What do you get when you try to cross 'The Mod Squad' with Wesley Snipes's 'Drop Zone'? A recipe for disaster, right? Wrong, at least when it comes to the latest Hong Kong blockbuster 'Gen-X Cops'. It may sound bad on first impression, especially with the rubbish that the Hong Kong film industry has been churning out in the last few months but after watching 'Gen-X Cops', I really have to give it the thumbs up. Filled with plenty of action-packed sequences, drama, humor, hip music and a superb cast, 'Gen-X cops' is an action/thriller with an attitude that is sure to draw the crowds to the cinemas.

With a budget of around HK$30 million, 'Gen-X Cops' is directed by Benny Chan (Who Am I?, Big Bullet, Man Wanted) and produced by the now world famous Jackie Chan. The script was written by Benny Chan, Peter Tsi Koan Hui and Lee Yee-Wah. Special effects maestro Joe Viskovil, who won an Academy Award for his work on 'Independence Day' and who has worked on movies like 'Terminator 2', 'True Lies' and 'Apollo 13', was roped in from Hollywood to direct the special effects in 'Gen-X Cops'. The movie also has a great cast of young up-and-coming Hong Kong stars, such as teen idol Nicholas Tse (Young And Dangerous: The Prequel), Stephen Fung (Bishonen, Gorgeous), Sam Lee (Made In Hong Kong, The Longest Summer), pop star Grace Yip, Daniel Wu (Bishonen, City Of Glass), Terrance Yin (Bishonen, Hot War) and Jaymee Ong. Rounding out the cast is veteran actor Eric Tsang, Francis Ng (Big Bullet, Full Alert) and Japanese actor Toru Nakamura. (I must say that Gen-X Cops certainly does not lack in the talent department!)

The background for the story is set in Hong Kong, 1999, where a sense of doom permeates the city, especially with terrorists like Red Tiger (Toru Nakamura) running around. Police Inspector 'Smart' Chan Chun-ming (Eric Tsang) is determined to catch Red Tiger, especially since his colleague, Officer To, is always laughing and snickering at him. Thus Inspector Chan goes to the police academy and recruits three unlikely-looking cadets to go undercover for him. They are Jack (Nicholas Tse), Match (Stephen Fung) and Alien (Sam Lee), who are failures and outcasts at the academy. However, they fit the bill nicely with their wild, aggressive personalities and outlandish, trendy style of dressing.

They then manage to infiltrate Ah Kit's (Daniel Wu) gang, which is responsible for supplying arms to Red Tiger. Y2K (Grace Yip), a computer expert, joins the fray burning to take revenge for her dead brother, Dinosaur. She is not alone in her quest as Hong Kong triad leader Lok Wai-Lam (Francis Ng) was a good pal of Dinosaur and is also out for revenge. With such an explosive mixture of ambition, anger and firepower, the scene is all set for a thrilling and exhilarating ride.

In 'Gen-X Cops', veteran actor Eric Tsang is simply brilliant in his portrayal of the stressed-out, mentally troubled Inspector Chan. His ideas and methods are unorthodox at best and thus his fellow officers look down on him even though he is always trying to do his best. Inspector Chan's left eye inevitably starts twitching when he is under pressure and I can really sympathize with him. Eric Tsang has definitely joined that rare breed of actors whose actions and emotions the audience can empathize with.

Daniel Wu and Toru Nakamura are also superb in their performances as the bad guys. Here, Daniel Wu looks great playing Ah Kit, who is always insecure due to the years playing second fiddle to his brother, Dinasour. Toru Nakamura's character, Red Tiger, annoyingly spouts philosophy especially when he is about to kill but his calm, cold-hearted and frighteningly objective-minded personality (especially when you consider what those objectives are) is convincing enough.

Sam Lee is hilarious as the wacky, off-beat and comic Alien but Nicholas Tse and Stephen Fung looks a little stiff in their roles. Francis Ng, as usual is brilliant as the flamboyant, honorable and maniacal Lok Wai-Lam. Also, a special note should be made concerning Terrance Yin, who does well in his role as the aggressive, callous and devious-minded Tooth, Ah Kit's right-hand man.