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MOVIES / ON DVD / PTU: POLICE TACTICAL UNIT
PTU: Police Tactical Unit

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PTU: Police Tactical Unit (2006)

54%
80%
57%
N/A
N/A
N/A
54 %
Reviews Counted: 13 Fresh: 7  Rotten:6 Average Rating: 5.8/10

How does the Tomatometer work?

The Tomatometer measures the percentage of positive reviews from Approved Tomatometer Critics for a certain movie.[-]

Rated: 15

Runtime: 88 mins

Theatrical Release: 22-06-2007

Synopsis: Johnny To (FULLTIME KILLER) directs this Hong Kong action film noir that takes place one dangerous night on the streets where the police tactical unit (PTU) are assigned to patrol. With shadowy alleyways, dingy restaurants, and seedy video game arcades setting the scene for the constantly... Johnny To (FULLTIME KILLER) directs this Hong Kong action film noir that takes place one dangerous night on the streets where the police tactical unit (PTU) are assigned to patrol. With shadowy alleyways, dingy restaurants, and seedy video game arcades setting the scene for the constantly violent action, PTU is a street war between police and underground thugs. Sergeant Lo (Lam Suet) cruises on his own, while groups of other police officers scan the streets, beating and brutalizing punk kids who report directly to the major thugs Ponytail, Bald Head, and Eye Ball. Lo's main problem is that he has lost his police-issue handgun and he badly wants it back. He follows any leads available trying to find it, even if it means betraying his fellow officers and making a deal with the thugs. A brutal film that nonetheless has moments of absurd comic relief--Lo slips on a banana peel while in pursuit of punks not once but twice--PTU is another solid contribution to To's entertaining repertoire of Hong Kong action flicks. This movie screened in October 2003 as part of the 41st New York Film Festival organized by the Film Society of Lincoln Center. [More]

Genre: Sports/Recreation

Starring: Lam Suet, Simon Yam, Maggie Shiu, Ruby Wong, Lo Hoi Pang

Director: Johnny To
Screenwriter: Yau Nai Hoi, Au Kin Yee
Composer: Chung Chi Wing

DVD Info

Release:

Jan 3, 2010

[DVD Details]

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Keep Case
  • Anamorphic Widescreen

Audio:

  • Dolby Digitasl 5.1 - Cantonese, English
  • Subtitles - English, Spanish - Optional

Additional Release Material:

  • Audio Commentary - 1. Bey Logan - Cinema Expert
  • Featurette - 1. INTO THE PERILOUS NIGHT - Interview with Director Johnnie To
  • 2. ON THE TRAIL OF THE SMOKING GUN - Interview with Leading Man Simon Yam
  • 3. COOL AS A KAT - Interview with Leading Lady Maggie Shui
  • Trailers

Reviews

 
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1 - 16 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Ratings Image
2/5

The droll opening, set in a restaurant where the pecking order is rigorously observed, gives way to a complicated but uninvolving cat-and-mouse game between the police and rival gangs.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/22/07
Anthony Quinn
Independent
Ratings Image
N/A

Characterisation, always a hit and miss affair in To's films, is deliberately rather thin. Instead, To and his cinematographer, Cheng Siu Keung, make the greasy, near-abandoned streets of the Hong Kong capital come alive

Full Review | comment Comment
06/22/07
Sukhdev Sandhu
Daily Telegraph
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
3/5

It's an oddity in some ways, and its brief appearance in cinemas can only be the precursor to a DVD release, which is how it will mostly be seen. It's a smart, sharp piece of work, however big the screen.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/22/07
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian [UK]
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Ratings Image
2/5

Johnny To favours atmosphere above plotting and though it looks tremendous it won't keep you on the edge of your seat

Full Review | comment Comment
06/22/07
Times [UK]
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Ratings Image
N/A

The point of the exercise is really the unfolding of sundry edgy night-time encounters and action set-pieces, each constructed with To’s customary patience, while his vision of Hong Kong after dark exudes an eerie calm that’s cumulatively hypnotic.

Full Review | comment Comment
06/22/07
Trevor Johnston
Time Out
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review | comment Comment
06/19/07
BBC
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Ratings Image
2/5

A conclusão interessante não compensa os 80 minutos necessários para contar um fiapo de história aborrecida.

comment Comment
05/14/05
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena
Ratings Image
1.5/4

...all the moody cinematography in the world can't disguise the inherently dull screenplay...

Full Review | comment Comment
07/04/04
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews
Ratings Image
3.5/4

Click to read the article

Full Review | comment Comment
06/05/04
Jeremy Heilman
MovieMartyr.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review | comment Comment
10/22/03
Hollywood Reporter
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image
3.5/5

Fresh situations, haunting long takes, and a final showdown that is much more interesting than anything in Tarantino's Kill Bill make this film ... purely enjoyable.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/22/03
Jurgen Fauth
About.com
Ratings Image
3/5

Mr. To is a master of the game, and his command supplies pleasure, even when there are no surprises.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/16/03
Elvis Mitchell
New York Times
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Ratings Image
N/A

The characters are all defined by their place in the plot._They don’t come alive organically, but seem distant and abstract.

Full Review | comment Comment
10/16/03
George Wu
culturevulture.net
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review | comment Comment
10/01/03
Jason Anderson
eye WEEKLY
Ratings Image
5/10

Has a very promising start and a big, noisy shootout of a finale, but everything in between has been done before and better.

Full Review | comment Comment
09/20/03
Jon Popick
Planet Sick-Boy
Ratings Image
3.5/4

Style doesn't trump substance in Johnny To's quickie circus act PTU because the style is the substance.

Full Review | comment Comment
09/06/03
Ed Gonzalez
Slant Magazine
1 - 16 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Related Forums

REEL_REVIEWER
P.T.U. stands for Police Tactical Unit...2 bad the actiion does come till the climax?
by: REEL_REVIEWER 8/25/05


REEL_REVIEWER
P.T.U. stands for Police Tactical Unit...2 bad the actiion does come till the climax?
by: REEL_REVIEWER 8/25/05


REEL_REVIEWER
P.T.U. stands for Police Tactical Unit...2 bad the actiion does come till the climax?
by: REEL_REVIEWER 8/25/05


REEL_REVIEWER
P.T.U. stands for Police Tactical Unit...2 bad the actiion does come till the climax?
by: REEL_REVIEWER 8/25/05

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• PTU: Police Tactical Unit at Rotten Tomatoes
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