HARD REDEMPTION
Directed by: Jino Kang and Chrstine Lam
Starring: Jino Kang, Lou Ferrigno, Jessie Pettit, David Kurzhal
James Park starts as a teacher at a local high school, teaching a GED class. However, one of his students, Bryan, is being targeted by his old gang, after he decided to leave. This is something that James can sympathize with as he had a similar experience in his youth. Now the school is under siege from the gang, and only James and security guard Rico stand in their way…
Jino Kang’s third feature film contains some very strong fight choreography and low key stunt-work, and while it shows a film-maker who is always honing his craft, it's the best showcase for his fighting skills to date.
We are definitely in “Die Hard, in a…” territory here, as the streetgang lays siege to the school (its the holiday period so there are minimal students and staff). Luckily, as a consequence of so many school shootings in America, the school is fitted out with a decent security system which locks the classrooms in the case of an emergency and the rooms themselves have bullet proof doors and windows, so it's not plain sailing for the gang members when they sneak into the building. Eventually they do, though, and start their search for Bryan. At first, James believes there is a lone shooter on the premises but soon comes to realise that there is a much bigger threat.
As with Jino Kang’s other films, the script injects pathos and emotional drama into the story. There are ethical and moral dilemmas for characters to deal with. Should Bryan’s classmates try to protect him, or give him up in order to save themselves? Similarly, should the receptionist allow the gang in, in order to save one of the other staff members? These concepts are given just enough weight to make you wonder how you would react in such circumstances.
Jino Kang himself is a highly skilled martial artist and instructor, having gained black belts in several disciplines. However he doesn’t portray James as invincible. In fact, during his first fight - with a guy wielding a stun stick - you wonder if he’s up to the task ahead, as he gets stunned several times before he’s able to gain the upper hand. He gets knocked down a lot, takes a lot of hits, while dealing with gang members who have a variety of weapons from a stun stick, throwing stars, brass knuckles, samurai swords, daggers and chain whips. And it visibly takes its toll.
It is interesting to see Lou Ferrigno in this, playing Rico one of the school’s security guards. He does get a couple of fight scenes, showcasing his character’s background in boxing, but unfortunately disappears around the half-way point in the film.
The script, which had several contributors, has a number of high and low points. On the plus side, the dialogue between the gang members works really well, showing the internal politics and rivalries inside the gang. There is an attempt at a “Dangerous Minds” concept with the classmates and their reasons for taking the GED class. However some of the other parts don’t work as well and feel too rote. Jino’s first film, Fist 2 Fist, dealt with the concept of finding redemption after leaving the gang life behind. Here he takes a slightly different approach, sympathising with Bryan’s situation as it mirror’s James’ own past.
The main issue with the film is that, at times, there seems to be a lack of urgency to the characters. For example, James doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to check up on his students once he realises what’s going on. Everyone kind of just meanders around the school until they encounter someone to fight.
However, the fight scenes themselves are of a good standard, with Bryan himself proving to be a decent fighter to help James. Jino injects a mix of martial arts to the choreography so we have a solid range of kicks and BJJ takedowns amidst the punches and blocks. It all leads to a really good two-on-one fight as James takes on a woman wielding two daggers and a guy with a chain whip, before taking on the head of the gang, Solomon, for the finale.