The Touch (2002)

The Touch is a slightly above average Hong Kong adventure film starring Michelle Yeoh. It was the first film from her production company and was directed by Peter Pau, the cinematographer from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2002).

I'll start with the bad so that I can end on a positive note. The pacing was off and the editing was choppy at times. Some of the young actors weren't very believable, especially the actor playing Michelle's younger brother. The CGI was bad, early video games bad, and in one particular scene no one seemed to be following the normal laws of gravity and physics. The conflict also ended too early.

Now, onto the good, or at least the better. Michelle Yeoh played a splendid acrobatic Indiana Jones, capable of dispatching evil doers with her fists, kicks, and seemingly magic scarf. The fight choreography wasn't the strongest, but she managed to bring the fight charisma regardless. The Big Bad, Richard Roxburgh (Moulin Rouge!), played the villain without going completely over the top, which had to be difficult given the dialogue. Ben Chaplin did an adequate job as Michelle's ne're do well ex-lover who brought her the key to the holy missing relic she was in charge of. Dane Cook who played the Big Bad's useless brother gave some comic relief, which did seem out of place in a movie that more often than not played it straight. I'm back to sounding ambivalent again.

The scenery and sets were top notch and the OST fit beautifully. Overall, the look and sound of the film were quite good. It's unfortunate that the well-trod story wasn't pulled together better with consistency, coherency, better fight sequences, and better dialogue.

If you go into this movie with low expectations, you may find a diverting film. For me, a movie with Michelle Yeoh is never a waste of time.

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