Filled with brutal, no-holds-barred Judo fight scenes performed by the actors themselves, THROWDOWN is not only director To's stylish homage to the great Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, but also an emotional tale of one man's determination to rediscover himself and win at all costs.

Johnnie To openly acknowledges his latest foray into cinema a la The Mission and PTU as a tribute to Akira Kurosawa. Excellent. Such tribute never gets old but I wish I could say I'm a seasoned Kurosawa scholar. Rest assured, you don't have to be to appreciate Throw Down. You probably do have to be a Johnnie To fan however as this follows in the evolving footsteps of mentioned prior works.

Many expectations comes to light when it's revealed that Throw Down is what I always call a real Johnnie To movie. One of my initial concerns actually was again the echoing of styles set by The Mission and continued in PTU. The slow, methodic, quirky and subtle storytelling style that is. While Throw Down technically does resemble PTU as cinematographer Cheng Siu-Keung once again shoots Hong Kong night in particular in a very dreamy way, the storytelling and characters immediately sets a different tone than before. First of all, everyone talk their hearts out but To still injects all his trademarks into this martial arts/comedy/drama.

Yes, it's another mood filled night at the movies with the noir aura being etched in stone right from the getgo. If it wasn't for the fact that To is so god damn good at creating this atmosphere, it would've gotten old already in PTU! The scope frame filled with strong colours and contrasts is as ever thoroughly captivating, created by Milkyway's in-house cinematographer Cheng Siu-Keung. Giving us quirky comedy with pratfalls, toilet humour and the likes, you might think that To has gone astray. Wrong. His eye for comedy is still about extreme quirkiness and low-key delivery of either physical or verbal gags. It's wonderfully funny in either case and never cease to amaze.

What can be argued against all this is the fact that To does self indulge in his quirkiness, sacrificing the need to move forward in a few instances but again, if it weren't for the fact that it's so funny, immersing and unique within the realms of Hong Kong cinema, I would mind. Now I wish that the arcade hall sequence could've run 20 minutes longer as I believe To could've pulled it off with ease.

All is entertaining to the max but Throw Down isn't mainly about either things I described. Using the art of judo as a metaphor for fallen characters in need of getting up again, To largely transforms the movie into a sad portrayal of addiction to depression. Louis Koo's Sze-To is one that neither is comfortable with lying flat on the mat symbolically but has given up doing something about it. It's the conduits in the form of Tony and Mona that begins his upwards journey and while the atmosphere set may not suggest it, Johnnie To brings a rousing uplifting spirit to Throw Down. It does build all the way but if you'd had to knock To for anything it is the fact that we do figure out the basic outcome a fair bit in advance. It is as always about execution and when To is in this mood, he's virtually an unstoppable force. Neither nihilism or evil exists in this world, especially given the fact that certain prior Milkyway productions have reveled in blood, guts and downbeat sentiments. Maybe all those fluffy romantic comedies finally brought out a sweeter side in Johnnie To that could fit into his preferred non-commercial style?

Portraying these characters who in their own way live aimless and endless existences is a trio of not so seasoned Milkyway performers. That's right, not even Lam Suet is cast! Louis Koo furthers himself greatly here under the direction of To in a performance that feels nailed for every mood that To employs. Sze-To's relentless irrational behaviour, both funny and dark, to a realization that Judo goes hand in hand with his crucial journey, Koo churns out a career best act here. Low-key has been an aspect to acting in To's movies. Koo's response is immediate and a success.

Aaron Kwok will probably never grow into much more than what The Barefoot Kid showcased back in the 90s (also directed by To) but his easy going charisma and warmth becomes fitting attributes for Tony's character, one we're not quite sure has an agenda or not which is another strength of Throw Down. Cherrie Ying looks beautiful as always and definitely is no flaw in the framework. Her character is ever so slightly given a traditional character arc though but nonetheless she gets to be part of Johnnie To's unique touches in order add weight to arcs. It's almost like working with Milkyway and To automatically brings out the outermost, even if it won't rival the greats. Cheung Siu-Fai is terrific as a triad boss with an abusive, competitive edge while playing video games. None is spared his taunts, not even little children. Tony Leung Ka-Fai also logs a dead cool supporting act as the ultimate judo opponent of Sze-To.

Finally, with an emphasis on Judo, action director Yuen Bun's work should be discussed. Throw Down certainly isn't a film that's all about the action but it works as an aspect responsible to provide impact and weight to the overall journey. For what it's worth, and I don't know if there lies a difficulty to make Judo on-screen compelling, Yuen Bun and crew makes it an integral and compelling part of To's vision. Being both quick-cut and allowed to roam free in longer takes, we're given a solid look at the details including the fact that the actors involved did put in training.

In this final paragraph, I think it's more suitable to let Johnnie To himself speak of the film as it perfectly summarizes the best film out of Hong Kong cinema 2004:

"When you fall down, you should find the courage to get up again. No matter what the outcome is, give everything you have and leave no regret behind. I believe this is the spirit of Judo. This is also the way of life."

I couldn't agree more.

Review: Throw Down is Hong Kong director Johnnie To's self-described homage to Japanese film master Akira Kurosawa. Through long takes, textured atmosphere and minor references to Kurosawa's first feature film, the Judo biopic Sugata Sanshiro (1943), To has created his own Judo film with realistic action and a stylized narrative to drive home what unfortunately becomes a rather obtuse message.

Johnnie To is certainly one of Hong Kong's better directors who pushed the film industry to knew heights of visual and narrative style with PTU (2003), a film that could be said to have been inspired by another Kurosawa film, Stray Dog (1949). But where PTU retained a clear focus with minimal dialogue and off-center plotting, Throw Down gets muddled by these same techniques, while To's romanticized theme of perseverance fails to resonate.

The story revolves around Sze-to (Louis Koo), an apathetic and alcoholic nightclub owner reduced to gambling stolen money away in vain hopes of paying off debts. He was once a champion Judo fighter who walked out on a championship fight with Kong (Tony Leung), a local Judo club owner. Why he did so gradually becomes clear as two people enter his life. Tony (Aaron Kwok) is a rising Judo fighter who feels compelled to challenge this former champion. Though disappointed to see Sze-to's sorry state, he's willing to hang around until his challenge is met. Mona (Cherrie Yong) is an endlessly optimistic lounge singer with no real talent who gets a job at Sze-to's nightclub. The enthusiasm of both characters eventually inspire Sze-to to face the cause of his breakdown and rise up to challenge Tony in a rematch.

Let's start with what works. To's direction from a technical standpoint is nothing short of brilliant. Dark streets and interiors are dramatically lit from overhead to create a moody atmosphere thick with smoke and richly-colored texture. The editing and camera work is some of To's best to date with long takes for the actors to breath in, bookmarked by measured cuts and pans that perfectly capture slowed action and complex character interactions. To delivers an incredible scene midway through where Louis, Aaron and Cherrie each engage in tense conversation with a different person while seated near each other. To mixes the conversations together as the camera bounces back and forth with dialogue or body language occasionally overlapping. Though a little confusing from a general audience perspective, it's one of those unique scenes that film students will most likely be studying for years. No doubt, when it comes to rich visuals, To is a master craftsman.

The action scenes are good and bad. Johnnie To captures them well and there is plenty of Judo-style takedowns to witness. It's quite entertaining to see bodies flung down on bar tables as arcs of beer spew out of flying glasses in slow motion. Yet for all of the stylish martial artistry on display, To keeps it mostly hectic, partially obscured or distant. Some of the ground-level fighting where locks and tumbling occurs is quite clear however, especially between Louis and Aaron. There are no real villains in the film so the action never reaches a fatal or crippling level, although combatants do frequently walk away with dislocations. There are not a lot of films that feature Judo prominently so it's nice to see it done in a relatively realistic manner (i.e. no wires or doubling), but To's main interest lies with his moody narrative so anyone looking for a lot of action will be disappointed. The film does end with a climatic fight between Louis and Tony Leung in a field of tall grass. Johnnie To was intent on using this setting to contrast with the surrounding city of Hong Kong, but I don't see how it makes the fight any better. Rather, the fight is anti-climatic, perhaps because Tony's role is so small, or perhaps because it's short and not shot that well.

Tony Leung looks great in this film and has incredible presence, but it's wasted in all but one or two scenes. There is no comparison with Cherrie Ying and Aaron Kwok who are neither that good in their roles. Louis Koo does a better job, but his character is such a stereotype with his drinking and gambling excess that he doesn't stand out as he should. In fact, he's so low key for most of the film that it's hard to attach any connection or interest in him.

Throw Down seems to be a polished, yet unsuccessful experiment by a director who is arguably at the peak of his ability. Johnnie To nails the visuals and shoots some quality action scenes, all of which are accompanied by distinctive and complimentary music, but something is still missing. In his attempt to send a message about not giving up in the face of adversity and in drawing on Kurosawa for creative inspiration, he's neglected the characters' emotions and motivations which only leaves the viewer starring at a nicely shot, but vacuous drama with no real message after all. The central conflict that Louis Koo's character struggles with is never openly discussed and To puts him and the rest of the characters in an excessively insulated worldview where dreamers never have to face their limitations and a handful of Judo matches can wash away two years of self pity and binge drinking. This story could have been as inspirational as the director had intended it to be, but not as it is.

Sze-To (Louis Koo) is a former Judo champ has-been that operates an un-stable night club. He drinks, steals money from gangsters, gambles the money, loses it all, then drinks again...

Tony (Aaron Kwok) is a cocky drifter punk who likes to go around challanging Judo champs. He has a Van Damme smirk on his face. Think of his character as Ryu from "Street Fighter" -- he's just looking for a fight to test and better his skill...

Some girl (Cherrie Ying) plays a vagabond piece of ass hoping to go from Asian trash to Asian pop idol. She slurps noodles like a champ.

The three collide in a city filled with Judo masters, video gaming-gangsters and a bunch of other shit that you'd have to be real fucking high on drugs to understand.

From "All About Ah-Long" to "Fulltime Killer," Johnny To has proved that he's one of Asian Cinema's most talented and versatile filmmakers; even when he's pumping out 3 films a year, they look as if they were anything but rushed. Usually moderate in budget, his films seem rich in quality; their artistic camera angles (think crash course Chris Doyle) and wicked lighting techniques set the mood and hint that you're getting a feature packed with tender loving care and not some run of the mill cheapass Hong Kong flick.

I was excited when I heard about "Throw Down," a semi martial arts film that centers around "Judo," a fighting style that we rarely see on film - and now I know why; because this particular style is a bore when put in movies (lots of throw downs, hence, the title). But these Judo scenes, no matter how uninteresting they are, it's far from being a major problem. The real problem is the film itself. IT SUCKS, plain and simple. Sorry to sound vague, but seriously, this has got to be one of the worst films I have seen in the last few years. I mean, what kind of fucking Tsui Hark wet dream is this? And what's this "A salute to Akira Kurosawa" crap (as mentioned in the film's credits)? Well, thank God the late Akira Kurosawa isn't alive to see this movie. In fact, it probably would have been the cause of his death if screened during his final months!

Okay, there are a couple of situational scenes that are somewhat amusing and witty (one, involving bathroom stalls), but they come and go - then disappear for good - and there's no way they can hold this mess together. Of course, the leads (Louis Koo, Aaron Kwok and Cherrie Ying) give their all, but their performances are useless in a movie like this.

I do appreciate all the style and pizzazz that warrants "Throw Down" as a hip Johnny To film; if I said the film didn't look fantastic cinematically, I'd be lying. But overall, anyone who thinks "Throw Down" is a great film dug waaaaaay too fucking deep for a reason.