Casino Raiders was, in my opinion, one of the most boring gambling movies ever produced. So, thankfully, Casino Raiders II is a sequel in name only. Even though there's not enough gambling and too much Andy Lau chessiness, it's still satisfying enough to warrant a recommendation.

Casino Raiders II stars Andy Lau as the unfortunately-named Chicken Feet, a gambler training under the great Uncle Fan (Lau Siu-Ming). The two, along with the feisty Lin (Wu Chien-Lin), run a small casino and things seem to be going well until a duo of villains (Kelvin Wong and Anthony Wong) show up to try and steal a piece of jade from Uncle Fan that supposedly holds the power of the God of Gamblers. After Chicken Feet's brother, Kit (Dave Wong) is released from prison, the group bands together to take out Kelvin's fortune during the world gambling championship.

For a movie with "casino" in the title, there's surprisingly little in the way of gambling here. The majority of the movie is dominated by drama, with a few short action scenes (helmed by the great Ching Siu-Tung) thrown in for good measure. But the film works for the most part. Director Johnnie To wisely keeps Andy Lau's lines to a minimum, and Anthony Wong (complete with a porn star mustache) is fabulous as Kelvin Wong's evil sidekick. The climatic gambling scene is also handled well, and uses a Crippled Avengers-esque gimmick to nice effect.

However, To doesn't seem to be able to keep a clear focus in this production. At times, it's a Wong Jing expolitation flick, such as one scene where Dave Wong lops off his hand. The scene fits the story, but it's done in such an over-the-top manner that it becomes almost laughable. At other points, To seems intent on creating a John Woo actioner, complete with slow-motion shots of birds. Perhaps not coincidentally, Casino Raiders II uses Horace Wong (who shot many of Woo's Hong Kong productions) as the cinematographer. Also, To seems a bit complacent, using the same style of slow-motion combined with an Andy Lau ballad for several scenes, which got to be a bit annoying after the second or third time it's used.

Overall, though, the problems don't derail the proceedings, and Casino Raiders II ends up being a solid gambling/action picture. Even though it's not as close to the level as some of the classics in the genre like God of Gamblers, it should still fit the bill for fans of Andy Lau and/or gambling films.

[review from www.hkfilm.net]