Why a 1998 action film used exploding dolls to capture Hong Kong's handover anxiety
In short: Set against the 1997 handover of Hong Kong, Tsui Hark's Knock Off is a frenetic, often baffling action film starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. While critics largely panned its convoluted plot, the film serves as a strange, high-octane time capsule of a city accelerating toward an uncertain, globalized future.
Released in September 1998, Knock Off was the second American collaboration for Hong Kong director Tsui Hark and Jean-Claude Van Damme. The film’s title operates as a double entendre, referring simultaneously to the counterfeit goods central to its plot and the concept of targeted killings. The narrative follows a fashion executive who discovers that his business partner is a CIA agent investigating a conspiracy involving nanobombs hidden inside consumer products, including jeans and toys.
The production was deeply tied to the geopolitical climate of the era. Filmed during the summer of 1997, the project faced security concerns regarding the actual handover ceremony, forcing the crew to shoot some water-based sequences in the Philippines. It remains one of the final films to feature the iconic Kai Tak Airport before its 1998 closure. Behind the scenes, the production was marked by creative friction; the musical score, originally credited to the band Sparks, was largely reworked by composer Varouje Hagopian due to studio pressure.
Critical reception was overwhelmingly negative, with the film holding a 9% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and earning a 'D+' grade from CinemaScore audiences. Reviewers like Paul Tatara labeled it an 'incomprehensible mess,' while others, such as Joe Leydon, found it an 'exuberantly cheesy' spectacle. However, retrospective analysis suggests the film’s chaotic, frenetic visual style—characterized by rapid-fire editing, undercranking, and experimental color usage—effectively mirrored the widespread instability felt during the transition of Hong Kong. Ultimately, the experience left Hark unsatisfied with the American studio system, leading him to return to Hong Kong filmmaking permanently.
The film’s commercial performance was modest, grossing approximately $10.3 million in the United States. Despite its failure to resonate with mainstream audiences or critics, it stands as a unique artifact of 1990s action cinema, blending the hyper-kinetic visual language of Hong Kong action with the high-concept, often absurd, narrative tropes of Hollywood blockbusters.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Knock Off (film)
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