BACK TO THE PAST (寻秦记) (2025)

Genre: Action/Martial Arts
Director: Ng Yuen Fai, Jack Lai
Cast: Louis Koo, Raymond Lam, Jessica Hsuan, Sonija Kwok, Joyce Tang. Michael Miu, Jimmy Au, Power Chan, Wong Man Piu 
Runtime: 1 hr 47 min
Rating: PG13 (Some Violence)
Released By: Shaw Organisation
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 31 December 2025

Synopsis: A wrongful imprisonment leads to a crisis that can change the course of history! To make up for his wrongful imprisonment, Ken (Michael Miu) vows to travel to the Qin Dynasty and become the Qin Emperor. Meanwhile, in the Qin Dynasty, Hong Siu-lung (Louis Koo) and his family have spent the last two decades in seclusion, but his every move is still being watched by his disciple, the Qin Emperor (Raymond Lam). Just as the emperor is on the cusp of ultimate power after conquering the six rival warring states, he is ambushed by Ken and his team. With nowhere else to go, he turns to Hong, the mentor that he both reveres and fears, for safety, reuniting them for the first time in 20 years. As Ken binds these men's fate once more, the emperor and Hong's long-standing grudge must be settled once and for all.

Movie Review:

25 years is a long time in between, and as much as absence does make the heart grow fonder, it will take a lot of fondness to summon enough goodwill not to be thoroughly frustrated with this pointless sequel.

Erstwhile TVB fans will certainly recall the time-travelling science fiction TV series called ‘A Step Into the Past’ that was released in 2001, which not only marked the last TV drama for Louis Koo but also a breakout leading role for Raymond Lam. Koo’s affection for the series led him to acquire the rights a decade ago, and despite wrapping production for the movie back in 2019, ‘Back to the Past’ is only seeing the light of day now.

Unfortunately, we dare say for all involved that it would probably have been better if they simply went back to the drawing board to restart the entire endeavour, given how uninspired, tedious and downright silly the movie is. Not content to leave Koo’s Grand Tutor Hong Siu-lung to live happily ever after with his two wives, Wu Ting-fong (Jessica Hsuan) and Kam Ching (Sonija Kwok), this sequel has Hong facing off not just with his former discipline Chiu Poon (Raymond Lam) turned self-aggrandising Qin Emperor, but also a vengeful former employee Ken (Michael Miu) of the Lee family business who wants to take over the Qin Emperor.

Truth be told, it is all a big mess, what with the unfocused script trying to juggle the unresolved issues between Hong and the Emperor, Ken’s confusing motivations whether to kill the Emperor, take off with the Emperor’s riches and/or mend his estranged relations with his daughter Galie (Bai Baihe), and a treacherous member within Ken’s crew Max (Wu Yue) threatening to turn against him. We must confess we did not watch its TVB predecessor, but even then, it is hard to tell what sort of closure this sequel is meant for fans of the series.

Just as, if not even more, disappointing is the unremarkable action credited to Sammo Hung – other than a nice chase sequence involving wooden carts versus futuristic Tron-like motorcycles over rolling hills, there is literally little thrill or excitement in the fistfights, swordfights or gunfights. We’re not sure just what ended up on the cutting room floor, but what remains onscreen is shockingly inept for someone of Hung’s stature, and even if he may not have been the best choice for the mix of historical and present-day action, this is an utter embarrassment for so many reasons.

Without a proper story backbone nor for that matter any compelling character arcs, what is left is Koo’s occasional anachronistic wise-cracks. Some of his quips are amusing no doubt, but it is lamentable that the only entertainment we get out of this seemingly interminable venture is his utterances of ‘Thank you’ or ‘Good luck’ (yes, he says them in English, much to the confusion of his Qin dynasty peers). Koo is still a lively presence for the most part, but is let down by the weak plotting that leaves his character as well as the rest of his supporting ensemble stuck in the past.

Even sadder is the treatment given to Koo’s fellow TVB actors. We’re not sure what the deal was to assemble this reunion, but we feel bad for how both Hsuan and Kwok are given barely anything to do throughout the entire movie; ditto for other beloved supporting acts such as Sin-yau (Joyce Tang), Steward To (Jimmy Au) and Tang Yik (Wong Man-piu). While it would not have been possible to give their characters the same treatment as the TV series, we would have thought there would have been more care given to let each character play a role in the story for old times’ sake.

That the proceedings come off this sloppy is in large part due to the inexperience of first-time director Ng Yuen-fai (who had also directed Koo’s expensive, effects-heavy CGI experiment ‘Warriors of Future’) as well as his assistant Jack Lai. Neither seem to demonstrate any affinity for the source material, nor know their way around a high-concept production like this that requires a deliberate blend of historical drama, action and science fiction. Especially given the acting pedigree gathered here, it is even more a travesty that all that talent is wasted on an amateur production.

Seeing ‘Back to the Past’ after a more than six-year delay confirms our worst-held fears that it is not only because of the lengthy post-production that has held back its release all this while, but also extensive cuts and re-cuts that signal a production lost in limbo. By the time we get to the alternate ending whose sole purpose is to bring back Michelle Saram in a cameo, it is obvious that all this sequel was running on was pure nostalgia – and even so, like we said at the beginning, it will take a lot, a lot of fondness to summon enough goodwill not to be thoroughly frustrated by this pointless sequel that only reinforces why some things are better left in the past.
 
Movie Rating:

(It will take a lot, a lot of fondness with the 2001 TVB series to get over this pointless sequel that is a good example of why some things are better left in the past)  

Review by Gabriel Chong