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T is a hit man whose lust for the job has all but disappeared.
Over the years his life has become more complicated. He plays
postal chess with the head of the police force and is unrequitedly
in love with a bar girl, who is his friend's sister. He is
employed to track down and kill all those involved in the
kidnapping of a businessman's son. Each death brings him closer
to the truth, but it is a truth he will not want...
One
last Dance (2005) was written and directed by Max Makowski,
who is currently working on a remake of Kung Fu. The
film was nominated for an award for Max at Sundance and won
the award for best cinematography at the 2006 Newport Beach
Film Festival.
Although
the cover proudly states that Harvey Keitel appears in the
film, in truth, he turns up as a cameo, says his lines with
relative disinterest and then buggers off to collect his pay.
The real star of the show is Francis Ng who plays T. His central
performance is the main reason for seeing the film.
The
film attempts to be ironic, funny and experimental and in
parts this works. The layered shots and the inserted comic
book blood are reminiscent of Tarantino's work. Obviously
T's character, and the sheer amount of violence, pay homage
to the great Asian gangster films. Where the film fails is
in its attempt to put too many nods to differing genres in
the same film. Just as you're getting into the magnificently
brooding world of T the film jumps to his gangster friend
Ko (Joseph Quek) who seems to be playing his character just
for laughs. The comparison makes you feel like you're watching
two different films.
One
Last Dance contains a number of sequences which play with
the format, most notably a sequence involving Ko in a bar
which is shown just as a sequence of Polaroid's being dealt
onto a table. There is also a lot of layering the end of one
scene onto the beginning of the next. While engaging at first,
its overuse soon gets tiring. Having said that, the film's
strengths generally outweigh its weaknesses and the film is
worth watching for Francis Ng's portrayal of T.
The
film comes in a nice 1.78:1 anamorphic print with the options
of stereo, 5.1 or DTS soundtrack, the only extra is the original
trailer.
In
the end Max has made a film that whilst worth watching could
have been so much more if he had just toned down some of the
nods to other films and just let Francis Ng do what he does
best.
Charles
Packer
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