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Donnie Yen is The Prosecutor, and also the director of this film he stars in. As a disillusioned cop turned lawyer, he aims to bring Justice to where it is needed, and inject more action into a genre that some fans rarely associate him with.
Courtroom dramas aren’t all that tough to sit through. While they may seem dull due to simply listening to lawyers attempting to convince the jury on why the accused is guilty, there may be more action going on behind the scenes. In entertainment, someone is chasing down someone else who will change the verdict. Or, in this film’s case, to unearth a conspiracy that’s corrupted the system! With this trope, some aspects of the tale are predictable and others not.
Here, Fok Chi-ho (Yen) was once a cop who thought his team got the upper hand. But when the ringleader gets off scot-free because of some discrepancy, this officer decides it’s time to quit and dedicate his time to learn how the judicial system operates. I’m just glad he’s kept up with his martial arts training, too.
Seven years later, his career change is swift, and although he hasn’t fully earned his bar, his first case involves figuring out if Ma Ka-kit (Mason Fung) is innocent. He was living in a sublet apartment when the drugs arrived and the bust happened quite fast. In court, prosecutors are pushing for a fast trial. Although Fok is not suspicious right away, the course of events unfolding gets him curious.
When people involved in this case are still getting hurt, he’s suspicious and what he uncovers is deeper than any episode of Perry Mason I’ve ever seen! This classic series is my benchmark and so fans of Yen don’t get disappointed, instead of simple gumshoe noir moments, it’s mixed in with some great martial arts fights. They aren’t as high octane as in previous films, but I like the challenges when this barrister finds that there are criminals who know how to exploit the system!
What’s presented is almost like Jackie Chan’s Police Story. While the stunts aren’t as sophisticated and the story matters more here, to balance between the two styles is delicate. Also, Danny must love playing police officers, and ever since Enter the Fat Dragon (movie review), I feel I must see everything he’s set to appear in. When compared to his directorial work in Sakra (movie review), this one has more gravitas invested into what’s going on.
When no one is sure if Ma is a scapegoat or not, there’s a subtle hint to show which side he represents. And Fung is quite good at the role. Some viewers may know of his work in the Chinese film, Zero to Hero and on television, he has a recurring role in Hello Missfortune. The latter is an interesting tale about life, death and second chances.
Although this film is really about The Prosecutor and criticising what’s wrong with the judicial system, this underlying theme is thankfully not too heavy-handed. There’s some great payoff in the end, and I just like following Yen as a crime buster. When that’s what he does well, I hope screenwriters can come up with new ways to show off his martial arts prowess than to regurgitate ideas from Law & Order.
4 Stars out of 5
The Prosecutor Movie Trailer
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