Running on Karma (2003)

Original title

大隻佬

Directed by

Johnnie To, Wai Ka-fai

Genre

action film, adventure film, martial arts film, thriller film

Country

Hong Kong

Runtime

1h 33m

Rated

NR

Rating

6.5 of 10 from 99 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A big, muscular former monk turned stripper has a supernatural ability to see people's karmic futures. He tries to change the fate of a female police officer he meets. The story becomes a Buddhist exploration of cause and effect.

intensebroodingphilosophicalmelancholicslow-burnaction-packedthought-provokingvisceral

What happens

Running on Karma (traditional Chinese: 大隻佬; simplified Chinese: 大只佬/大块头有大智慧; Literal Title: Big Guy/Big Guy Has Big Wisdom), also known as An Intelligent Muscle Man, is a 2003 Hong Kong action thriller film produced and directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-fai. The film is ultimately a Buddhist parable about the nature of karma. There were some cuts in the mainland China edition to meet the requirements for release there. This is the second film starring Andy Lau in which he wears a prosthetic suit. In his previous film, Love on a Diet, he wore a fat suit, while in this film, he wears a muscle suit. Principal photography began from March to July 2003, though filming was interrupted in April due to the SARS pandemic. Running on Karma was a critical and commercial success, grossing HK$26,339,848 at the Hong Kong box office, making it the third-highest-grossing film of the year in the territory, and received 13 nominations at the 23rd Hong Kong Film Awards, winning Best Film, Best Screenplay and Best Actor for Lau, who wins the award for the second time after being awarded for his performance in Running Out of Time in 2000. In addition, Lau's performance in the film also won him the Hong Kong Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor and the Chinese Film Media Awards for Best Actor of the Hong Kong/Taiwan region. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

More like this

• Star Runner (2003)
• Anna in Kungfuland (2003)
• Heroic Duo (2003)
• Infernal Affairs III (2003)
• Drunken Monkey (2003)
• Looking for Mister Perfect (2003)
• Night Corridor (2003)
• Warriors of Heaven and Earth (2003)