Let the Bullets Fly (2010)

Chow Yun-Fat stars in this violent action-comedy set in China’s warring 1920s about a bandit who arrives at a remote town posing as its new mayor. A huge box office success in China.

“Machiavellian mind games, a twisted vendetta and high-octane gun slinging among a bandit posing as a governor, his strategist, and a small-town kingpin are the stuff of adventure and trenchant humor in Let the Bullets Fly. As an allegory on power, corruption and rough justice, it has flashes of intelligence and political acumen. Actor- auteur Jiang Wen directs with a macho, devil-may-care bravado that expresses the anarchy and rapacious opportunism of warlord-dominated China in the 1920s. Although the promotional hook is the rare cast combination of Chow Yun Fat, Ge You and Jiang himself, its instant rise to the summit of China’s box office may be attributed more to the racy storytelling and current Chinese fascination with Wild West crime capers… Although strategic wars are not novel to China’s period blockbusters, few achieve this film’s level of sophistication in nuanced dialogue, plot twists and bravura acting.” (Source: NZ International Film Festival 2011)