Firestorm

Firestorm is a 2013 Hong Kong action film written and directed by Alan Yuen, produced by and starring Andy Lau. Lau plays a hard-boiled police inspector who takes the law to his own hands in order to take down a group of violent criminals who have taken multiple innocent lives while repeatingly evading justice. The film was converted to 3D during post-production, making it the first 3D Hong Kong police action film. Firestorm was chosen to be the opening film at Screen Singapore held on 4 December 2013 where Lau and co-star Gordon Lam walked the red carpet for the film's premiere. The film also opened the 56th Asia Pacific Film Festival on 13 December 2013 in Macau before it was theatrically released on 19 December 2013 in Hong Kong. In addition, Firestorm also had its North American premier at the 57th San Francisco International Film Festival on 3 May 2014. Plot Chief Inspector Lui Ming-chit and ex-con To Shing-bong are secondary school classmates who competitively practiced judo together. Right after To was released from prison for robbery, he immediately re-joins Cao Nam and his gang to highjack an armoured car transporting cash. Lui leads his squad to arrest Cao's gang and engages in a gunfight where Cao kills a female hostage. Cao and his gang escape the scene after To suddenly rams Lui's car. To is arrested and he claims the crash was an accident and denies being Cao's accomplice. To is released after his girlfriend, Yin-bing arrives with a lawyer to bail him, but Lui orders his subordinates to tail him. To promises Yin-bing to give up his criminal life and she finds him a job in a restaurant. The Regional Crime Unit later discovers the corpse of one of Cao's underlings and the burnt remains of the getaway vehicle. Lui leads his squad to raid Cao’s hideout after they discover their whereabouts by recognising one of Cao’s underlings Chow in surveillance camera footage. A firefight breaks out and Lui manages to arrest Chow while To and Cao manage their escape. At Cao’s residence, the police tries to arrest him on account that Chow could be made a witness implicating Cao. This fails after Chow destroys evidence and throws himself off a building.