It’s not that this film is bad; it’s just that it’s used. We’ve seen this. And we’ve seen it better. With better actors in the exact same roles. And with this remake, writer/director Herman Yau has done the near impossible; he’s made wish Kevin Spacey were still a thing. None of this makes me happy. None of it.
The film is “Crisis Negotiators,” like it’s some sort of trade school or something, but it’s really about just two negotiators, both seasoned professionals, and both on the outs with the PoPo, because that’s what happens when you’re a professional cop too long, I suppose.
Crisis Negotiators begins with a set of scenes meant to whet our appetite for the negotiation game. The first is a no-win situation when an imbalanced couple holds menial welfare workers hostage at knifepoint in order to get their state-relocated child back. This might make a compelling story in its own right … and I wonder what mainland Chinese government would make of this couple. Three years later, our hero, Cheuk Man Wai (Ching Wan Lau) -now head police negotiator- proves himself a badass in talking down a grenade-wielding bank robber while assuming the triggered grenade in the process.
Well, you know how it is — one day, you’re a hero for risking your life to save $75 worth of
deposits, the next you’re framed for murder by your co-workers. Ain’t that always the case?
At this point, Crisis Negotiators becomes so much like The Negotiator that I was anticipating plot points. Mind you, I haven’t seen The Negotiator in 26 years and don’t remember it all that well. And yet, this remained true all the same. The Kevin Spacey character (the “clean” negotiator artificially added to Cheuk’s hostage situation) is Tse Ka Chun (Francis Ng) and although not a word of English was spoken in the film, I still knew exactly what he was going to say and when he was going to say it.
This is very simple, actually. Crisis Negotiators isn’t a bad film; it’s just a used film … and not quite as good as the F. Gary Gray original. If you’ve seen The Negotiator, don’t bother. If you haven’t and, well, have a thing for subtitles, speak Cantonese, or still loathe Kevin Spacey on principle and want to see a decent police procedural, find this one. If the latter is true, and none of the rest applies, however, find the original; it’s hard to dislike Samuel L. Jackson, especially in a decent film.
There was once a negotiator named Cheuk
Who found himself down on his luck
For his justified fame
Was replaced with blame
And, now criminal, he cries “WHAT THE F***?”
Not Rated, 120 Minutes
Director: Herman Yau
Writer: Herman Yau, James DeMonaco, Kevin Fox
Genre: “Seen it”
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: People who haven’t seen The Negotiator
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: People who have
