The Prosecutor (误判) – Review

He has single-handedly fought 10 Japanese black belts as Ip Man, proved that one doesn’t need a lightsaber to defeat Stormtroopers in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and even gave professional hitman John Wick a run for his money in the fourth instalment of the franchise. But how would Hong Kong action star Donnie Yen fare in a courtroom battle, where he uses words like weapons instead of throwing punches?

Following martial arts wuxia film Sakra (2023), the 61-year-old is back in the director’s seat with legal thriller, The Prosecutor (误判), where he also plays the protagonist. It doesn’t stop there as the action star is also the producer, so you can imagine how invested he is to make this movie a success.

Based on a real-life legal case in Hong Kong, Yen plays Fok Chi Ho, a righteous and tenacious policeman-turned-prosecutor. When we first see Fok, he is engaged in a police mission and going all out to gun down a group of bad guys. It is a gripping opening sequence that is presented in a first-shooter game style but when a technicality in the legal system allows the criminal to walk free, Fok decides to leave the force and joins the Department of Justice as a prosecutor. The man is on a mission to mend the system’s flaws, and Yen has all the right vibes to play this virtuous character.

Thanks to a quick montage, audiences are told that Fok spent the next seven years studying law, and presto, he is handed his first case where a young man confesses to drug charges despite his innocence. True to Fok’s sharp sense of judgement and intuition, there is something shady behind the case.

Needless to say, with determination driven by justice, Fok gives it his all to uncover the truth – and this isn’t limited to sparring and exchanging verbal blows in the courtroom, which Yen does aptly by delivering his lines with precision.

But fret not because this is a Donnie Yen movie after all, and fans are not going to walk out of the theatre without seeing the man behind some of the most iconic fight scenes in cinematic history kick some more ass. Almost too conveniently, the story allows Fok to come face to face with different groups of antagonists.

The superbly choreographed action sequences are a delight to watch, especially for fans of the genre. One scene taking place in a multi-storey carpark sees Fok trying to protect an old man from a bad guy’s speeding vehicle and audiences will hold their breath as he jumps from one carpark floor to another with ease. In another scene, Fok channels the essence of Ip Man to take down more than 10 thugs single handedly on a nightclub’s rooftop. And there will be chuckles when audiences hear a fellow prosecutor (Kent Cheng, who also appeared in the in Ip Man movies) call for police backup and gasp, “He is beating up a hundred people!”

Fans of action flicks would also be pleased that the Yen has also chosen not to sanitise the violence, as the intense climatic sequence sees Fok beating up criminals with powerful punches and kicks on a moving train. To make things bloodier, there is also liberal use of weapons including guns, hammers, knives and glass shards, just to make viewers wince in pain.

Fans of Hong Kong cinema will also appreciate the little cameos, as playing supporting characters are seasoned Hong Kong veterans including Michael Hui as a no-nonsense judge, Francis Ng as Fok’s unsentimental superior, Julian Cheung as a crooked legal executive, as well as Ray Lui and Mark Cheng as triad bosses.

So while the entertaining movie may gloss over Hong Kong’s legal system with its simplistic narrative, or even appear as a vehicle for Yen to showcase his on-screen agility, we are happy to go along for the ride, simply to see the international star take care of business and show the bad guys who’s boss.

John Li

John believes there is another world waiting for us. A better world with Blu-ray discs, CDs, fast food, beer and Happy Meal toys. And he will be waiting for you there.