I've read that this has a cult following; I suspect that Yuen Woo Ping has a cult following, members of which are trying very hard to like this film.<br /><br />A few years before this film, Wong Jing (no one's favorite Hong Kong director) did a movie that was part "Die Hard" with kung fu (supplied by the ever-able Jet Li) and part satire on the career of Jackie Chan, "Meltdown". The film actually has some interesting moments, especially the finale, but the violence is too cruelly presented, even for a blood-thirsty old 'fu fan like me. The Chan satire makes the darkness tolerable, but is itself unnecessary.<br /><br />What Yuen Woo Ping has done in "Red Wolf" is given us "Meltdown at Sea". that's about the size of it; except that Yuen has no satire here - no comic elements at all. Which means that, given the raw tension, and the sheer violence of the film, the over-all effect is down-right depressing.<br /><br />I admit, it was so uncomfortable to watch, I couldn't finish the film. I don't know what happens at the end of the film. because the characters were so vapid, even watching them get killed didn't interest me.<br /><br />the stars are for the choreography, which is top-notch of course; but really, I'm sure you can find something more amusing to do; and I wish Yuen Woo Ping had tried.