Rating: C+
Dir: Li Ya Dong
Star: Liu Di, Gao Wei Man, Ma Cheng Long, Jiang Lin Yan
Info on this one beyond the basic actors is limited. Even Douban, typically my go-to for information when I have the original title (打怪 in this case, which translates as Fighting Monsters), had the ‘Cast’ section completely blank. Not that there’s much here which will make you keen to look for other performances from the ensemble. It’s mostly running and screaming, though this isn’t a particular criticism. It begins in an oil-field, where drilling unleashes a monstrous creature, which itself feeds on oil. The project is rapidly abandoned, and the area becomes a ghost town, until sketchy businessman Qian shows up with his crew, intent on covertly mining for jade. Guess how this works out for them?
Project foreman Zhao Liang (Liu, I imagine) would be the main character, though why he has brought his little son along with him is unclear. Maybe it was “Put Your Son In Severe Danger Day” or something. There are a few other characters, most notably a passing balloonist (I feel fairly confident this is Gao, since it’s the only significant female role). She literally falls onto Zhao as he is trying to leave in his pickup. This aborted departure attempt is just one of a number of points where it feels like Tremors was a significant influence on proceedings. It’s nothing particularly blatant. More that a number of story beats and scenes e.g. monster vs. construction equipment (top) will seem familiar.
Indeed, the way it moves underneath the ground, sending ripples across the surface is very graboid-esque. Though the creature itself is not especially worm-like. The first thing encountered by the jade mining party is a giant snake: the effects here are startlingly terrible, and I was worried it was going to set a trend. However, I suspect it was more that they spent the entire budget on the main creature, which is quite respectable (though typically blurred by clouds of dust), and consequently had to outsource the snake to… wherever Chinese companies outsource to. Nepal? They certainly get their money’s worth on the big guy. It looks like it has been offed about two-thirds through, under a shower of boiling tar. Don’t head for the exit so fast.
For the final reel showcases an even bigger guy, and it’s pretty damn cool – to the point you wish it had turned up an hour earlier, and saved us from all the irritating kid and father nonsense – Zhao is certainly no Earl Bassett. The previous monster was a match for a bulldozer. This one feels like it might have the size advantage against a Jumbo Jet: for once, the poster might actually be understated, and you get a lot of wide shots to appreciate its scale. Speaking of evolution, Zhao finally develops a spine, and some balls to go with it. This leads to a moment of heroic sacrifice, which is then utterly undermined by a mid-credit sequence. If any film is the poster child for “two steps forward, two steps back,” this is it.
This review is part of our feature, When Chinese Animals Attack.