Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon (Review)
China/2013
Format Viewed For Review: Blu-ray (Well Go USA)
Netflix Streaming: No
Amazon Prime: No
"I liked all of the action sequences..."
After
several warships are obliterated by a sea dragon, young detective Dee
(Mark Chao) arrives at the Imperial Capital to become an officer of the
law only to find traces of another sea monster haunting the city...
Young
Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon follows detective Dee, the
competitive detective Yuchi (Feng Shaofeng), and former prison doctor
turned Dee's assistant Shatuo (Lin Gengxin) as they set out to find the
sea monster who's oddly attracted to the courtesan, Yin (Angelababy).
Their investigation consists of interrogation, old friends and
resources, and quick wits. They're able to link both creatures -- the
sea monster of the city and the suspected beast that attacked the ships
-- to one mastermind criminal with sinister plans. Filled with slick and
stylish action sequences, the lengthy Young Detective Dee eventually
reaches a satisfying conclusion -- the mystery is solved, but it's never
really effective -- I've seen more surprising resolutions in episodes
of Law & Order and Scooby-Doo.
Young Detective Dee is a
mystery-action film. A great mystery makes you want to take a notepad
out and participate, a good mystery keeps you wondering and engaged but
not fully invested -- Young Detective Dee is the latter. I wanted to see
where it was going, but the mystery never really felt like a mystery.
The story is interesting enough, as is the mystery, though, and it has
plenty of action and some humor to keep you hooked. The action is very
fast -- fast movements and different styles of combat, like swordplay
and martial arts. And, I liked all of the action sequences, especially
the final action sequences. What I didn't like about Young Detective Dee
was the complicated introduction; also, the first act of the film feels
sloppy, it has a lack of consistency and flow; some of the odd and
cheesy editing choices also make it feel Direct-to-TV.
Mark Chao
is a capable actor, but lacks charisma for such a quick-witted
character. Feng Shaofeng is also great in his role. The cast was
generally great. The set and costume design were beautiful, but the
cinematography, which isn't half bad, didn't really let them shine. The
special effects range from fantastic to mediocre; up-close and when it's
blended with live-action sequences is when the computer effects look
bad; from afar, the special effects can match with some blockbusters.
Tsui Hark is great in capturing the action, but the film lacks effective
direction and vision during the first act.
Overall, Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon
is a very good action-mystery
film. The action is mostly fantastic and creative, and the mystery
offers enough to keep you interested -- it won't blow your mind or shock
you, but it'll keep you, at the very least, interested. It just falls
short of greatness, but it's worth watching.
Score: 7/10
Parental Guide: Some strong violence and blood.
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