Throw Down follows the passionate journey of three wretched souls who fight to hang on to their dreams. The poignant drama spins around Sze-To, a judo champion who has unexpectedly and inexplicably abandoned the sport. Now an alcoholic pub manager, he spends his days in video game parlours and illegal gambling joints, squandering all the money he manages to steal from a former opponent turned triad boss. In his dead-end run towards self-destruction, Sze-To encounters potential redemption in the unusual forms of aspiring pop singer Mona and the obstinate Tony, who challenges him to a fight and will not be swayed by his initial refusal.
Despite transferring his nocturnal atmospheres and quirky characters into the classical structure of a martial arts story, To almost never strays into action-movie territory. He brilliantly choreographs the wonderful parabola of a lifes match that ultimate fight against personal fears that can only be won through self-understanding and self-acceptance. Through deliberate dialogue punctuated by bittersweet humour and, of course, authentic judo action Throw Down guides the spectator to the discovery of a new kind of heroic cinema. With Tos characteristically gritty, hard-scrabble feel, Throw Down sings a raucous karaoke ode to a dark Hongkong dimly lit by neon lights. (Giovanna Fulvi)