Whoa there, Ringo! A little nihilism can go a long way.

Where its unrelated predecessor ("Prison on Fire," one of 1987's top grossing pictures) scrutinized the sociology of a Hong Kong correctional facility "School on Fire" dissects the microcosm of a secondary school where filial piety has eroded into a Darwinian survival of the fittest.

While hardly irrelevant "School on Fire" is so overwrought with morose brutality it leaves the viewer feeling sullen and exhausted.

The only thing more shocking than filmmaker Ringo Lam's breathlessly violent depiction of the education system is that the film was heavily edited by censors.

Roy Cheung co-stars as Big Brother Smart in what might be the most accurate portrayal of a triad in contemporary Hong Kong cinema.