A group of thieves pull off the perfect robbery, but recovering all the money won’t be so easy.
The 2024 edition of the New York Asian Festival It will take place from July 12 to 28. Follow our coverage here.
Heist movies come in all shapes and sizes, from serious to comedic, from casual to action-oriented, but the common denominator among them is this: they focus on the elaborate ways and plans by which the thieves steal whatever it is they’re after. You know, like a heist. Director Leon Wang He took that truth as a challenge for his second feature, a wildly energetic and silly action comedy called Breaking and entering and re-entryand the result might be the closest thing you’ll find to a Steven Soderbergh. From the ocean A movie that is not actually by Steven Soderbergh From the ocean movie.
Chang Bo Chun (Chen Bolin) leads his small four-man team of thieves through an elaborate and successful heist in which they get millions in cash and promptly head home. The end. Except it isn’t, because they immediately discover that the man who hired them has set them up. It turns out that Chen Hai-jui (Wu Kang-ren) is actually the man at the top of the bank they just robbed, and not only does he plan on keeping all the money for himself, he’s going to have all four men killed. Worse yet? He’s going to blame it all on an employee named Shen Shu-wen (Cecilia Choi), who happens to be an old flame of Chang’s, whom he still loves. The only thing left to do now is to get back into the bank, return all the money, and somehow avoid the banker’s wrath. Piece of cake, right?
The beauty of a reverse heist movie is that expectations go out the window. We’ve already seen an elaborate heist and turning it around requires a whole new plan with its own risks, pitfalls and dangers. Wang knows Breaking and entering and re-entry It has to do double duty here, and it’s more than up to the task. It’s a fun, energetic film with charismatic characters and plenty of laughs, but it’s also light and silly as hell. That last part isn’t a negative, though, as the silliness rarely gets in the way of the film’s numerous strengths.
Heist movies are often anchored by an ensemble cast, and Wang’s feature continues that trend with a fun group, each with their own distinctive skills and personalities. Chang is the leader, the selfless thief who took the fall for his crew earlier and spent five years behind bars as a result. Kent Tsai is Kao, the easily excitable computer nerd, and Frederick Lee plays the team’s master of disguise, Uncle Bin. Both actors are clearly having a good time, and to demonstrate how absurd the film is, Kao even says at one point that people keep confusing him with Kent Tsai. JC Lin The film’s protagonist is Wen-hao, a strong fighter and knife enthusiast who is always ready to stab someone. The most prominent protagonist, however, at least as far as laughs are concerned, is Wu’s villain. He’s a no-nonsense guy, a successful Taiwanese man educated in the United States, who lives off his father’s money and considers himself superior to everyone around him, but he’s not as smart as he thinks he is.
The romance between Chang and Shen is arguably a little lackluster, as their reunion quickly leads to them getting back together. At first, she is upset that he left her behind five years ago, but she has a very bad memory. Simplicity and superficiality are common in Breaking and entering and re-entryBut while this prevents the film from gaining any real emotional weight, it is basically on par with other films of this type, as the focus is on quick thrills and funny moments. That said, Wen-hao does have a certain affection for Chang who, while never explicitly mentioned as gay, is presented with enough warmth and humor to amount to a welcome sweetness.
Wang keeps the film’s pace moving (another reason the movie stays so light, as there’s little time for anything deeper or heavier), and, like the Soderbergh heist movies that inspired him, fills the ending with rewinds, flashbacks, flash-forwards, and more. It can get a little dizzying if you’re not paying attention, and it also gets increasingly ridiculous. Breaking and entering and re-entry This isn’t a movie meant to give thieves ideas, as the ideas presented here are all nonsensical. It wouldn’t work in a serious thriller, but the visual gags and narrative nonsense help deliver a ridiculously entertaining (in reverse) heist movie.
The 2024 edition of the New York Asian Festival It will take place from July 12 to 28. Follow our coverage here.
Related topics: Heist, New York Film Festival
