Violent Tradition

The title and the packaging are misleading. This isn't the ultra-violent action bonanza they would have us believe, but a kinder, gentler John Woo flick, a made-as a-cable pilot introducing an eccentric crime-fighting trio: two refugees from the Hong Kong triads, Li Ann (Holt), and Mac (Sergei), who is in love with her, and an ex-cop (Lea) who is her fiancé. Li Ann's admirers don't stop there: there's also Michael (Wong), heir to a powerful crime family. Inspired by Woo's 1991 HK comedy Once a Thief, this conceit harks back further to classy crime capers like Topaz or Gambit. Very minor, but quite watchable.