Directors: Albert Leung, Herbert Leung
Writers: Anastasia Tsang, Oliver Yip
Stars: Terrance Lau, Stephen Tung, Cecilia Choi
Synopsis: A washed-up stunt director is struggling to find his way in a changing industry. He risks everything to stage a comeback, while also attempting to repair the relationship with his estranged daughter.
One of the best and best-kept Fantasia International Film Festival secrets are 35mm trailers of various classic Hong Kong movies played in front of the premiere of either a new release, or a restoration from the region. In front of Dickson Leung’s Good Game, audiences were treated to a 35mm trailer of Chang Cheh’s Chinatown Kid. Better yet, in front of the 4K restoration of John Woo’s Bullet in the Head, audiences were over the moon about the 35mm trailer for one of the greatest movies ever made (though I’ll make the case that it may be the greatest movie ever made): Hard Boiled.
The Hard Boiled trailer definitely primes you for the poetic succession of gun-fu violence Woo brings to the table in his bleak Bullet in the Head, where each bullet case reads like a tear being shed. However, for premieres of new Hong Kong releases, it usually sets unrealistic expectations that the film we’re about to see is in the same vein of action artistry as the 35mm trailer that preceded it. For Albert Leung and Herbert Leung’s Stuntman, we had the privilege of seeing a rare 35mm trailer for Tsui Hark’s Aces Go Places 3, which made me believe that Albert & Herbert Leung would set their tribute to the Golden Age of Hong Kong cinema (which Hark was definitely a foundational member of) in that same trajectory.
In its opening scene, the directorial duo pay tribute to Jackie Chan’s Police Story, which definitely sets the stage for a celebration of all things Hong Kong cinema. The stunt choreography harkens back to the Golden Harvest days, and the action scene undoubtedly lives up to that. However, we quickly realize that this scene is part of an action film being shot, with the relentless stunt coordinator Sam Lee (Lam Yiu-Sing) pushing his crew to the limit. His methods predictably results in the injury of one of its actors and tarnishes the reputation of a man known as “Heartless Sam,” who would repeat a stunt way beyond what the actor or stunt performer could do, until it was perfect in his eyes, but would be risky for everyone involved.
We cut to many years later, where Sam (now played by Stephen Tung) has left his past life behind and tries to rebuild a broken relationship with his daughter Cherry (Cecilia Choi), who is about to get married. As this occurs, he receives a call from his old friend Cho (To Yin-Gor), about the possibility of working on a movie again, after the initial stunt coordination and action design isn’t up to their standards. Sam reluctantly accepts, while taking aspiring stunt coordinator Lee Sai Long (Terrance Lau) under his wing, so he can have tangible experience of what it’s like to be working on the set of a high-octane action movie.
Quickly, tension begins to rise on set, and Sam is back to his old ways of being the heartless action choreographer he is known for. He clashes with not only Long and Cho, but stunt performer Wai (played by Philip Ng, who portrayed the main villain in Soi Cheang’s masterpiece Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In, the best Hong Kong movie of the decade so far), who disagrees with his methods and thinks the set should foster a safe, conflict-free environment for everyone. As the movie progresses, we get to see what kind of person Sam truly is, and it eventually leads to a conclusion that’s in the more heartfelt than exciting territory.
Those who are expecting a flurry of well-choreographed martial arts action sequences will be disappointed, although Albert and Herbert Leung definitely understand that they shouldn’t waste Philip Ng’s talents in a movie about action movies if there are no action scenes featuring him. Whenever he’s on screen, the film works more than it should, because his natural charisma (and martial arts talent) is unmatched. The camera moves swiftly, and Ng is in perfect control of the frame. We even get to see just how far Sam is willing to go for the “perfect action scene,” as he clandestinely stages a jewelry heist without a permit, which leads to a succession of unintentional disasters as bystanders believe an actual robbery is happening.
After this bravura sequence, however, Stuntman is relatively light on action and wants to give Sam a quasi-redemption arc. Does he deserve it? Some may debate on whether or not he has sufficiently atoned for his sins, either leaving his daughter behind when she needed him the most or attempting to “pay back” his friendship with a stunt performer who has been paralyzed for life because of his orders. It’s a profoundly sad film that slowly unpacks itself to more devastating territories as Sam reckons with what’s most important: the success of a film or the success of his life?
Through it all lies a profoundly moving lead turn from Tung, a veteran of Hong Kong cinema who not only approaches his portrayal of the character as a means for Sam to reflect on his life, but also as a way for Tung to look back on his illustrious career through the façade he wears as Sam. It leads to a relatively effective tearjerking conclusion that sadly gets hampered by one of the most ridiculous dramatic turns I’ve seen in a Hong Kong movie in a long time.
And it didn’t work. Don’t take my word for it: you should’ve been there when the (sold-out) Fantasia audience erupted in unintentional laughter as they saw what Albert and Herbert Leung had in store for them during its coda. That said, the ending shot does allow the character to strive for a better life after the movie wraps production, but let’s just say its execution was extremely poor and did not at all give the intended effect the filmmakers wanted.
Its action choreographies (or story) also don’t hold a candle to Tsui Hark’s Aces Go Places 3, or his entire filmography for that matter. Sometimes, I’d much rather see the movie they’re playing a trailer for than whatever screens next. But that’s Fantasia for you – a festival where, when you walk into a movie, you never know what you’ll expect. Your expectations may be shattered, in a good or bad way, or exceeded so high because you’ve discovered the next great thing. For Stuntman, it won’t be the next Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (which played at last year’s Fantasia), but it’s certainly a better step for Hong Kong cinema than most of the forgettable actioners they’ve been effectively churning out for some time.
But this feels like a Happy Meal before we’ll eventually be served the prime rib, which will be Soi Chang’s grand return to the festival whenever Twilight of the Warriors: Dragon Throne finishes production. Now that’s going to be a (potential) Fantasia screening we’re bound not to forget.
