Running Out of Time is a 1999 crime thriller directed by Johnnie To. Andy Lau stars as Cheung Wah, a criminal who is diagnosed with cancer and given four weeks to live. In his final days, he plays a game of cat-and-mouse with Inspector Ho Sheung-sang (Lau Ching-wan), a skilled hostage negotiator and detective whom Cheung takes an interest in as an opponent. Ho is given 72 hours to arrest Cheung, whose motives are unclear.
The film was a critical and commercial success, notably earning Andy Lau his first acting award of his already nearly 20-year career. Along with The Mission, Running Out of Time also began To's transition from a commercial film director to a critical darling, specializing in crime dramas. A sequel with Ekin Cheng replacing Andy Lau as the criminal was released in 2001.
Not to be confused with the science fiction novel.
This film contains the following tropes:
- Air-Vent Passageway: Used by both Cheung and Ho while the former is infiltrating a financial company.
- Anti-Villain: The film sets up Cheung as a sympathetic character with his cancer diagnosis, and as his motives become more clear, his game actually assists the police in arresting a triad boss.
- Arch-Enemy: Triad boss Baldy is Cheung's arch-enemy.
- Depending Upon the Undependable: Baldy's dumb and forgetful henchman.
- The Determinator: Inspector Ho does all he can to win Cheung's game.
- Fake Kill Scare: Cheung shoots a finance company manager in the head to get the police on his tail, but the bullet turns out to be a red paintball.
- Foregone Conclusion: Cheung is diagnosed with terminal cancer in the opening scene. It's implied that he dies offscreen.
- Friendly Enemy: Cheung and Ho begin to form a friendship as the film goes on, in spite of being designated opponents.
- Girlfriend Bluff: Cheung sits next to a stranger on a bus pretending she is his girlfriend to divert attention away from the police. After their second meeting, they go to a restaurant together. At the end of the film, it's revealed that the girl has been gifted a necklace from Cheung.
- Go Out with a Smile: While we don't see Cheung die onscreen, his final shot has him smiling as he drives off.
- Impersonating an Officer: The mastermind behind the robbery at the beginning of the films claims to be an off-duty police officer.
- Incurable Cough of Death: The only visible symptom of Cheung's terminal cancer.
- Involuntary Charity Donation: Amiable example. At the end of the film, Cheung is revealed to have donated the $20 million he ended up with at the end of the game to a children's cancer fund in Ho's name.
- The Last Dance: Cheung's game is revealed to be his way of avenging his father, who had unfinished business with Baldy.
- Pointy-Haired Boss: Ho's boss Wong is shown to be quite inept, especially when trying to negotiate a hostage situation.
- Rogue Agent: Subverted. While Inspector Ho is dedicated to solving the case and his boss sees him as one, he doesn't break the rules during Cheung's game.
- Terminally-Ill Criminal: Cheung has terminal cancer with four weeks to live.
- The Triads and the Tongs: Baldy and his crew.
- Worthy Opponent: Cheung selects Ho as his opponent due to the latter's intelligence and competence. Ho also develops a mutual respect for Cheung as the film goes on.
