Plastic City starts off decently before becoming mystifying and interminable. Yu Lik-Wai's arthouse crimer has artifice, action and a couple of great actors, but it can't create enough interest to make it all seem worthwhile. Featuring the year's strangest use of parkour.

Who wants to visit Plastic City? If you're raising your hand to say "me", then consider this your unofficial warning. Hong Kong's Anthony Wong and Japan's Jo Odagiri headline this Brazil-set arthouse drama, which blends elements of popular genre with the sort of pretentious style that makes self-appointed cineastes nod in appreciation. Director and co-writer Yu Lik-Wai (Love Will Tear Us Apart) stuffsPlastic City with plenty of attractive elements; the location, actors and subject matter should all appeal to an international film festival audience. However, after a promising start, the film starts to become muddled, and ultimately wheezes to a mystifying and merciful end. Those looking forward to this film may wish to reduce their expectations, if not nix them entirely.

San Paolo, Brazil. Chinese-Brazilian businessman Yuda (Anthony Wong) has been at the top of the illegal merchandise game for a while, earning the title "King of Pirated Goods". Helping him is his adopted son Kirin (Jo Odagiri), who was orphaned years ago when his parents were killed in the jungle. However, Yuda suffers a conspicuous fall; his peers are apparently tired of backing him because he's pinched by the cops (who are supposed to be on the criminals' payroll) and thrown in jail. Meanwhile, suave foreign businessman Mr. Taiwan (Jeff Chen) seeks to grab a share of San Paolo's lucrative illegal goods industry using his newer piracy methods. Neither Yuda nor Kirin is too thrilled about this, as they're proud of their old fashioned piracy business, but Yuda has more immediate problems, like inmates in jail trying to stab him in the shower. Kirin tries to bargain for Yuda's release, using occasionally violent means, but few people are willing to cooperate.

...source from lovehkfilm.com