The Mission, Breaking News, Election and Election 2 confirmed Johnnie To as a consummate visual stylist who makes Hong Kong action films look better than any other director on the island can.

His latest film Sparrow offers some truly stunning camerawork as four pickpockets (Simon Yam, Gordon Lam, Law Wing-Cheong and Kenneth Cheung) make their way about the streets, picking wallets and purses off unsuspecting victims. Clearly, the three long years which Johnnie took to plan for and shoot this film certainly paid off in terms of its slick and glossy look.

Unfortunately, the plot is somewhat unsatisfying. The story begins when a sparrow enters Simon's flat. His three partners-in-crime think it is bad luck. Soon enough, a beautiful woman (Kelly Lin) enter their lives and wreak havoc on their personal and professional lives...

Beautiful as this Sparrow may look, the plot just never gives us something substantial to chew on. The characters are largely superficial, as are their challenges.