The Legend of Speed

Despite the cheesiness of story and the formulaic Rocky plot, this commercial actioner from Andrew Lau and alter ego Ekin Cheng is an enjoyable, entertaining ride. Cheng is Sky, a spoiled brat who races cars illegally on HK’s city streets. He receives his comeuppance when his girlfriend Moon (Kelly Lin) dies during an important race with the top underground racer (Simon Yam).

When he’s framed for various crimes, Sky flees to Thailand and searches for his dad (Blackie Ko), a legendary racer who disappeared when Sky was just a youngster. Once in Thailand, Sky learns hackneyed life lessons and Karate Kid metaphors which allow him redemption and passage back to HK just in time to win the big race.

If only life were as simple as a BOB production. This is a tried-and-true formula that’s been done to death in Lau and Cheng’s previous Young and Dangerous movies. Nothing new here, just enjoyable commercial fluff which should be enough to please most of the fans. This is a welcome return for Andrew Lau, who brings back some of the stylish verve that he couldn’t use in such earnest epics as A Man Called Hero.

Furthermore, the presence of blazing new star Cecilia Cheung as Sky’s biggest admirer can only help things. With her rough voice and appealing innocence, she brings a freshness to the movie that Lau’s usual starlets Shu Qi and Kristy Yeung would be hard-pressed to match.

That said, Lau reuses some of his more familiar faces, such as Jerry Lamb and the aforementioned Blackie Ko. This movie is basically Young and Dangerous on wheels, which isn’t such a bad thing when you consider Ekin Cheng’s limited dramatic range. As commercial HK Cinema goes, this is a better-than-average effort.