Simon Yam plays a cop who becomes shell-shocked after his squad is massacred by a group of Mainland criminals. He gets sent to head a group of bumbling cops on a small island, and things seem to be going okay. That is, until the same group of Mainland thugs come to the island to take revenge for one of their brothers and start to take over the entire town, killing and raping as they go. Eventually, Yam and the island's few survivors team up to take on the group.

In the world of Category III movies, what really separates the good films from the mediocre is often the performances of the actors. Most anyone can slap together a few scenes with lots of boobs and blood, but it takes a good actor to cement a movie. Simon Yam certainly delivers here. It's not his best performance, but it is quite good -- much better than many others in the genre. Coupled with some pretty decent (and really violent) action sequences and more than a smattering of sex, A Day Without Policemen should satisfy fans of Cat III movies.

Though (as with most Cat III movies) those that are easily offended would probably be better off renting a Jackie Chan movie instead. Some of the scenes (especially those involving rape) are fairly gruesome. They tread that fine line between exploitation and trash -- going far enough to generate shock, but not so far as to be overly disgusting. But, again, if you haven't seen too many Cat III movies or don't care for them in general, it would probably be in your interest to skip this movie, even if you are a fan of Simon Yam.

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