYo Mung appearing in a few scenes. Violence is not an issue which is addressed in Running Out of Time, as there is no need. The film doesn't feature mindless violence like most Hollywood creations, but it twists the audience to use logic to solve and get ahead of the detective. It is not like a classic detective story either, and fits in a unique genre of its own. Every minute is entertaining with intelligent plots throughout the whole movie. I recommend it to anyone looking for a thrill. Maybe we can learn something out of it as well.

by Jose

I seriously enjoyed this movie very much. I have seen many Hong Kong movies and this movie is on the top 5 list. Andy Lau was brilliant in this movie and he deserved to win the best actor award. The music matches so well with the movie and this movie actually makes you think. The plot is good and the cat-and-mouse theme in the movie is awesome. I would recommend this to everyone.

by Men Keung Wu

This is one of the best films I've seen in ages. Dishing out the greatest storyline Hong Kong movies haven't done in sometime. My first thoughts about this film from the beginning to the end were "amazed" and "entertained". Equipped with humor and action, with the cast of Andy Lau and Lau Ching Wan, this movie is far most the best Hong Kong movie I've ever seen.

by roark

Okay, so I haven't seen that many HK movies at all this year but I still thought that Running Out of Time was great. The movie is mostly about a sort of duel between two men on opposite sides of the law. Eventually, they begin to respect and even befriend one another. They're both brilliant so it's really fun to see them match wits and try to trip each other up while trying to play it cool. Lau Ching Wan is the man but I don't have to tell you that. He's the coolest actor I've seen in recent years. Andy Lau pulls off his role quite well. He's not some dashing pretty-boy but a clever guy seeking his own kind of justice. It's a little easier to sympathize with him because his terminal illness makes him vulnerable and more, well, human. In fact, both of the central characters have their weaknesses and that's really what made the movie for me. I loved the cinematography and atmospheric music. There are certain scenes set to music -- such as the opening -- that made me feel almost euphoric! There's also some use of a kind of speed ramping effect. In big budget Hollywood movies and commercials this is done with expensive cameras or frame interpolation software but in Running Out of Time it's done with the very low-tech method of dropping or pausing frames. The funny thing is that IMHO, sophisticated ramping, 'Dead Time' and 'Bullet Time' FX have finally proved themselves to be the gimmicks I thought they were. The FX in Running Out of Time actually served the story and helped to create an atmosphere so, combined with the music, I felt that they were just as effective as the big budget stuff, if not more so.

by ralphbrown

I enjoyed "Running Out Of Time." However, during the entire film, I couldn't help feeling as if I were watching a Hollywood remake of "The Longest Nite." I don't mean a remake in the traditional sense of cloning a plot (the two films have vastly different characters) -- simply that To makes use again of the structure of a complicated, cat-and-mouse thriller. It seems as if Johnnie To really loved the original film (as he should -- it's fantastic) and decided to salvage the idea. He made "Running" slick, light-hearted (for the most part), and optimistic. Perhaps he believed that a great film (such as "The Longest Nite") can be dragged down by its own grit and pessimism. However, "Running" is still a good film in its own right. Andy Lau is not the match that Tony Leung Chiu-Wai for Lau Ching-Wan, but he's fine. Like "Nite," it's got a tight plot. Waise Lee appears as the villain.My next point is a question (which I do not believe is a SPOILER but I'll give a warning here anyway): What happens if Lau Ching-Wan is unable to get out of the stairwell?

by MilesC

In many ways, this film is just a reworking of The Longest Nite for a less cynical audience; and yet it's a completely different sort of movie. Even if Johnny To hadn't come right out and said it, it would be obvious that Milkyway had started making concessions to mainstream audiences, but I don't feel it hurts the film much, if at all. What you get for your money is a virtually non-stop thriller with a liberal helping of comic relief. I generally like my crime movies played straight, but the comic bits never sink to the level of ludicrous vignettes that slow down the plot like in so many other films. Plus, they're generally pretty funny! I chuckled out loud several times. The only real complaint I have with this one is that it peaks somwhere in the middle. There's a 20-30 minute series of plot twists and chases that are never equaled again throughout the movie. The resolution of the secondary conflict, involving Waise Lee as a gang boss, is a bit confusing and could've been a little more climactic. Still, throwing in an action scene at the end would've distracted from the real story, which is resolved very well; most Milkyway films have ending sthat let down the rest of the movie slightly, but they really nailed it this time. Anyway: good acting, fast pace, strong story, another robust Raymond Wong score... It's definitely a winner.

by neil

This movie is by far one of the best HK films I have ever seen. Well worth the price of admission, sit back and enjoy the ride, because it just doesnt get any better than this. Andy and LAU are great. If you havn't seen it, then your missing out. (9/10)

by trenty

"Running Out of Time" is an excellent movie overall. It's been awhile I have seen something like this one. Everything minute of this movie is amazingly done though with one minor mistake by the director in a personal perspective. The movie went very well from the start till the end. The plot itself was great and very enjoyable. I can gurantee that you can watch this movie without leaving your sit. I highly recommand this movie for those who still haven't have a hand on it. All those characters in the movie were well planned by the scriptwriter. Especially, Andy's role in the movie. And some of other characters appeared in the right time to support the script itself. Also, the scriptwriter did add a few humours to make the movie more exciting and fun. As for the performances, Lau Ching Wan had his standard acting as a cop in this movie which was great. As to Andy's role, he deserves a few claps. However, the part were he dressed like a woman, I think that was a mistake by the director. Andy acts as a woman? What's that? Even a kid can differentiate him as a man. But anyways, both actors did their best actings throughout the film. Other supporting casts were well acted too, maybe due to their roles in the movie. To conclude, this movie is very enjoyable and with the great actings to make this movie a high standard Hong Kong movie.

CLOSE THIS WINDOW

This window is a "pop-up" from at HKFlix.com.
If you've arrived here from somewhere else,
please CLICK HERE for our home page!