A real good moive! Though dont be fooled, if youre searching for a fast paced hong kong action flick, this it not the right movie. Understand me right, i got a weakspot for oldscool John Woo, like Hard Boiled (1992) and so on (who dont), but this is a quite emotional, slowpaced movie, still it got quite some action, and a lots of shooting, but even the gunfights are slowpaced (though REALLY good). I likied this movie a lot. Further on the dynamics between chinese/french people worked really good as well. Watch it! And a tip; i watched this movie knowing virtually nothing about the plot, it made the movie even better i felt. I got a feeling the director wanted you to find out more and more about the characters as the movie went along, and not knowing the plot beforehand really improved this feel!

If you make a bad spoof of a bad spoof action movie, this would be it.The ridiculously high ratings given even by so-called 'professional' institutional reviewers makes you wonder how much gad zillions of palmed-off cash was paid off to give such a sell-off rating.Everything about it so contrived right down to the really cartoonish acting by Johnny Hallyday and his dark glasses, black coat, upturned collar, hat cocked hat over the brows … so bad it's not even funny. The plot makes no sense, the dialogue is whatchama get out of a 3 year old. The acting is so so bad … much worse than even a school play. The two kids hiding in the close with their hands over the mouths … just about the best acting you can find in this jaw- droppingly bad movie!I wouldn't blink an eye if 'Get Smart' or the 'Pink Panther' suddenly appear and do a tacky caricatured karate chop and high kick. Adding parody to nonsense is still pointless nonsense.Thank god Alain Delon has the simple good sense to run away from this nonsense after reading the script. Johnnie To? Will not bother with any of his other rubbish. It's Johnnie goodnight.

Johnnie To's artistic style is beautifully displayed and brought to life in "Vengeance", from stand-offs, to shootouts with a myriad of automatic weapons and handguns-the bullet shells never stop hitting the ground. This stylish, revenge melodrama is one of Johnnie To's best, and is also his first English language film. The third part of an informal trilogy, with "The Mission" and "Exiled" being the previous installments sharing a number of noted cast members (Anthony Wong, Simon Yam, Lam Suet) and locations. The films are primarily connected by themes involving brotherhood and loyalty; fatalism; and group dynamics. All three films also feature artistic, elaborate, over-the-top action sequences. In "Vengeance" an aging and retired French gangster, Costello (Johnny Hallyday), now working as a chef, travels to Hong Kong when his daughter, son in law, and two grandchildren are gunned down in a seemingly professional hit. Though badly injured, his daughter survives and begs her father to take vengeance upon the perpetrators. And so he sets out to do just that, even though he has no idea where to start in this unfamiliar country. Rather conveniently, he happens upon three professional hit men (led by the legendary Anthony Wong) who've just bumped off the unfaithful mistress of their boss. Tentatively, he approaches them and tells them of his needs. Hesitantly, and with little verbal communication, they take Costello up on his offer, which includes payment of cash and his restaurant in Paris. Once hired, he takes individual Polaroid photographs of each hit man and writes their names on each photo. Costello does this throughout his encounters, due to the fact that there is a bullet from days gone by lodged near his brain and causing the Frenchman rapid memory loss. He needs these photos so he knows his friends from his enemies and to never forget his daughter's tragedy. The film's plot serves the fabled Hong Kong director Johnnie To as an excuse to create arresting visual action set pieces with stunning results. Scenes like Costello wandering through the rain in confusion, trying to spot his targets by reminding himself with the Polaroids, look absolutely magnificent. Some of the major action set- pieces, especially one involving Anthony Wong, are positively stunning. But through all the gloom and doom, humor is not forgotten in "Vengeance", with some occasional tongue-in-cheek dialogue delivered completely deadpan by Yam and Wong in particular. Then there are other sequences, such as a shootout that takes place at a picnic area in the woods, where two groups of killers wait for a family picnic to finish. And as night to falls, the families depart and the shoot out begins.The cinematography is visually-striking, and plenty of style to spare. An exquisite, artistic blood bath.

if you ignore all the deaths.Awesome movie. I went into this movie not knowing anything. Grabs you right away.If you don't speak the language, get the dubbed version so you can better enjoy the cinematography (sacrilege to some but I thought I was going to be watching subtitled, but once it got going I decided this was better for an action film).I really enjoyed the interactions with these characters. I mean I really enjoyed these actors.I won't bore you with recaps of the movie because there are plenty here. As a side note this is supposedly part of a trilogy/pseudo trilogy including "The Mission" and "Exiled" but this is my only experience so far. I hope they are just as good...now where to find them? Forget Kill Bill....Enjoy this one!!!