Punished (2011)
Director: Wing-cheong Law
Where to get it: Indomina Releasing
When a tycoon’s daughter is found dead after being rescued from abduction, he goes on a brutal manhunt to avenge his daughter’s murder. He stops at nothing to ensure that all are PUNISHED. Acclaimed filmmaker Johnnie To produces this action packed film that is also full of some interesting twists and turns.
I think it’s really interesting how this movie starts off by showing us that Wong Ho-chiu (the Tycoons) daughter is dead. So, in a way we know the story is going to be tragic what we don’t know is what leads to such a horrific event. The film then cleverly cuts in and out between past events and current events as we learn what lead up to this girl’s death and we learn in current time what and who was behind it. If you’ve seen some of the recent thrillers that have been rolling out of the Asian market, then you’ll know what to expect here. It’s thrilling stuff that makes you just become glued to your screen in a way and it also has a nice trick or two to shock you as you watch. This type of stuff just isn’t made everyday and that being so, you appreciate it more when you see it.
The acting here is very strong and you can feel for the characters, even when the characters aren’t the best people in the world. It’s almost a story of redemption in a way. People make bad choice and things happen due to those choices. Then you see these characters get a chance to do something redeeming and a lot of what comes from it depends on their actions. Even if at the end of the day the reward seems to just be inner peace. These movies are symbolic a lot of the time and here we have a good mix of that symbolic style along with some very good acting, a strong story, and generally intriguing material. So, if this sounds like a film you’d be interested in, I suggest you give it a shot. It’s a pretty darn good film overall.
(7.5/10)
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