Big Brother

Director- Kam Ka Wai

Cast- Donnie Yen, Joe Chen, Jack Lok

Country of Origin- China
 

Distributor - Well Go USA

Number of discs –  1

Reviewed by - Tyler Miller

Date- 06/13/2019

Henry Chen (Donnie Yen) is a soldier with a mysterious past,who returns to his hometown to start a new life as a teacher. The High School he choses is in crisis. All the students are failing their courses and soon the funding for the school are going to be pulled. If he doesn’t figure out something fast the school will be shut down. Henry brings new and unconventional methods to the classroom but soon discovers that will not be enough. He decides to start to fix the home lives of his students and improve everyone’s well being.

I’ll start off by saying that BIG BROTHER (2018) is a drama aimed at teenagers with very little action. Ads and the Blu-ray box art showcase this film as a action film, but it’s more of a comic drama with a few elements of social commentary. Before starting the film I was worried that the film would be stiff and preachy. Instead the finished film is uneven but enjoyable.

BIG BROTHER belongs to the camp of action stars making a family movies, like Arnold Schwarzenegger’s KINDERGARTEN COP (1990). It’s silly and light hearted with some moments of serious drama. The film was produced by Wong Jing (GOD OF GAMBLERS), and like some of his action pictures, balances the slapstick and kung fu.

The only real issue is episodic nature of the plot, where every student introduces a problem and then Donnie Yen solves it. This leads to some wacky scenes involving a sing a long canto pop song, and a go kart race. But it falls flat when we see a abusive father suddenly accept rehab. The worst handled situation is the teen suicide attempt after overdosing on blackmarket ritalin. The melodrama is pushed to the limits and it completely stops the flow of the story.

Since this is a Donnie Yen film, martial arts fans won’t be disappointed in the two big fight scenes. The first taking place in a MMA locker room with plenty of stunts and loud body slams. The second is a intense match that ends in a brutal knife fight. Both are tacked on to the story, but are well-choreographed and exciting. Donnie Yen manages to add speed and style to it.

Donnie’s acting is above average here as well. There is some nice emotional scenes with him including one with a student’s dying grandmother. The teaching scenes are unexpected with full of zany one-liners.

BIG BROTHER is a surprisingly enjoyable movie aimed at teens that is sure to please some Hong Kong Cinema fans.

The Blu-ray from Well Go USA includes the 5.1 DTS HDMA Cantonese sound mix that is free of hiss or pops. The sound effects are crisp and bold. The musical score gets overpowering in a few spots. English subtitles are included. The 1080p HD picture is beautiful with some nice color balance and sharp blacks. The focus is razor tight as well, but some of the CGI elements are a little fuzzy.

Extras are limited to a trailer gallery that features MASTER Z: IP MAN LEGACY, GOLDEN JOB, and TRIPLE TREAT.