Cast: E Jingwen, Wang Baoqiang, Zhang Qi, Yuan Xingzhe, Zhang Quandan, Jing Ruyang
Director: Stephen Chow
Screenplay: Stephen Chow
Based on the main idea from his 1999 film King of Comedy, Stephen Chow's THE NEW KING OF COMEDY is not really a remake. Although both films share the same premise of a struggling extra (actor) wanting their big break into the main cast, the original film is more of a romantic comedy while this new take focuses squarely on the journey of background performer, Dreamy (newcomer E Jingwen) wanting so badly to be cast as a lead.
There are two things I really appreciate about this film: No CGI and Stephen's casting of E Jingwen.
Most of his recent movies have been heavy in CGI (Shaolin Soccer, Kung Fu Hustle, CJ7, 2013's Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons and 2016’s The Mermaid). If you know me, I cringe whenever CGI is used in Chinese films. Because for whatever reasons, the outcome always look cheap and unbelievable. So it's very refreshing to see no heavy effects were used in this production.
And the casting of E Jingwen as the film's lead was a bold move as she doesn't have the looks of Cecilia Cheung (1999's King of Comedy) or Jelly Lin (The Mermaid). However, as the movie progressed, I was captivated by her earnest performance. There's just something very genuine about Jingwen.
So, is this movie funny? Not really.
(Not that I mind)
There are its moments but I was chuckling instead of laughing out loud. Perhaps it's the distracting Cantonese dubbing as the original language is in Mandarin. (After CJ7, Stephen has stopped acting to focus on writing and directing films for audiences in mainland China).
Or perhaps, it was done on purpose. The 1999 film had a similar tone; it was a bittersweet drama + comedy. Just like the original, I appreciated the quieter moments of its characters interacting with each other. There are two standout scenes in particular: a washed-up actor Marco (Wang Baoqiang) accepting he is no longer an A-list actor and a really moving scene at the end involving Dreamy's parents (played convincingly by Zhang Qi and Yuan Xingzhe).
All in all, eventhough I appreciate the performances of the cast, this is far from a perfect film. Its pacing is uneven and the plot is half baked. And the closure felt rushed and forced.
That said, Stephen Chow is getting better as a drama-comedy director. Or maybe, he has just mellowed over the years.
The ensemble cast from Wong Kar Wai's 1994 cult classic ASHES OF TIME (東邪西毒)
My final entry to the Hong Kong Cinema series. (Read here for Part 1, and here for Part 2)
If the 80s were dominated with Chow Yun Fatt and Jackie Chan flicks, the early 90s were led by Stephen Chow's mo lei tau (nonsensical) comedy movies and Jet Li's portrayal of legendary, virtuous and humble heroes.
There was a slowdown of output mid 90s onwards, probably due to the 1997 handover of HK back to China. That said, during that period, there was an emergence of very memorable romantic drama movies which relied more on the acting skills of its actors rather than the physicality aspects ie. martial arts, comedy or action.
(Speaking of mo lei tau, I found the entry in Wikipedia the most accurate in explaining this genre of comedy. In essence, it's is a type of "anything goes" slapstick humour associated with Hong Kong popular culture and it's usually layered with an interplay of cultural nuances. It can usually be found in the juxtaposition of the spoken dialogue and actions. For example the plain and normal catchphrase "Chor dai yum daam cha, sik gor bau" (坐低飲啖茶，食個包), meaning "Let's sit down, take a sip of tea, and have a bao", is used in irrelevant and inappropriate situations, usually in serious situations.)
So here's my list of Hong Kong films from the 1990s which were memorable to me.
THE SWORDSMAN (笑傲江湖), 1990
After the fatigue of gangster and kung fu genre in the 80s, it was a welcome return of the wuxia genre to kickoff the new decade. And this movie delivered because it marked the rare appearance of Sam Hui as the lead, an excellent supporting cast (Jackie Cheung cast as a baddie!), memorable "wire-fu" action pieces and everything good we expect from a HK movie. And who could forget the theme song, sung by Sam himself.
They released a sequel in 1992 but the lead (and almost the entire cast) was replaced by the then go-to actor Jet Li. It was so-so only.
BULLET IN THE HEAD (喋血街頭), 1990
WOW. This John Woo directed movie was emotionally draining, realistic and featured a tour-de-force performance by Jacky Cheung (a brave performance considering he was an upcoming clean pop star then). John Woo is famous for crafting "balletic style" gun play action pieces but in this movie, his approach here was more grim and realistic, thus the violence felt more brutal.
In this movie, Tony Leung Chiu Wai perfected his "The Face" acting. He's one of the few actors I know who can act with just his face especially his eyebrows. Heck, his entire career is built around it. I don't know how to describe this acting method but whenever he is confronted with an emotional situation, he pulls out "The Face".
SAVIOUR OF THE SOUL (九一神鵰俠侶), 1991
This movie will go down as one of those rare and quirky fantasy-action-romance movie ever produced in HK cinema. It's a creative movie because it blends the old and new set pieces with a beautiful anime inspired cinematography. Imagine a wuxia movie but replace the costumes and swords with modern wardrobe and guns.
And it has a memorable (albeit cartoon-y) performance by Aaron Kwok's turn as the villain, Silver Fox.
And without further ado, here are my top Stephen Chow movies from the 90s!
ALL FOR THE WINNER (賭聖), 1990. A gambling comedy attempting to cash in on the success of God of Gamblers. Who can forget the iconic intentional slow-mo scene of Dou Seng's grand entrance.
TRICKY BRAINS (整蠱專家), 1991. One of the most memorable scene for me was the "Kong tau Wong (Baldy Wong)!" trickery.
LEGEND OF THE DRAGON (龍的傳人), 1991. Stephen Chow's mo lei tau comedy + snooker + special appearance of Jimmy White the legendary snooker player = what's not to like??? And yes...that epic memorable ending.
FIST OF FURY (新精武門1991), 1991. Amusing homage to Bruce Lee's classic. Stephen's character possess a special ability - an extremely strong right arm. Interestingly, this movie exist in the same universe as All For the Winner, as Dou Seng and his uncle make a cameo appearance. Yesteryear Kenny B makes a comeback here as the good-natured Smart, giving a memorable comedic performance.
Homage to Bruce Lee's Fist of Fury include the dojo fight scene where the Japanese man is hilariously forced to eat the sign. And of course Stephen dawning the iconic yellow jumpsuit.
LOVE ON DELIVERY (破壞之王), 1994. Another iconic film packed with amusing scenes including the training from the "master" sequences and parody of Terminator, Garfield and Ultraman.
It also featured the sultry Christy Chung.
FROM BEIJING WITH LOVE (國產凌凌漆), 1994 featured the fresh face Anita Yuen, who went on to be one of the biggest stars in the mid 90s.
And it also featured Stephen at the piano (with the iconic cigarette stuck on his lips) singing Jacky Cheung's Lui Heung Lan.
OUT OF THE DARK (回魂夜), 1995 earned a reputation as Stephen's darkest film yet with horror element, blood and dark humour. Stephen's character is a parody of Leon from The Professional. I remembered clearly it wasn't released in Malaysian cinemas. Some of the scenes were genuinely creepy as it was set in the old Hong Kong flats.
In GOD OF COOKERY (食神), 1996 Stephen plays the God of Cookery, the most renowned and feared chef in the world but he soon loses this title because of his pompous attitude. He goes on a journey to rediscover himself with the help of Karen Mok's character.
Stephen's signature styled comedy is still evident here but he skillfully balanced it out with a heartfelt and dramatic performance. In this movie and the following movies to come, he would go on to play characters with more layers rather than mere caricatures and paraodies.
Also, there's this really funny scene in the Shaolin Monastery where Stephen would go on using this comedy technique (different approach to overcome the same challenge but always end up with the same disastrous outcome) in his future movies eg. Shaolin Soccer.
THE LUCKY GUY (行運一條龍), 1998 is your typical CNY ensemble cast movie. Scenes featuring Stephen and his first love played by Sammi Cheng, and the romance between Eric Kot and Kristy Yeung's characters were the most memorable.
There are some really LOL moments especially scenes demonstrating Stephen's character as a chick magnet and how he came to be like that (the missed slap was brutal, man).
I felt KING OF COMEDY (喜劇之王), 1999 had the perfect balance of comedy, drama and romance featuring the fresh face Cecilia Cheung. There was even a cameo from Jackie Chan.
The movie describes the trials and tribulation of an aspiring actor in a small town. Some commentators say the story is based on Stephen's early career, as he started off as a temporary actor. His performance here is more restrained, allowing his co-stars to shine. There are many funny and moving scenes in this film which capped off beautifully Stephen's body of work in the 90s.
Thank you Stephen Chow! You made such a big impact in my formative years as a movie buff.
NEW DRAGON GATE INN (新龍門客棧), 1992
The early 90s marked the comeback of Taiwanese actress Brigitte Lin Ching Hsia (it started with Swordsman II) and she went on to star in many other notable martial epics including this film, The Bride with White Hair and Ashes of Time.
This start studded movie (Tony Leung Ka Fai, Maggie Cheung, Donnie Yen as the villain) is one of those wuxia movie where everyone dies at the end.
92 LEGENDARY LA ROSE NOIRE (92黑玫瑰對黑玫瑰), 1992
This wacky flick (a remake of sorts of the Black Rose film series from the late sixties) works because of one actor, and that's Tony Leung Ka Fai. Up till then, I've always seen him as a serious actor in drama and action movies but his turn here as a comedic actor with a high pitched voice was a very pleasant surprise.
A way out there action-comedy film based on the Street Fighter game. This Wong Jing directed movie was a good escape film as it's nice to see an ensemble cast just being silly and having fun. 3/4 of the Four Heavenly Kings is in the movie (minus Leon Lai). Also, it featured one of the most catchy romantic songs from Jacky Cheung.
Incidently, Jackie Chan's City Hunter also featured characters from the Street Fighter series in a fantasy action scene. This movie was also directed by Wong Jing and was released 6 months earlier. If you've not seen Jackie Chan dressed up as Chun Li, click the link and erm...enjoy.
THE EAGLE SHOOTING HEROES (射鵰英雄傳之東成西就), 1993 and
ASHES OF TIME (東邪西毒), 1994
Tony Leung Chiu Wai in The Eagle Shooting Heroes
The same Tony Leung Chiu Wai in Ashes of Time
Both this movie The Eagle Shooting Heroes and Ashes of Time will go down as one of the most fascinating case studies in the history of Hong Kong Cinema.
According to some industry rumours, Wong Kar Wai's ambitious and classic Ashes of Time (based on the source material of Louis Cha's wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes) went over-budget and was taking forever to complete.
In order to cover up the cost of his yet unfinished film, Wong decided to produce a "quick-and-dirty" parody film of the same novel (!) to be released during the lucrative Chinese New Year period. So, he hired Jeffrey Lau to direct The Eagle Shooting Heroes and used the same whole cast from Ashes of Time for that movie!
The Eagle Shooting Heroes is a classic example of the mo lei tau comedy. It's wacky, LOL funny and colourful.
While the dramatic Ashes of Time is classic Wong Kar Wai; it's hypnotic, meditative and visually beautiful. The characters wore long hair (most of the time their hair would fall beautifully and oh-so-cool all over their face) and their wardrobe was simple and blend.
Besides Ashes of Time, I've not watched any of WKW's films because one needs to be in a certain mood to be able to appreciate his films. It really does test your patience. Ashes of Time was probably the most accessible Wong Kar Wai film for me.
And then...there's the legendary Jet Li!
Because he has such a recognizable face and fighting style, and he kept playing legendary folk heroes like Wong Fei Hung and Fong Sai Yuk, all his movies felt kinda same. That said, here are his more notable movies for me:
ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA (黃飛鴻), 1991 and ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA II (黃飛鴻之二男兒當自強), 1992 were the most memorable in the Wong Fei Hung series.
I remembered watching the trailer to Once Upon a Time in China in a cinema and I was absolutely blown away. The graceful "wire fu", the calligraphy title font, the slow-mo, the ensemble cast (Jacky Cheung! Yuen Biao!) and THAT SOUNDTRACK by George Lam. And "Who the hell is this Jet Li??!"
Watch the original trailer here!
I also dug Part II as there was this unforgettable fight sequence between Wong Fei Hung and The White Lotus Sect. And let's not forget that fight sequence between Jet Li and a young Donnie Yen (!). Of course, there was a little bit more romantic development between Wong Fei Hung and Sap Sam Yee ie. 13th Aunt (played by Rosamund Kwan).
And my introduction to the historical figure Sun Yat Sen, father of modern China (who interestingly has some links in Malaysia - Taiping and Penang).
TAI CHI MASTER (太極張三豐), 1993 was memorable because it co-starred Michelle Yeoh (Yay! Malaysia represented!) and Jet's fighting technique here was very different from his Wong Fei Hung style. And there's this nail-biting action sequence between Jet's character and the main villain on a heap of wooden logs, with Michelle Yeoh's character tied at the top of it.
HIGH RISK (鼠膽龍威), 1995 was different from other Jet Li movies because he is in modern clothes here, carries a gun and is an action-comedy (although the comic relief is primarily contributed by Jacky Cheung's portrayal of Bruce Lee). Probably it's because it was directed by Wong Jing.
And it's not really a compliment as Wong Jing as a director has more misses than hits. I remembered High Risk as being not really good but it was loud, energetic and Jacky was entertaining.
HE AIN'T HEAVY, HE'S MY FATHER (新難兄難弟), 1993
The two "Tony Leungs" starring in the same movie! This Peter Chan directed film is a heartwarming nostalgia piece featuring the two Tonys plus an ensemble cast. The "Little Tony" goes back in time and meets his parents. What he found out about them changes him.
IRON MONKEY (少年黃飛鴻之鐵馬騮), 1993
Donnie Yen got my attention in this film as a lead to be reckoned with. Yu Rongguang was memorable here too. Who could forget that iconic movie poster of the masked man standing on one leg at a rooftop.
This Yuen Woo Ping directed film was an overall good martial arts film as it has good performances, action and plot. A cross between Robin Hood and Zorro set in ancient China.
ENDLESS LOVE, C’est La Vie, Mon Chéri (新不了情), 1993
This Derek Yee directed romantic tearjerker made me cry really hard. Both Sean Lau Ching Wan and Anita Yuen gave such an earnest performance they were extremely believable in their roles.
This movie won 6 awards in the 13th Hong Kong Film Awards: Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actress (Anita Yuen), Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress.
HE'S A WOMAN, SHE'S A MAN (金枝玉葉), 1994
Peter Chan's movie worked on so many levels; the intricate (but easy to follow) plot, the performances, the comedy and of course, THAT SONG sung by the late Leslie Cheung. This film was both a commercial and critical success.
Anita Yuen won Best Actress for this film (back-to-back after winning it the year before for her performance in Endless Love, C’est La Vie, Mon Chéri).
DOCTOR MACK (流氓醫生), 1995
In my opinion, Tony Leung Chiu Wai gave one of his best performance here as the laid back charismatic as hell doctor working on the streets of Hong Kong, helping the everyday lower class folks.
There is this scene in the movie where Tony's character is all alone and he finally could let his guard down as a strong doctor. Just thinking of that scene now still moves me emotionally.
COMRADES: ALMOST A LOVE STORY (甜蜜蜜), 1996
Maggie Cheung owns this movie about the story of two Chinese Mainlanders meeting and falling in love in Hong Kong. The straightforward and sincere performances by the leads and the supporting cast were genuinely affecting. And this film managed to successfully capture the "local-ness" of the neighbourhoods in Hong Kong, making this city one of the most romantic places to visit.
The ending :')
This Peter Chan directed movie won like 9 awards in the 16th HK Film Awards including best film, best director, best actress (Maggie), best supporting actor (Eric Tsang) and best cinematography (Jingle Ma).
THE STORM RIDERS (風雲雄霸天下), 1998
As I followed the comics, I remembered being excited but yet cautious to catch this wuxia fantasy film because of its heavy reliance on CGI (even up till today, this part of the world still can't get CGI right).
Well, it wasn't a great film with too many characters and CGI fights but nevertheless an important milestone for Hong Kong cinema.
YOUNG AND DANGEROUS series (古惑仔), 1996-2000
I don't remember sitting through the entirety of any of the movies from the series. Probably it was because I was studying abroad then and had no access to Eastern movies.
Nevertheless, I'm sure this series would have impacted many young men of that generation to consider becoming a bad boy and getting a tattoo. This series rocketed Ekin Cheng to stardom in his iconic portrayal of Chan Ho Nam (I can't imagine anyone else playing "Chan Ho Nam" just like how I can't imagine anyone else playing "Mark Gor" but Chow Yun Fat).
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And that ends part 3 of my tribute to Hong Kong cinema!
Thank you so much for reading and if you like what you have read, please leave a comment. I hope you enjoyed reading this (and clicking on the links to check out the clips) as much as I did in crafting this series.
I recently watched MEN ON THE DRAGON in our local cinema and also Vox's Border Series which covered Hong Kong in the most educational and entertaining way eg. China is erasing its borders with HK. These exposure and the feeling of nostalgia led me to write this 3-part series - to pay homage to Hong Kong cinema.
To kick start, let me set it up with something depressing.
In my opinion, Hong Kong cinema will never ever be able to resurrect its glory days of the 70s, 80s and 90s (during its golden age, the country was producing 400 films a year but in recent times, it has declined to 60 films). Here's why.
Firstly, back then, HK was significantly wealthier than Mainland China and naturally, it reflected in its entertainment scene. HK contributed 27% of China's GDP during the early 90s, but today it's down to a shocking 3%. Visually, I am imagining Big Brother slowly but surely strangling the life out of Hong Kong, eventually killing off its commercial importance in the region. Obviously, this affected the output of movies as the entertainment industry shifted towards China - a much bigger market.
Secondly, there is a role reversal. Once upon a time, Mainland Chinese actors/singers wanted to break into the HK market to jump start their career but today, HK people and existing personalities are trying to make it big in China, thus causing a brain drain.
Lastly, more foreign investments especially from Hollywood started to pour into Mainland China to collaborate with Chinese production companies. The purpose? To break into the Chinese market to make more money as US box office has been steadily declining over the years (if you have 7 minutes to spare, check out this informative video on How China is Changing Hollywood). As a result, Chinese production houses are aggressively learning from the West and rapidly advancing their competencies in this field. In essence, Chinese cinema gets better and better, leaving Hong Kong cinema in the dust.
Deep sigh :(
Hence, my love letter.
I was heavily exposed to Hong Kong movies in the mid 80s to late 90s. That's like a good 15 years of engagement. It definitely influenced my world view and fueled my love for anything cinematic.
I learned about duty, brotherhood, honour, sacrifice and redemption from A Better Tomorrow (英雄本色). My nonsensical sense of humour thanks to Stephen Chow. My idea of romance from the tender interactions and thoughtful gestures between Maggie Cheung and Leon Lai's characters in Comrades: Almost a Love Story (甜蜜蜜).
Confession time.
When I was in primary school, I would usually spend a good one hour in the bathroom acting out dramatic shootout scenes from the famous cops and gangster genre. I would slide from one end of my tiny bathroom to another like how Chow Yun Fatt would do in slow-mo, with a gun in each hand. Most of the time, I would crash into the washing pails and my mom would be screaming her lungs out, "BOY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING AGAIN IN THE BATHROOM?!!"
:) Good old days.
Today, the quality of most Hong Kong movies are bad (it feels templatized) because they are mainly produced in collaboration with Mainland China production houses. What does that mean? Well, China funded movies have to follow a certain kind of guidelines of do's and don'ts eg. no revolution stories, no homosexual themes, no ghost/vampires movies etc.
And these films feel "same same" because it's usually historical period dramas with expensive movie sets and costumes and many horses. They will usually have a Hong Kong veteran actor in it like Andy Lau and...Andy Lau, some Korean actors, badly dubbed conversations and horrible CGI.
Unfortunately, the above formula works in the box office. It brings in the money. Influential HK filmmaker Johnnie To once quoted, “Everyone who makes expensive films will have to make compromises, because China is where the money is. It’s that simple.”
In the end, even famed Hong Kong filmmakers have to kowtow to Big Brother. If there is one good thing that came out of this shift is that HK is currently seeing the rise of more independent filmmakers. And their work is setting new standards for Hong Kong cinema. Whether or not this would amass to anything, one can only hope.
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In Part 2 and 3, I will be jotting down a list of HK movies from the 80s and 90s which left a lasting impression on me. It would be a much more entertaining and lighter entry.
Genre: Comedy
Running Length: 1:34
Cast: Deng Chao, Show Luo, Kitty Zhang, Lin Yun
Director: Stephen Chow
Screenplay: Stephen Chow, Kelvin Lee, Ho Miu-kei, Lu Zhengyu, Fung Chih-chiang, Ivy Kong, Chan Hing-ka, Tsang Kan-cheung
It has been a while since I laughed so hard at a Stephen Chow movie. Although Chow himself is not in THE MERMAID, trust me, if you're familiar with his earlier "mo lei tau" (nonsensical) movies, you'll "see" him everywhere in this movie. I hated his last directed movie Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons and I thought he took CJ7 too seriously. The brand of humour in The Mermaid goes way back to the days of King Of Comedy and The God of Cookery.
But is the movie any good? It's definitely way above average but it's still not "there" yet. For a start, the CG effects are bad, like really bad. You would think Chow would be an expert by now in this area after using this art form in his last four movies, but nooo~ it's worst than Shaolin Soccer. And the mermaid herself, played by newcomer Lin Yun, is irritating. She looks, performs and speaks (dubbed nevertheless) like a younger Shu Qi. I really wonder where did all the budget go. I mean the film makers ran a public casting contest to look for the lead actress and they hired 8 (!) script writers.
In terms of the positive, there were 3 standouts. Deng Chao, Show Luo and of course, the back to basics side-splitting slapstick comedy. The storyline is loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen's well-known "The Little Mermaid" with an eco message. But without the three elements mentioned above, this film would have been meh meh only. Chao is well suited as the douchebag self-made tycoon who slowly opens up his heart to the mermaid. Luo is a revelation here. He stole the show in Journey to the West and he did it here again. He is perfectly cast as the half-man, half-octopus, air-headed "himbo" leader of the mermaid species. There is one standout scene which involves his tentacles and a teppanyaki grill.
Overall, a surprisingly energetic movie marred by bad effects rendering and a weak lead. If Stephen Chow continues this trajectory, he would be back in his game again in the next two movies. And if he appears in any of them (even in a cameo), that would make me so happy I'll sing out loud the theme song from "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" Hoo! Ha!
Genre: Comedy/Adventure
Running Length: 1:39
Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Edward Norton, Jeff Goldblum, Saoirse Ronan, F. Murray Abraham
Director: Wes Anderson
If only Stephen Chow continued the trajectory of making his brand of
"nonsensical" movies, he would have created something like THE GRAND
BUDAPEST HOTEL as he matures in his profession; a much richer and denser
experience but still possesses all his trademarks - a relatively easy
to follow storyline set in a surreal world littered with exaggerated
characters caught in quirky situations (and blood bleeding from their
nose). But I digressed. Wes Anderson's Budapest Hotel is an engaging 90+
minutes of unconventional adventure and idiosyncratic humour all framed
up in obsessively carefully composed and symmetrical shots (with
beautiful bright striking colours). There are sudden burst of
unexpectedness throughout the movie. My favourite was a particularly
lengthy chase scene where the action becomes increasingly elaborated.
Ralph Fiennes is our main protagonist, the concierge of the The Grand
Budapest Hotel and he plays a caricature of himself - the impeccable
gentleman (some of the film's most amusing moments occur when he gets
angry, slips out of character and goes on a profanity laced rant). I
could never imagined Ralph Fiennes being attached to a film like this
but he owned it. A big shout out to Tony Revolori (the lobby boy,
Fiennes' protege) for his debut as Fiennes supporting actor. I must say
he held himself up very well among all the A-list supporting cast and
cameos. Not everyone will enjoy this movie but if you're looking for a
"matured Stephen Chow" fix, you will be pleasantly surprised.
