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James Marsh

2/5 stars
Gwei Lun-mei plays a gangster’s moll whose chequered past catches up with her in the action quickie Weekend in Taipei, co-written and produced by Luc Besson.
Luke Evans and Sung Kang also star in the French filmmaker’s much touted return to the Taiwanese capital following his 2013 science fiction hit Lucy, starring Scarlett Johansson.
Joey (Gwei) is married to Kwang (Kang), a corrupt tycoon on trial for his dubious business practices. While she enjoys the affluent lifestyle her husband’s unscrupulous earnings afford her, she yearns to start afresh with Raymond (Wyatt Yang), her son from a previous relationship.


Her world is turned upside down by the arrival of John Lawlor (Evans), an American Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent and former flame. Officially in town on leave, Lawlor is looking to crack a high-profile drug-smuggling case in which Kwang is the prime suspect.
Everything comes to a head when Raymond is exposed as the informant in Kwang’s trial, and the gangster seeks violent retribution. This forces Joey and her son to go on the run, with Lawlor protecting them.
Directed by George Huang, best known for his incendiary Hollywood satire Swimming with Sharks (1994), Weekend in Taipei was originally conceived to take place in Hong Kong, before funding opportunities saw the project move.
Shot entirely on location in Taipei, the production takes in numerous locales in and around the city, but never manages to engage with its surroundings, content simply to tear around neighbourhoods in a series of high-speed chases.

Despite its generous offering of action, the film is repeatedly bogged down by unnecessary backstory and exposition.
Joey’s past as an accomplished grease monkey and getaway driver – of all things – is laid out in excruciating detail as we learn how she was recruited into Kwang’s gang before meeting and falling in love with Lawlor’s undercover agent.
Gwei is never anything less than a captivating on-screen presence, but her romance with Evans’ roguish cop is woefully devoid of sizzle. Kang seems unable to shake off his nice-guy persona from the Fast & Furious series enough to make Kwang a legitimately fearsome antagonist.
The results are eerily reminiscent of John Woo Yu-sum’s recent straight-to-streaming dud The Killer in terms of scale and style – or rather the lack thereof.

Whether because of budgetary constraints or simply a lack of creativity, Weekend in Taipei fails to whip up even a whiff of the visual flair or European panache that elevates so many of Besson’s productions.
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Sung Kang is tame as a tycoon fighting Evans’ drug cop to get at his estranged wife and her son, in a film that has action but lacks panache


Sung Kang is tame as a tycoon fighting Evans’ drug cop to get at his estranged wife and her son, in a film that has action but lacks panache.


American cinema

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An assessment or critique of a service, product or creative endeavour.  Film reviews, restaurant reviews, reviews of art exhibitions. (Eg. Crazy Rich Asians: an important film, yes, but a good one?)


Review

Review | Weekend in Taipei movie review: Luke Evans, Gwei Lun-mei in Luc Besson-produced action dud

Sung Kang is tame as a tycoon fighting Evans’ drug cop to get at his estranged wife and her son, in a film that has action but lacks panache