KILL ZONE 2 (Pou-Soi Cheang). Subtitled. 120 minutes. Opens Friday (May 13). See Listing. Rating: NNN
Kill Zone 2 is about half an hour too long, with a plot so convoluted it should come with a flow chart. But none of that matters, because once people start jumping across rooms to murder each other, it’s so much damn fun.
A sequel in name only (and barely even that) to Wilson Yip’s 2005 film SPL: Kill Zone, Kill Zone 2 stars Tony Jaa as Chatchai, a Thai prison guard with an adorable daughter (Unda Kunteera Yhordchanng) who’s dying of leukemia.
Her only chance of survival is a bone marrow transplant from Hong Kong cop Kit (Wu Jing), who’s gone so far undercover to bust a drug ring that he’s ended up a miserable junkie. Kit has actually landed in Chatchai’s prison after a botched hit, but because they don’t speak each other’s languages, neither man knows this.
The set-up takes forever – did I even mention the subplot about the Hong Kong organ donation ring Kit was trying to crack? – but you’ll forget all about it once director Soi Cheang starts rolling out the action sequences. They are frenetic, delirious and absolutely spectacular, showcasing the specific skill sets of both leads and finding new ways to make “guy with knife fights guy with two knives” interesting.
Honestly, I’d have sat through twice as much exposition to get there.
