Fridae

A tycoon in the midst of a major do-or-die business manoeuvre is faced with a kidnap in the family. How he grapples with both corporate and criminal challenges will tell us something about the nature of class, leadership, and corruption in society. I could well be speaking of Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low with Toshiro Mifune as the tycoon, and Johnnie Toh, the producer of Punished, seems to be thinking of the Kurosawa film in every minute of their production.

In Punished, the tycoon (Anthony Wong) is a real estate magnate on the verge of buying out a group of villagers and taking over the vast tracts of prime land they’ve been idling sitting on, the kidnappers have gotten the tycoon’s spoilt and estranged drug abusing daughter (Janice Man), and the investigation is handled by the tycoon’s own private investigator and go-to former gangster (Richie Jen). The first act is told in a mixture of flash-forwards and flashbacks.

As the girl dies somewhere in between the kidnapping and the belated rescue – a fact established in the first minute of the film – Punished veers into its own territory after the first act while keeping close to the intentions of the Kurosawa film.

It’s still a psychological investigation into the rich and powerful; the tycoon continues his ruthless takeover plans while pressing for the perpetrators to be brought to him personally. It’s still a whodunnit; the relentless private eye still needs to piece together what happened, who did it, and how it was all done. It’s still a thriller; how far down will private revenge and justice go before it turns really ugly?

In terms of tight pacing and evoking the sense of dread, Punished is every bit as good and insightful as High and Low. Richie Jen’s understated acting pays off in his scenes with Anthony Wong, creating a dynamic that humanises both characters, who are very difficult to like or sympathise with outside these quiet moments. The script builds up the themes well enough (though not always) but its forced conclusion is a minor let-down.