It often feels like Zhang is being yanked between rah!-rah! copagandistic affection and vomitous moral revulsion…holding a mammoth, Munch-ian howl at bay.

Scare Out doesn’t have the psychological depth of the first, immaculate Infernal Affairs film, but Zhu is tremendously watchable as a spymaster with secrets of his own/

The film alienates and confronts viewers and then reassures us that all that formulaic pressure was actually for a greater purpose. This time, I disagree.

Zhang Yimou’s latest is visually impressive but surprisingly generic, turning a promising spy thriller into a frantic showcase of technique. Scare Out proves his eye remains extraordinary, even when the material falls far short of the master.