# Shock Wave (拆弹专家) (2017 film)
**Shock Wave** (拆弹专家) is a 2017 Hong Kong action thriller directed by Herman Yau (邱礼涛), produced by and starring [Andy Lau](https://www.edgepedia.org/andy-lau) as a police bomb disposal officer confronting a bomber who seizes Hong Kong's Cross-Harbour Tunnel. It was released in mainland China on 28 April 2017 and became one of the year's notable Hong Kong co-productions, winning the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Supporting Actor and spawning a sequel, *[Shock Wave 2](https://www.edgepedia.org/shock-wave-2)* (2020).[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shock_wave) • [2](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/info/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director / writers | Herman Yau (邱礼涛), who co-wrote the screenplay with Erica Lee[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shock_wave) |
| Lead cast | Andy Lau (Cheung Choi-san), Jiang Wu (Hung Kai-pang), Song Jia (Carmen Li), Philip Keung, Ron Ng[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shock_wave) |
| Release | 28 April 2017, mainland China; Mandarin and Cantonese; 120 minutes[2](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/info/) |
| Budget | Over HK$180 million, a rare super-sized investment for recent Hong Kong cinema[3](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0428/c14677-29244311.html) |
| Mainland box office | RMB 370,762,400 (28 April to 8 June 2017)[4](https://www.fdc.gov.hk/sc/publication/HK_Film_Industry_Info2017_Preview.pdf) |
| Awards | 37th Hong Kong Film Awards: Best Supporting Actor (Philip Keung) won; Best Film, Best Director, Best Editing, Best Sound Effects, and Best Visual Effects nominations[2](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/info/) |
| Critical score | 60% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer from 10 reviews, average 6.2 out of 10[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shock_wave) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Cheung Choi-san (章在山), played by Andy Lau, is a senior inspector in the [Hong Kong Police Force](https://www.edgepedia.org/hong-kong-police-force)'s Explosive Ordnance Disposal Bureau (EOD). Seven years before the main story, he worked undercover inside the criminal gang of the most-wanted bomber Hung Kai-pang (洪继鹏), nicknamed "Blast" (火爆) and played by Jiang Wu (姜武). During a vault robbery Cheung revealed his identity, worked with the police to prevent a bomb detonation, and dismantled the organization, arresting several robbers including Hung's brother (played by Wang Ziyi); Hung himself escaped and vowed revenge.[2](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/info/) • [5](https://tv.apple.com/tw/movie/%E6%8B%86%E5%BD%88%E5%B0%88%E5%AE%B6/umc.cmc.775isc0tiw74bcty410njnirj)
Seven years later, Hong Kong suffers a series of bomb scares, and Hung returns with a plan of revenge. With a team of mercenaries he seizes the [Cross-Harbour Tunnel](https://www.edgepedia.org/cross-harbour-tunnel) during an ordinary working evening, taking the several hundred vehicles and their occupants hostage, and threatens to destroy the tunnel unless his demands are met. Cheung must bring Hung to justice and defuse the crisis.[3](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0428/c14677-29244311.html) • [2](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/info/)
**The ending was fixed from the start.** Cheung dies while defusing a bomb after cutting the wrong wire. In a statement released through Sina Entertainment, Herman Yau explained that he and Andy Lau had agreed on this outcome before filming: Cheung is a hero, but not a comic-book superhero; like the many police officers and public servants who protect lives with their own, he is an ordinary flesh-and-blood person prepared to sacrifice himself, and the ending was intended as a tribute to those unnamed heroes.[6](https://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/2017-05-03/doc-ifyetwsm1948277.shtml)
### Sequel and significance
The film's success led Lau to call publicly for a second installment.[10](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0505/c40606-29257355.html) *Shock Wave 2*, again directed by Yau with Lau producing and starring, opened in December 2020 and grossed RMB 1.317 billion, overtaking *The White Storm 2* to become the highest-grossing Hong Kong film in mainland Chinese box office history at the time; Yau and Lau's partnership also produced *The White Storm 2* (2019), giving the pair the top two spots for Hong Kong films in that market.[16](https://www.1905.com/m/news/touch/1506351.shtml) Reviewers noted that, unlike earlier co-productions that blurred their setting, the film kept a distinctly Hong Kong flavor, naming real locations such as the Eastern and Western Harbour Tunnels that mainland audiences might not know.[17](https://www.cinespot.com/hkmreviews/%E6%8B%86%E5%BD%88%E5%B0%88%E5%AE%B6)
## Production
**Budget and scale.** The film cost over HK$180 million, which Yau described as the largest budget and scale of his career.[3](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0428/c14677-29244311.html) • [6](https://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/2017-05-03/doc-ifyetwsm1948277.shtml) It was produced by Bona Film Group, Universe Entertainment, and Dream Maker Entertainment, with Ying Ming Culture, Guangdong Shengge Media, and Xiaomi Pictures among the co-producers; Lau served as both lead actor and producer.[7](https://scdnews.com/images/paper/170215/170215C.pdf) • [2](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/info/)
**The tunnel set.** Two-thirds of the film takes place in the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, one of three undersea tunnels linking Kowloon and [Hong Kong Island](https://www.edgepedia.org/hong-kong-island) and the busiest by traffic; Yau likened it to an artery of the city if Hong Kong were a heart. Rather than rely on green screen, the crew built a 1:1 replica tunnel before the script was even finished, and also constructed a scaled-down model to plan vehicle placement and the choreography of gunfights and escapes. The replica was torn down after filming.[3](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0428/c14677-29244311.html) • [8](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0429/c40606-29244686.html) Most of the explosions were shot for real, with visual effects used to amplify them; in the tunnel's climactic destruction the first blast was filmed practically.[9](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/guided/)
**Police consultation.** Yau had known Yuen Hon-wing, the Hong Kong police force's first bomb disposal officer, more than a decade earlier, and for this film Lau, Yau, and Ron Ng attended classes at the EOD headquarters, where real disposal officers explained their methods. Multiple EOD officers, including a senior superintendent, visited the set and were consulted on every bomb disposal scene; the on-screen steps for defusing a wartime bomb were described as real and reasonable, with the main liberty being time, compressed to a few minutes for the audience. Yau also wanted to show the profession's daily work, including the disposal of wartime bombs unearthed at construction sites, a recurring item in Hong Kong news.[3](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0428/c14677-29244311.html) The protective [bomb suit](https://www.edgepedia.org/bomb-suit) worn on screen weighs 40 kg.[3](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0428/c14677-29244311.html)
## Box office
The film opened strongly in the [May Day](https://www.edgepedia.org/may-day) holiday window. Within four days of release its mainland gross passed RMB 200 million, making it the top domestic film of the holiday period, and after seven days the mainland total exceeded RMB 270 million, with Hong Kong above HK$20 million and Taiwan above NT$20 million; the Asian total passed HK$310 million.[6](https://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/2017-05-03/doc-ifyetwsm1948277.shtml) • [10](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0505/c40606-29257355.html) Daily takings fell after the holiday, from roughly RMB 50 to 60 million per day in the first four days to RMB 24.137 million on 2 May.[11](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2017/0505/15502.shtml) Over its full mainland run from 28 April to 8 June 2017 it accumulated RMB 370,762,400, ranking sixth among Hong Kong films released in mainland China that year.[4](https://www.fdc.gov.hk/sc/publication/HK_Film_Industry_Info2017_Preview.pdf) Its cumulative global gross reached US$55.864 million as of 17 May 2024.[12](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1099778.html)
## Reception and awards
At the 37th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2018, Philip Keung won Best Supporting Actor for his role, and the film received nominations for Best Film, Best Director (Yau), Best Film Editing (Chung Wai Chiu), Best Sound Effects, and Best Visual Effects.[2](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/info/) It also received a 2017 "smoke-free movie" award from the Chinese Association on Tobacco Control.[12](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1099778.html)
Critical response was mixed. On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds 60% from 10 critics, with an average rating of 6.2 out of 10; [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter) called it a workmanlike genre entertainment, while the A.V. Club described it as an unapologetic piece of B-movie filmmaking.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shock_wave) • [13](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/shock-wave/) Chinese-language reviewers generally credited the spectacle and Yau's brisk pacing while noting plot implausibilities and thin characterization among the supporting roles.[14](https://www.hk01.com/%E7%A4%BE%E6%9C%83%E6%96%B0%E8%81%9E/88347/%E6%8B%86%E5%BD%88%E5%B0%88%E5%AE%B6-%E5%A6%82%E6%9E%9C%E5%91%A2%E5%A5%97%E9%83%BD%E7%AE%97%E7%88%9B%E7%89%87-%E6%81%90%E6%80%95%E6%9C%83%E5%A1%9E%E7%88%86%E7%88%9B%E7%89%87%E6%B1%A0-%E6%96%B9%E4%BF%8A%E5%82%91-%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF01-%E5%8D%9A%E8%A9%95) • [15](https://punchline.asia/archives/42036) On the mainland, the film scored 9.1 among audiences and 6.5 among professionals on the Maoyan platform.[10](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0505/c40606-29257355.html)
## References
1. [Shock Wave, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shock_wave)
2. [拆弹专家 详细资料, 1905电影网](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/info/)
3. [独家专访导演邱礼涛：《拆弹专家》是怎样炼成的？, 人民网/羊城晚报](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0428/c14677-29244311.html)
4. [香港電影業 資料彙編2017, Hong Kong Film Development Council](https://www.fdc.gov.hk/sc/publication/HK_Film_Industry_Info2017_Preview.pdf)
5. [《拆彈專家》, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/tw/movie/%E6%8B%86%E5%BD%88%E5%B0%88%E5%AE%B6/umc.cmc.775isc0tiw74bcty410njnirj)
6. [《拆弹》导演：早定好了结局 感谢华仔"死"了一次, 新浪娱乐](https://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/2017-05-03/doc-ifyetwsm1948277.shtml)
7. [中国影视 Daily News, 美南日报 (15 February 2017)](https://scdnews.com/images/paper/170215/170215C.pdf)
8. [《拆弹专家》是怎样炼成的？揭秘影片幕后故事, 人民网/羊城晚报](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0429/c40606-29244686.html)
9. [拆弹专家 导赏, 1905电影网](https://www.1905.com/mdb/film/2227752/guided/)
10. [《拆弹专家》票房大热 刘德华喊话：拍第二集吧！, 人民网/羊城晚报](https://media.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0505/c40606-29257355.html)
11. [《拆弹专家》以小黑马的姿态脱颖而出 小米影业迎来电影"首秀", 电影界](https://www.dianyingjie.com.cn/2017/0505/15502.shtml)
12. [《拆弹专家》电影基本介绍, 买购网](https://www.maigoo.com/citiao/1099778.html)
13. [Shock Wave Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/shock-wave/)
14. [〖拆彈專家〗如果呢套都算爛片，恐怕會塞爆爛片池, 香港01](https://www.hk01.com/%E7%A4%BE%E6%9C%83%E6%96%B0%E8%81%9E/88347/%E6%8B%86%E5%BD%88%E5%B0%88%E5%AE%B6-%E5%A6%82%E6%9E%9C%E5%91%A2%E5%A5%97%E9%83%BD%E7%AE%97%E7%88%9B%E7%89%87-%E6%81%90%E6%80%95%E6%9C%83%E5%A1%9E%E7%88%86%E7%88%9B%E7%89%87%E6%B1%A0-%E6%96%B9%E4%BF%8A%E5%82%91-%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF01-%E5%8D%9A%E8%A9%95)
15. [院線影評／《拆彈專家》：彈是拆了，但餘波呢？, Punchline](https://punchline.asia/archives/42036)
16. [《拆弹专家2》成港片票房冠军 背后原因是什么？, 1905电影网](https://www.1905.com/m/news/touch/1506351.shtml)
17. [從《拆彈專家》看近年中港合拍片的進境, Cinespot 動映地帶](https://www.cinespot.com/hkmreviews/%E6%8B%86%E5%BD%88%E5%B0%88%E5%AE%B6)
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