Nerdly » ‘The Shadow’s Edge’ Review

30th Sep2025

‘The Shadow’s Edge’ Review

by Matthew Turner

Stars: Jackie Chan, Zifeng Zhang, Tony Ka Fai Leung, Sha Chi, Jun | Written and Directed by Larry Yang

Jackie Chan (71) proves he can still cut it in the stunts-and-punch-ups department with The Shadow’s Edge, an engaging action thriller from director Larry Yang, who previously worked with Chan on 2023’s Ride On. A remake of the 2007 thriller Eye in the Sky, the film marks the third on-screen collaboration between megastars Chan and Tony Ka Fai Leung, the latter of whom originally starred in the 2007 version.

Set in Macau, the film opens with arch criminal Fu Lung-sang (Leung) masterminding a high-tech heist, carried out by his team of agile young hotshots, who are simultaneously tech geniuses, masters of disguise, explosives experts and good at fighting. Since the gang have managed to outwit the police department’s state-of-the-art Sky Eye surveillance system, the cops call in retired officer and surveillance specialist, Wong Tak-Chung (Chan) to help find the criminals before they can get their hands on the codes they need to unlock the millions they have stolen in cryptocurrency.

Wong duly assembles a surveillance team that includes He Qiuguo (Zifeng Zhang), a young police officer whose efforts are largely ignored by her male colleagues. However, their relationship is initially fractious because Qiuguo is the daughter of Wong’s former partner, who was killed in action while they were working together.

Yang maintains a frenetic pace throughout, with lots of breathless editing and quickfire cuts. Admittedly, that is initially confusing, as there are a lot of characters involved on both sides of the law, but things soon settle down once Chan turns up and the plot settles into a deadly game of cat-and-mouse.

Given his age, it would be entirely fair for Chan fans to be worried that there might not be all that much action from the film’s star, but that’s not the case at all. Consequently, his numerous fight scenes are among the film’s highlights, and his climactic battle with Leung is both genuinely exciting and surprisingly bloody for a Jackie Chan movie.

As for the two megastars, it’s a treat to watch Chan and Leung together, most notably in an enjoyably tense invite-the-neighbour-round-to-dinner sequence where both are aware of each other’s identities, but neither is giving the game away. It’s a bit like the confrontation between Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in Heat, only with better food.

Elsewhere, Chan generates touching chemistry with Zhang, and their gradually evolving bond is genuinely moving, managing to steer mostl clear of dewey-eyed sentimentality. On top of that, Zhang proves a lively and engaging co-star, comfortably holding her own in the company of both Chan and Leung and managing to steal entire scenes just with her various facial expressions.

In fairness, The Shadow’s Edge isn’t entirely without flaws. For one thing, several plot elements are either ignored completely or lost in translation, particularly the significance of the AI SkyEye robot, which is nicknamed SpiceGirl. If it’s included for comedy value, there are no robo-laughs worth mentioning, except for a tiny moment at the end.

On a similar note, there are arguably too many characters, and various subplots get lost in the mix, such as the apparently abusive father-son relationships between Leung’s character and his team, or the character details of the other members of the police squad. In fact, for the majority of them, their sole purpose appears to be to indulge a running gag about Wong assigning silly nicknames to his team.

In short, The Shadow’s Edge is an enjoyable return to form for Jackie Chan, and Yang’s lively direction ensures that the film never drags, despite its bottom-challenging 140-minute running time. Stick around for the time-honoured out-takes (with Chan and his very game co-stars sustaining injuries galore), as well as a post-credits sting, if you like that sort of thing.