Mr. Cinema (aka Call me Left)

Uneven pacing, unnecessary plotlines, and questionable integrality; but guess what, it’s my favorite film of 07.

Don’t let the English title fool you; this movie is not about movies, rather it is about a 40 years history of Hong Kong centered around a deprived family who lived on the rooftop of a poor neighborhood. The family consists of a Leftist father (Anthony Wong), a hardworking and enabling mother (Teresa Mo) and their wild and lowly educated son (Ronald Cheung). Anthony Wong is a father and husband who always put his country and countrymen first and this resulted in his slight neglectance of his family. However, his faith toward China never falters and he even sacrifices his own dreams and ambitions for the sake of others. Teresa on the other hand is a much more realistic person and persists in matters such as getting a new place to leave when all their neighbors have move out to better places. Ronald plays a highly emotional son who was too under-educated to get a decent job in the real world and resorts to quick money schemes that never quite work out. But after a series of tragic events, the characters finally realize what is important in life and at the end of the movie, reconnect with the things that matters most.

It was such a disappointment for me to know that Anthony Wong was not even nominated for a single award at the Hong Kong Films Awards. The three nominations it did receive were for best supporting actor and actress for Ronald Cheung and Teresa Mo which were rightfully so, and a best song nomination performed by Ronald Cheung. I really wished Anthony Wong was at least nominated because his performance as a stubborn but thoughtful father was near flawless. His native Chinese accent was eerily realistic and his acting was beyond good. In fact, he should’ve won the damn thing. Jet Li only won it cause Warlords was overhyped and everyone felt that “it was his time”. There were moments during the movie were I actually felt honest and true sadness, completely forgetting that this was a movie and that they are merely actors acting.

Even with all my praises, the story is not well paced with events that jump too often with unnecessary information. Also, the film is more or less, a celebrated look in the last ten years of Hong Kong after the take-over from China. The movie made the Hong Kong people look like extremely hardworking citizens, but I really don’t have much to criticize on that. Some events like the Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989 was strangely left out probably because it was a difficult topic to cover and doesn’t mesh well with the intent of the film. But it doesn’t matter, because the movie is very touching and affectionate.

I think the most crucial element about films is how it makes you feel, and I think this is a great example of this. You can have all the special effects, all the explosions, and all the star power but if a film doesn’t leave an impression, it’s really not that good. This movie seriously made me think about a lot of things and it left a solid stamp. On the whole, watching this film was a very rewarding and unforgettable experience.

Year: 2007
Director: Samson Chiu Leung-Chun

8.8/10

One Night in Mongkok

All I can say is "WOW". Derek Yee returns strong after his extremely well-directed "Lost in Time".

One Night in Mongkok is a very interesting movie. More of a contemporary film than a narration, it pits the 36 hour cycle in the dense jungle of Mongkok after a gang related car accident that left one of its leader and son to a powerful mob boss death. Daniel Wu plays a novice hitman hired by the mob boss to take down the the leader of the gang that caused the car collision. Although paid to kill, Wu is a sensible young man that only took the job due to his poor background and a chance to take out some skeletons in his closet. Wu met up with Cecilia Cheung, a mainland prostitute who work in order to support her large family back in China, and is the one who guides Wu in crowded Mongkok. The film goes to show how something so insignificant and small could escalate into something so dangerous and deadly.

The film doesn't have a core focal point, it alters between Daniel and Cecilia's progression in the conjested street corners and alleyways of Mongkok, and a police group led by Alex Fong to find Wu and stop him from making things worst. It's obvious to see that Derek Yee isn't looking to film a cop thriller; what he wants is to create a picture box where viewers are make to feel like watching a true eye glass into the urban jungle that is Mongkok, one of the most populated area in the world. The screenplay is predicable, but what is amazing about the movie is the way it is presented. From the subtle roaming of streets in Wu and Cheung's perspective, to the tense and thrilling moments in the police group, the film creates more of a telescopic view of life instead of a staged theater. Some may feel that the film's conclusion feels almost forced, but it is simply another factor of life that no one can ignore as a possibility. The movie doesn't tie up all the loose ends and the final statement is trying to say more than it is meant to, but to only focus on such small downfall only ruins the movie as a whole.

Derek Yee is a master of showing, not telling; I cannot wait for him to make another film with this level of caliber.

Year: 2004
Director: Derek Yee

9.3/10

My Name is Fame

Strong lead from Lau Ching Wan help this movie from befalling into "just another Hong Kong comedic drama".

The premise of this movie is simple: Lau Ching Wan a middle age actor with plenty of acting talents, however he was never fully appreciated or liked in the film industry. Ching is basically going through his midlife crisis and begins to wonder if acting is what he really wants to do with the rest of his life.

The movie feels more like a satire to Lau Ching Wan's own film career because he has never won the Best Actor in the Hong Kong Film Awards prior to this movie (This film gave him his first ever Best Actor award last April). Although he is never really liked or used in movies, his love for movies and acting is unquestionable on screen. Instead of making his character seem angry at everyone in the industry, Ching plays his role extremely well as more of a grumpy forty-year-old. The film also stars newcomer Hou Siyan, a rookie actress trying to make it big no matter what it took. The two begin a teacher-student relationship and soon lead to spontaneous romance. With Siyan's career starting to rise, it also sparks a renewed loved for Ching on his profession.

The film premise itself isn't very interesting or fresh, but the way it portrays the Hong Kong film industry should be appreciated because it shows how much actors, directors, and everyone else who is involved do and enjoy their work. The writing in the film is surprisingly witty and truthful; Siyan's performance does leave something more to desire, but Ching's performance is superb (Although I feel that his past performances in past movies were better). It should also be noted that the ending to this movie is awesome. One of the most memorable I've seen in a long time, this is what good endings should be like.

This is a good film to watch just for Ching's performance, especially for his first Best Actor Award.

Year: 2006
Director: Lau Kwok-Chen

8.2/10

The Shopaholics

Interesting concept turns into mediocre film.

Lau Ching-Wan and Cecilia Cheung stars in another film together this time as a "choice phobia disorder" psychologist and a "shopaholic" nurse who constantly gets into debt troubles with credit card companies. The movie also costars Jordan Chan Siu-Chun as a real estate mogul and Ellan Koon as Ching-Wan ex-girlfriend; Jordan having a disorder that switches between a pay anything shopping spreeds and a cheapstake, while Ellan is propel to buy the cheap discount items even though she is financially stable. The movie is an hour and a half long comedic love-square between the four characters and undermine the notion that everyone of us in modern society has a sort of disorder from everyday life.

The movie is a fairly average outing as a lunar new year festival movie. The jokes are quick and flashy and characters tend to play over-the-top roles in order to make up for the lack of a quality script and performances. There are moments where laughing are not forced but heavily encouraged but those don't come in plenty. Also, the marriage sequence seems to drag on for a tad bit too long.

There really isn't much to say about the movie. If you're a fan of quick humorous Hong Kong comedy then this is right up your alley. However, this is a simple innocent film that everyone can enjoy.

Year: 2005
Director: Wai Ka-Fai

5.9/10

The Departed vs. Infernal Affairs

IMPORTANT: This is my sole personal opinion about the two films. Anyone who read this may or will disagree with some of my reasonings. However, I just intend this to be at the least, an interesting read about two great movies and its counterparts. It would also be advised that you have already watched both film for it does contain various SPOILERS.



DIRECTION:








The Departed: Martin Scorsese did a masterful job in directing this crime thriller with sophistication, wonderful editing and the pacing is superior to the one found in Infernal Affairs. Scorsese had his finger prints all over this one with his signature bundle of foul mouth tough guys, comical one-liners, raw human anger and emotions, and violent action sceens. Not Scorsese's best, but it ranks up there.
A-

Infernal Affairs: Doesn't rack up as great a work as Scorsese in term of pacing and direction in performance. However, Andrew Lau Wai-Keung and Alan Mak Siu-Fai holds up their own in term of shear style and quiet emotions. Lau and Mak's film definitely looks prettier, but it also contain various plot-holes and a bit swallow back stories.
B

PERFORMANCE:








The Departed: Both movies contain a cast of notiable name on both side of the shore. Leonardo DiCaprio's and Matt Damon's performance were both great, but the star of the show was Jack Nicholson's portrayal of the mob boss Costello. His raw and almost evil take on the villian grip the audience to the screen and his screen presence is undeniable. It's also nice to note that Nicholson did many of the scenes improvised. Apparrently greatness doesn't need to follow a script.
A

Infernal Affairs: Although not as raw or as in-your-face as Leonardo, Matt or Jack; Andy Lau, Tong Leung and Anthony Wong's own way of quiet and restrait emotions fits beautifully in the Hong Kong crime scene. Instead of trying to say how they felt in the movie, a simple eye contact, a scratch on the head, or a finger rubbing the lips does the job perfectly. That's not to say that the western actors ignored body language, but that the Hong Kong actors rely more on it than physical speech.
A-

Cinematography:

The Departed: As much as I liked Scorsese's direction and the amazing editing, the camera angles in the movie doesn't hold up to the Hong Kong version. In one of the key scenes in the movie, Martin Sheen gets thrown out of a building when the mob was informed by Matt Damon. As Leonardo races down the building, a scene of Sheen's body is shown falling and moments later, it lands right in front of Leon and blood splittered onto his hands. Ok, that was pretty cool, but what about the Hong Kong version? As Tony Leung comes down from the sky scrapper on the back using an elevator lift outside, he calls a cab to rush back to the entrance to see if his mentor and boss Anthony Wong would be safe. As the walks out of the cab and into the building, the audience could still see the focus taxi on the background to his right; something's wrong and moments later, a body crashed down on the taxi and Tony Lueng quickly turns his head and sees Anthony Wong lying dead on top of the car eyes open.
B-

Infernal Affairs: At the end of the film when Tony's character found out about Andy's character secrets, he request to meet up with him at a rooftop of a sky scrapper. Once the two met, they exchange words while the audience see the wide scape of the Hong Kong industrial landscape. Andy said something to provoke Tony after Tony's rejection to help Andy; Tony points a gun at Andy's head switching the camera to a close up shot of Andy's eyes as he eyebrows tadded a pit; audience speculate whether it was fear of the gun or fear that his life as a cop is over. Seconds later, the camera moves back to see the two man standing in a standstill. In the Departed, Matt Damon walks up to the rooftop, Leonardo sees him and beat the crap outta Matt.
A

Themes and Values:

Infernal Affairs is a decent english title for the Hong Kong film, but for anyone who can read chinese, the original title of the film portray a much more detail view of the movie. "Mou Gaan Dou" roughly translate to "On the Road to the Final Level of Hell". Mou Gann is basically the eighteenth and final level of hell in the buddist religion; it is the level of hell where the worst criminals and the worst humans would proceed in the afterlife. At its core, there is no pain, no suffering, no sadness; mou gaan is simply nothingness for eternally and it is a point of no return. It fits the film well because it suggests that both main actors are slowly entering this abyss, that what they proceed to do will force them to never return to their former self.

The Departed on the other hand follows closer to the christian belief of the dearly departed and how they would always be remembered. The concept is just as plausible for a western movie, but the film script was written orginially to convey a sense of being forever lost and not rememberance of the departed.

However, nothing annoyed me more than The Departed's emphasis on money. In the Hong Kong version, Tony Leung went undercover to fulfill his duties as a polic officer and did it with honor and pride of the justice of the Hong Kong enforcement. Leonardo did it for the "extra bonus" and that it's "tax free". It's "tax free" Leonardo, now you have to do it! I'm sure that Leonardo does indeed want to be a cop and that it is the only way for him to be effective since his family was so caught up in criminal actions, but it does not disregard the fact that he also did it for the money. Leonardo even request that he recieve his share of the money to Matt Damon after they took out Costello at the end of the film. Also, The Departed depict Asian mobs as foolish and for-a-lack-of-a-better-word, a pussy during one of the scene in the movie. The Departed even stress the fact that the Chinese mob are trying to steal valuble computer chips to start a war or something. I personally felt that it was almost like a stab in the back for them to use a script written originally as a Hong Kong film and bashed it up to target the Chinese as one of the antagonists.

The Departed use various violence and sex to illustrate the Boston crime scence. Sometimes its almost too much for its own good. In the Hong Kong version when Andy meets his boss Eric Tsang, they met in a theater showing a quiet western movie. In the American version, Matt meets Jack in a porno movie theater. In the American version when Jack tries to speak with Leonardo, he puts out a fresh chopped hand with fresh blood for Leonardo to see. In the Hong Kong version, Eric Tsang simply talks to Tony with a relaxed but still tense atomsphere.
The Departed: F
Infernal Affairs: A-

Both film were successful in their own rights. Techinally, The Departed is a better film overall, but I felt Infernal Affairs does have some stronger parts such as its camera work. However, it is from the themes and how The Departed portray some things that made me really hate the film. I'm sure that watching American remake of "Mou Gaan Dou" wouldn't seem very offensive or weird to the average American who has never saw the original Hong Kong film, but to someone like me, I really grew to dispite the movie. I was overally surprise when I saw the Oscar and saw firsthand that the American remake won Best Picture because I really didn't think it deserves it. In a techincal standpoint, The Departed is a better movie, but that doesn't stop me from hating it.

The Mission

Dull beginning quickly paces up into one of the most unique Johnnie To movie ever.

"The Mission" is considered by many to be Johnnie To's single greatest masterpiece. It should be if it is ranked 14th in the Hong Kong Film Awards' List of The Best 100 Chinese Motion Picture. However, when I saw it for the first time, I never got the impression that this movie could be hail to such a high degree by so many critics and fans. So I went back and re-watch the movie not just once, but twice; what I ended up with was quite surprising.

The movie is about a group of bodyguards made up of Hong Kong a gang boss (Francis Ng) and his right hand man (Jackie Liu), a gun expert (Lam Suet), an assassin (The great Anthony Wong) and a sharpshooter (roy Cheung). They come together to protect Lung played by Eddy Ko against someone who tries to take him down from his position of traid boss. The movie starts from the gathering of the unique five all the way till the entire mission is over.

The film is very slow paced and extremely meticulous thanks to Johnnie To's superb direction. The movie looks into the life a a typical mission with many details that lots of people might have ignore, such as the acquiring and fine-tuning the firearm, various escort trips, sitting around at the house looking at security camera, playing paper soccer while waiting outside of the Lung, and even the emotional turmoil of the entire group when they almost lost Lung in a gun battle. This may seem very tedious to some who just hope for bullets flying action, but it serves as an important catalyst for the development of the group and input an emotional structure that many similar film lack.

When the action does get going, it's fast and unpredictable. The film has some of the most interesting and involving gun fight sequences I've ever seen that does not rely so much on the number of bullets fire but more on the intelligence of the people actually holding the gun. Even though all five of them have distinct personalities, they make quite a team when it matters. And it's interesting to see how workship slowly transcends into friendship.

I believe that the reason why I was disappointed with the film when I first saw it was because I was expecting something when the movie was actually something else. What I expected was a gun blazing crime movie when it was more of a controlled thriller drama. The movie is going to feel very slow for a lot of people, but if they can watch it with a different mentality, they would be rewarded with an exceptional movie with lots of Hong Kong style and great acting.

Year: 1999
Director: Johnnie To

8.8/10

Finally...

I haven't realize how long it has been since I last updated this blog; and to my surprise (not really...), the last movie I rated was back in July during summer. College really put a lot of time away from me (six months worth of time), but alas, this blog shall not die away.

Infernal Affairs III

Tony Leung and Andy Lau return along with a cast of new and old Infernal Affairs members in the final chapter to the trilogy.

Infernal Affairs part I was a very good film, and usually good films are hard to follow up to. As the final chapter to the trilogy, Infernal Affairs does deliver certain aspects that made the first film so successful in its production. However, despite the filmmakers' noticeable attempts to make this a worthy ending to an epic story, it just falls short. The cast and the visual part of Infernal Affairs III has no problems because they're still incredible overall, but the movie just tried to do so much that it may work in some areas but overall, it feels like a mess.

Infernal Affairs II tells of two stories, one is the couple of months leading up to the events of the first film, and the other is ten months after the death of Tony Leung's character. During the flashback, the filmmakers were trying to make Tony Leung a sort of funny character and I think it is just because for an undercover agent to always feel tense will only doom him, and the filmmakers tried to bring some simple human happiness into his life. The second time frame is about Andy Lau's pursue to become a true clean cop and how he must find clues to pinpoint Ming, a new character in IA3 played by Leon Lai. Andy suspect that Leon Lai is another mole hidden in the police station as he tries to find clue to bring him down; but more importantly, it is so that Ming would not stick Andy out for being a mole himself.

The film is a bit over-ambitious, but there are parts of the movie that certainly blend well. Andy Lau's hallucinations and the flashback relationship with Tony Leung and Kelly Chen are two of the more memorable parts of the film. Also, the inclusion of Leon Lai and Chen Dao Ming works surprisingly well. However, in the end, the film feels messy and the conclusion doesn't really mix with the overall storyline of the movie.

And finally, the director's cut version of the movie is better than the theatrical one because it adds some much needed information and the ending of that movie is better (The actual ending of Andy Lau's character does not change, but the directors just chose a better angle to end the trilogy.)

Overall, Infernal Affairs does indeed succeed more than it disappoint. Watching Infernal Affairs III doesn't make Infernal Affairs I better, but it is a very nice and welcome addition to the franchise.

Year: 2003
Director: Andrew Lau and Alan Mak

8.5/10

Ashes of Time

A brilliant Wuxia martial arts film that (I dare say) is better than "Couching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". A true Wuxia cinematic gem in Hong Kong films.

Ashes of Time is base on the story characters in the most renowned martial arts writing in China: Jin Yong. In fact pretty much all the good TVB martial arts series is from this guy. Anyhow, the story takes place quite a few years before the Condor Shooting Heroes universe. When the four super martial arts giants met and befriend each other in an inn run by Leslie Cheung.

The filled is filled with the biggest names of its day. Leslie Cheung Kwok-Wing, Maggie Cheung Man-Yuk, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Tony Leung Ka-Fai, Brigitte Lin Ching-Hsia, Carina Lau Ka-Ling, Jacky Cheung Hok-Yau, and Charlie Young Choi-Nei. But even with such a strong cast, it did horribly at the box-office, which is a shame because this movie is very deep and beautiful.

Leslie is an inn-owner in the desert after he found out that the woman he loved married his older brother. Leslie is not simply just an inn-owner, he is a hired assassin who kills to "take problems away." However, he lived an interesting life to say the least when expecting guest visits him and each of them as a touching story. It seems as though all of their lives interrelate with each other in some way. Some very subtle, some very hidden, but all quite memorable.

I really didn't believe that it was possible to make an art film in martial arts settings, but Wong Kar-Wai, that frinkin genius, has done it. The film IS a work of breathtaking art with beautiful play of shadow and light, memorizing camera work, and blur-like action scenes that fits the mood of the film flawlessly. He is able to give a genre that is all about heroism some sort of emotional focal point and redefine the formula that focus on memories as the biggest demons in heroes instead of actual fights. I would however prefer all the male characters to look cleaner because all of them looks like hobos... dirty and unclean... or maybe it was just the most truthful because candy-pop martial arts movie at the time were really not all that real.

The first half an hour is quite boring and confusing, but once it gets rolling, it goes. Maybe "Couching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" has better action scenes and deeper plot, but it doesn't hold a candle against "Ashes of Time's" beautiful art and emotional weight.

Year: 1994
Director: Wong Kar-Wai

9/10

The Adventurers

Andy Lau stars in an undercover war/crime film that brings Holly fun and action onto the Hong Kong cinema screen.

Lau stars as an orphaned Cambodia boy who watches as a man named Ray murder his parents when he was a kid. He is then taken into the custody of his father's good friend and grew up to be a military soldier/fighter jet pilot. Now that he is all grown up, he is seeking his revenge on Ray that takes him from San Francisco to Hong Kong and back to Cambodia. The movie also has another teaming up of Andy Lau with Wu Chien Lin.

Even though the cover of the DVD shows Andy Lau in a fighter jet suit, there is only one plane scenes and it last about five minutes with half of it dedicated to Andy's flashback. The movie feels very Hollywoodish due to the storyline and the action sequences. But overall, viewers would feel like they had watched a summer blockbuster instead of a Hong Kong film. It is something very hard to describe but the feel of the movie is certainly not HK. However, the movie is still a fun watch with deep character development especially with Andy and Wu Chien Lin. Andy Lau's performance is pretty good and this movie is like a stepping stone until he acts in films like "Running Out of Time", "A Fighter's Blue", and "Running on Karma".

Anyone who likes a good action film would find something to enjoy in this movie.

Year: 1995
Director: Ringo Lam

7.1/10

Once A Thief

Don't let the cool looking cover fool you, this movie makes Chow Yun-Fat almost looks like a dumbass... but it's still pretty fun to watch.

Leslie Cheung, Chow Yun-Fat and Cherie Chung are three orphan siblings who make a living by stealing artwork. However, when they were asked to steal a very valuable painting of a lady despite Cherie's insistent to quit, days start going wrong... but not too wrong because there's a happy ending.

This John Woo film is pretty smart and filled with full-blown action scenes the director is known for. But he should really stop doing comedies because some of the things he makes Chow Yu-Fat do is not only unfunny, but almost humiliating for the actor. The film has loves of gun actions and fight scene action and all other sorts of action, but they are all done in a near child-friendly violent because it seems that no many how many bullets are fired at the stars, they never get hit. Leslie got hit once, but it wasn't even near fatal.

All in all, this is a fun little movie to watch in a boring summer afternoon.

Year: 1991
Director: John Woo

6.5/10

My Left Eye Sees Ghosts

Fun comedy staring Sammi Cheng and Lau Ching Wan with surprisingly strong emotional tie-ins. The Johnnie To - War Ka-Fai collaboration prevails again!

Sammi plays May, who became a widow recently when her husband died in a scuba-diving accident. The strange thing is that the two got married after only meeting for seven days. For the next three years, May lives a life without purpose or direction until a near fatal car crash allow her left eye to see ghosts; which include Lau Ching Wan. Lau Ching Wan aids her broken spirit in hilarious and memorable scenes as she slowly comes in grasp with what she really wanted in life and who she really missed...

Along with "Needing You" and "Love on a Diet", this movie is one of the better romance comedies that directors Johnnie To and War Ka-Fai has made. The story is a little tedious near the beginning, but overall, it is a very rewarding experience about self-desires and happiness in life. Like traditional Johnnie To and War Ka-Fai movie style, there are quite a few of loose ends that doesn't get all tie up until the very end.

Either way, "My Left Eye Sees Ghosts" is a very rewarding movie for fans of Sammi Cheng and Lau Ching Wan.

Year: 2002
Director: Johnnie To and War Ka-Fai

8/10

In the Mood For Love

In my pursue to find another film that is as good as "Days of Being Wild", this movie has come the closest.

Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung stars in the middle section of Wong Kar-Wai’s trilogy. Although he intended it to be a continuation of "Days of Being Wild", there is absolutely no connection to the film except that Maggie's name is also So Lai-Chun in this movie has in "Days". This should've also been done in 2046, but Wong Kar-Wai chose not too... for some reason... By leaving the film as it is, it leaves an impression that is only as itself and really helps because this film is best when everything is concentrated on it and not on other things.

Tony and Maggie are married and they lived in the same apartment across from each other with their respected wife and husband. However, as time passed, they found out that their partners are cheating on them and the worst part is, they are cheating with the opposite partner to Tony and Maggie. Tony and Maggie than got a bit closer but forcing themselves to stay a good distance away from each other so that they don't end up likes their old partners. However, love is inevitable and the two starts to fall in love. But this was a love that should not have been and Maggie finds way to detach herself from Tony. But it is in vain because she and him are both in love.

Unlike many Wong Kar-Wai movies where the narrator speaks out to the audience like a monologue, "In the Mood For Love" ditches all of that and it feels a lot more natural and it forces the actors' acting to be the sole catalyst for the emotions in the movie. With that said, Tony and Maggie's performances are some of the best I have ever seen, Eastern or not. A lot of people have a misconception that acting comes from dialogue, but in fact, acting is the entire effect of speech, body movement, and pace. Tony and Maggie achieve all of that perfectly and made it into an art form.

The cinematography is typical Wong Kar-Wai stuff meaning that it is super artsy and beautifully. The editing of the movie is incredible, the lighting is incredible, heck, and even the music is incredible. There are so few flaws in the movie that I had to really nit-pick to find a few like: the main theme tends to appear a bit too much, there is a slight sort of ignorance toward the side characters, and the ending is a bit strange.

Other than that, this is a near perfect movie.

Year: 2000
Director: Wong Kar-Wai

9.7/10

2046

In Hong Kong there are four super giants in the movie directing business.

There's Johnnie To, arguably the most accessible of the four with fronts on both crime action trillers (Running Out Of Time, PTU, The Mission) and romance comedies (Needing You, Love On a Diet, Running On Karma).

Then there's Fruit Chan, an out-of-the box director with emotionally leading movies such as "Made In Hong Kong" and "Hollywood Hong Kong".

Derek Yee, an elite in the emotional romance movies that brings tears to viewers eyes as well as a crack in the viewer's hearts; (C'est La Vie, Mon Cheri, Lost In Time) and he's also pretty good at action romance (Full Throttle).

However, no one has a bigger profile than Wong Kar-Wai. Wong is the most inaccessible director of the four but almost all of his films are considered masterpieces. He may not win the box-office, but it is a sure bet that he can win almost everything in the awards. With the latest film from Wong, there is a very big expectation to be met, and although the film is critically acclaimed, for a Wong Kar-Wai fan, it doesn't really quite live up to it...

The movie has a huge cast of actors from Tony Leung, Carina Lau, Faye Wong, Zhang Ziyi, and even super popular Japanese idol Takuya Kimura. Tony plays an extension of the character from "In the Mood for Love". He is a writer for the newspaper but then changes to write science fiction romance after he encounters apartment room 2046. He then spends his day observing the happenings in the room and the apartments that surrounds it.

The title "2046", as it turns out, has a pretty deep meaning. It was the room that Tony and Maggie shared in their martial arts novel in "In the Mood for Love", and it also holds a political meaning. The 1996 Hong Kong government stated that the state of Hong Kong would not change for the next 50 years due to the emergence of Hong Kong back to Mainland China. 1996 plus 50 is 2046, and the theme of the novel that Tony writes in the story depicts 2046 as a place that never changes.

Anyhow, Tony gets into a lot of womanizing, but it all done in good taste and his acting is awesome so it doesn't matter. However, Wong Kar-Wai tried to make the viewers believe that the Tony in "2046" is in fact the Tony in "In the Mood for Love". But in fact, they are two completely different people. In a more disappointing fact, because Wong Kar-Wai is trying to link his three masterpieces together: "Days of Being Wild", "In the Mood for Love", and "2046", he seems to fallen in love with his work and constantly refers back to them. It makes the entire movie feel kinda cheap for using such a trick; however, the movie is still "the" Hong Kong standout title in 2004 along with "Kung Fu Hustle".

The art direction is beautiful and the acting are all superb. Tony Leung and Zhang Ziyi's performances are one for the ages; they are just so good. And despite all that, "2046" is still a very strong movie to watch. Although a lot of the film will make more sense if the viewer has already watched Wong's first two movies in the so-called trilogy, it is still one film to track down and watch.

Year: 2003
Director: Wong Kar-Wai

8.7/10

Love For All Seasons

From director collaboration Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai comes a funny comedy that delivers if your expectations are not too high.

Louis Koo plays Tiger, a super womanizer who has a nickname of the "Heartbreak King" for being able to break the heart of any woman. However, because of this, it left him with some illness in the bottom area... So he seeks the Omai Clan and meets May played by Sammi Cheng. After Sammi tricks Louis and cures him, she must go back to her original business as the replacement leader of the clan that needs to protection from the previous leader. But in order to defeat her, she must learn the forbidden technique of heartbroken-ness and seek the help of Louis with his unique talents.

The movie is a fun comedy with some very sexist comment, but overall it is all fun. Johnnie To and Sammi have done five movies already since the release of "Love For All Seasons" and it shows a bit of a slowdown. Some scenes are still very funny, but overall, it lacks the emotional backbone of "Needing You" and "Love On A Diet".

If a good laugh is all you're looking for, than this is still a pretty good movie to check out.

Year: 2003
Director: Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai

5.8/10

Jiang Hu

Super Strong Cast + Interesting Premise = One Disappointing Movie

Jiang Hu sounds really really really badass. The cover looks badass, the posters all look badass, and the cost is pretty badass also. So how could something that holds so much promise be so bad? What exactly went wrong?

To begin, let's introduce the characters. Andy Lau is a super mob boss and something is trying to assassinate him because he is thinking about quitting the triad. Jacky Cheung is his best friend and is he trying to figure out who wants him dead. Eric Tsang, Norma Tsui, and Miu Kiu-Wai are the three suburbanites of Andy Lau and are in question of whether the assaults are coming from one of those three if not all three. While on the other side of the film are Shawn Yu and Edison Chen, two young kids trying to get into the triad world by receiving an order to kill some boss.

There is nothing wrong with the character and what each of them are trying to accomplish, what is lacking is the "acting" part. All the actors, including Andy Lau, feel very generic and fake. They lack the feel of the criminal world and it feels forced. Also, Andy Lau and Jacky Cheung are the stars of the movie with Shawn and Edison as co-stars, but it should really be the other way around. Andy and Jacky barely do much and their conversations are not very interesting.

Although there is a twist in the movie, which is not very surprisingly, the real downfall to this film is the script. The cinematography is good and the art style is very triad-like if not too hip-hoppy. The bad part is the dialogue that each character has to say. Now some of the lines are good, but most of them seem almost childish.

Someone watching this movie may feel like they've been engulf into the underground world of crime in Hong Kong, and the fact that there's no sun till the end really makes the atmosphere feels special. But the film just turned out way worst then expected probably due to the huge cast and the hype. If the film stars less-popular actors, then maybe the audience would be more forgiving, but with such a huge cast of talented actor, they would really feel let down.

(Oh and Jacky Cheung's hairstyle in this film is beyond bad, it is a crime to have such hair)

Year: 2004
Director: Wong Ching-Po

5/10

A Moment of Romance

The film that kicks started Andy Lau's cinema career.

This movie was the ultimate romance triad genre film in the early 90's. Andy Lau plays Wah-Dee, a triad who has no direction in life and even less purpose. Andy was asked to be the driver of Trumpet, a triad boss, in his bank robbery heist, and it was during the run that Andy took a hostage, Jo-Jo, but soon the two begin to bond. Trumpet wants her dead because she has seen his face, but Andy insists that he will handle everything. Things started to get worst when the head triad leader is dead and Trumpet is trying to take over his possession. All the while Jo-Jo and Wah-Dee starts a very close relationship with each other.

The film is a classic because it is one of the most imitated movies in Hong Kong cinema. The final scene where Wah-Dee and Jo-Jo rides to a church together in his motor-cycle dress in bride clothes is very memorable and copied dozens and dozens of times by other films. The genre is certainly nothing new, but the way Benny Chan and Johnnie To execute their characters are very special. Everything is handle quietly with action and little talk, it perfectly personifies the meaning of "show and not tell". Andy Lau's performance was spectacular because he actually act as an actor instead of reading lines. Ng Man-Tat also won a best supporting actor playing has a weak and poor car washer in the streets of Hong Kong.

A Moment of Romance is certainly one of the best romance triad dramas in Hong Kong cinema and will always be remembered as Andy Lau's first step into international stardom.

Year: 1990
Director: Benny Chan

8.3/10

Needing You

Needing You is a very satisfying romance comedy with exceptional production values and unforgettable scenes.

In another Andy Lau film, Andy plays Wah-Sui, a womanizer business salesman in the busy Hong Kong electronic industry. Sammi Cheng plays as Kinki, one of her most memorable and beloved character who has some psychological and emotional problem about dating, but she's full of heart and very likable.

On the bear bones, the film is about the typical office romance, but Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai managed to create something both fresh and fun to watch. Andy Lau and Sammi Cheng are definitely one of the best couples ever to grace the Hong Kong silver screen; the chemistry they share on screen is very lovable and entertaining with solid identifiable characters. Sammi Cheng performance is better than Andy's not because Andy's character is lacking in much areas, but because her character is so much more demanding. Sammi has a very pure goofy and girl-like feel to her character and it easily makes her character one of the more memorable over the years.

Romance comedies are essentially not meant to revolutionize the industry but more to do with having fun at the movies. In that regard, Needing You perfectly captures the essences of romance comedy and it is a movie that should not be miss.

Year: 2000
Director: Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai

8.8/10