I Love Hong Kong (我愛HK開心萬歲)

I Love Hong Kong lives up to its title, showing great holiday affection for the city and the salt of the earth folks who live there. A respectable follow-up to the previous Chinese New Year’s hit 72 Tenants of Prosperity, this movie delivers a warmhearted message about community that comes wrapped in layers of laughter, nostalgia, and product placement. This TVB production is also top heavy with local television actors, but the station opts for true screen stars Tony Leung Ka-Fai and Sandra Ng to generate a hefty festive buzz.

Leung and Ng play parents to Ming (Aarif Lee), Chi (Mag Lam), and King (Chan Wing-Lam), and life is all fun and games until hard economic times brings big changes to their lives. Shun, a toy manufacturer, finds his factory shut down, so he decides to move the family back to the public housing estate where his father (Stanley Fung) still lives. But this ends up literally cramping everyone’s style.

Though Shun praises the virtues of being close to extended family and having trustworthy estate friends nearby, no one cares for this arrangement. Shun’s Wife (she doesn’t have a name but is simply known as ‘Shun’s wife’) escapes by returning to work at a beauty clinic, only to find herself demoted and taking orders from a haughty and much younger, taller, slimmer superior (Koni Lui). His son, a cog in the Food and Health Department machine, objects to living next to the stall owners he’s tasked with reprimanding, and even Shun’s father prefers having his flat to himself, where he has space enough for two TVs – a bigger one for TVB and a smaller one for that other station.

It’s Shun’s turn to feel upset though when his former friend Lung (Eric Tsang) reappears. He still holds a grudge from their youth after some funds went missing and wonders if Lung is just here to pull another scam or if he really wants to help out the struggling tenants. The power of flashback not only fleshes out their relationship and helps the audience appreciate the values of council estate living, it also gives a boatload of fresh faced TVB actors a chance to play younger versions of the characters (Bosco Wong as Shun, Wong Cho-Lam as Lung, Kate Tsui and Joyce Cheng as the bread store twins).

The gimmick aids plot development but also strengthens the message of Hong Kongers coming together to fight off the wealthy and corrupt, something we apparently did better thirty years ago. By the time the movie reaches its forced climax, you’ll be cheering on the small potatoes of this idyllic housing estate as they take on officials and developers who threaten their community and simple way of life. Hell, you might even want to live in a housing estate after you see their polished quarters. Zany side plots made funnier with a knowledge of Cantonese and Hong Kong gossip top off this stocking stuffer of a film, but the overall effort works regardless. It’s one you won’t mind revisiting next Chinese New Year’s.

“Always Friends” (始終都係朋友好) performed by the cast:

“I Love Hong Kong” performed by Aarif Lee and Mag Lam. Video not available but inspired by “Kowloon, Hong Kong” by the Reynettes:

Released: 2011
Prod: Eric Tsang 曾志偉; Jason Siu 邵劍秋
Dir: Chung Shu-Kai 鍾澍佳; Eric Tsang 曾志偉
Writer: Chung Shu-Kai 鍾澍佳; Helward Mak 麥曦茵; Wong Yeung-Tat 黃洋達
Cast: Eric Tsang 曾志偉; Tony Leung Ka-Fai 梁家輝; Sandra Ng 吳君如; Aarif Lee 李治廷; Mag Lam 林欣彤; Chan Wing-Lam 陳穎嵐; Stanley Fung 馮淬帆; Anita Yuen 袁詠儀; Fala Chen 陳法拉; Wu Ma 午馬; Wong Cho-Lam 王祖藍; Bosco Wong 黃宗澤; Jess Shum 沈卓盈; Liu Kai-Chi 廖啟智; Wayne Lai 黎耀祥; Maggie Cheung Ho-Yee 張可頤; Alfred Cheung 張堅庭; Louis Yuen 阮兆祥; Michelle Lo 盧覓雪; Kate Tsui 徐子珊 Joyce Cheng 鄭欣宜; JJ Jia 賈曉晨; Koni Lui 呂慧儀; Jeannette Leung 梁政玨; Siu Yam-Yam 邵音音; Evergreen Mak 麥長青; 6 Wing 陸永; Tenky Tin 田啟文; Lam Suet 林雪; Raymond Wong 黃浩然; Otto Wong 王志安; Eddie Pang 彭懷安; Jim Chim 詹瑞文; Samantha Ko 高海寧; Felix Wong 黃日華; Michael Miu 苗僑偉; Mak Ling-Ling 麥玲玲; Pierre Ngo 敖嘉年; Christine Kuo 苟芸慧; Terence Tsui 小肥; Hui Siu-Hung 許紹雄; and a LOT more
Time: 104 min
Lang: Cantonese
Country: Hong Kong
Reviewed: 2014

I Love Hong Kong 2012 (2012我愛HK喜上加囍)

The Mayan doomsday prophecy generated plenty of headlines and inspired a slew of apocalyptic disaster movies in 2012, and it curiously underlines this fluffy Chinese New Year film. The approaching armageddon motivates the characters to realize the importance of family and, matched with a bag of laughs and a bundle of television stars, makes for a standard holiday film.

Though it shares a title with TVB’s 2011 CNY effort, the two are unrelated and I Love Hong Kong 2012 fails to live up to its predecessor. This one is a messy affair that lacks a coherent plot to drive its message home. Like the previous year’s film, Stanley Fung stars as the family patriarch. Kwok Ching is a longtime weather reporter for the local television station, and some scenes might remind you of the CNY classic It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World). At work, he locks horns with his boss and one-time classmate, Kei Yee (Siu Yam-Yam), and at home, he oversees the lives of his three children – eldest daughter and lawyer Kwok Mei-Mei (Teresa Mo), who is married to Yao Ming (Eric Tsang, not Yao Ming), tomboyish middle child Kwok Ching-Ching (Denise Ho, not Guo Jing Jing), and youngest son and cameraman Aaron Kwok (6 Wing, not Aaron Kwok) – and brother San (Evergreen Mak).

The family’s personal and professional trials are subject to a revolving door of jokes and gags, the enjoyment of which depends largely on your knowledge of Cantonese and local news and gossip. The Hong Kong Observatory comes under fire and Mainland mothers crowding the city’s maternity wards also take a hit. Some of the best laughs come from a parody of the 2011 Taiwanese smash You are the Apple of My Eye between Ching and Kei Yee as they reflect on their youth and the present. Another moment that simultaneously elicits howls of joy and shrieks of horror comes when Mei-Mei and Ming, who are having trouble conceiving, try to get it on by dressing up in various form-fitting attire. Some people think it’s funny to see Eric Tsang wear spandex superhero costumes; some do not.

Everyone is absorbed in their own little orbit, and the camera flits into each character’s life just long enough to establish a conflict and make a few wisecracks before flying off again. So when the threat of annihilation comes to the fore, there’s a confusing urgency to everyone’s problems. Mei-Mei and Ming’s testy relationship is complicated when their sponsored daughter (Natalie Meng) arrives, having grown into a beautiful, busty young woman. Ching-Ching must decide whether she wants to marry her boyfriend (Bosco Wong), an effeminate grocery store salesperson, and in the process try to reconcile her boyish looks and behavior with her father’s gender expectations. The greatest burden though might fall on little Aaron Kwok, whose love for property/entertainment magnate’s lover (William So and Viann Zhang, respectively) pits him against all those monopolizing barons who are crushing the little people.

The jumble of stray plotlines eventually comes together and is resolved in a way so that all things are made clear and put at peace when you think the world will end. Despite humorous performances especially by Mo and a leather-clad E02, the movie doesn’t earn its good will. Nevertheless, you will probably leave the theatre, or your DVD player, or your illegal streaming site, with a warm feeling in your heart.

“Amazing Grace” (明日恩典) by Joey Yung

Released: 2012
Prod: Eric Tsang 曾志偉; Peter Tsi 戚家基
Dir: Wilson Chin 錢國偉; Chung Shu-Kai 鍾澍佳
Writer: Peter Tsi 戚家基; Kwok Kin-Lok 郭建樂; Michelle Tsui 徐敏琳
Cast: Stanley Fung 馮淬帆; Eric Tsang 曾志偉; Teresa Mo 毛舜筠; Denise Ho 何韻詩; Bosco Wong 黃宗澤; Evergreen Mak 麥長青; 6 Wing 陸永; William So 蘇永康; Viann Zhang 張馨予; Siu Yam-Yam 邵音音; Christine Kuo 苟芸慧; Maggie Siu 邵美琪; Ding Yue 丁羽; Mimi Chu 朱咪咪; Hui Siu-Hung 許紹雄; King Kong 金剛; Bob Lam 林盛斌; Jess Shum 沈卓盈; Tats Lau 劉以達; Eliza Sam 岑麗香; Alfred Cheung 張堅庭; Natalie Meng 孟瑤; Samantha Ko 高海寧; Tenky Tin 田啟文; Otto Wong 王志安; Eddie Pang 彭懷安; Eric Tse 謝凱榮; Osman Hung 洪智傑; Celine Ma 馬蹄露; Matthew Ko 高鈞賢; Liu Fan 魯芬; Yu Miu-Lin 余慕蓮; Sire Ma 馬賽; Cilla Kung 樂瞳; Jacqueline Chong 莊思敏; Raymond Chiu 趙永洪; Matt Chow 鄒凱光; Han Jin 陳奐仁; Louis Yuen 阮兆祥; Mak Ling Ling 麥玲玲; Stephanie Che 車婉婉; Gill Mohindepaul Singh 喬寶寶
Time: 95 min
Lang: Cantonese
Country: Hong Kong
Reviewed: 2014

Perfect Wedding (抱抱俏佳人)

Would you chat up Raymond Lam if he was sitting alone at a chic bar sipping a glass of wine, nose buried in The Lost Symbol? This movie assumes you would, that is, if you are a woman who loves a man with a philistine bent towards literature. Lam along with his erstwhile costar Miriam Yeung (from TVB’s 2001 serial Taste of Love) quickly dispense with Dan Brown and get on to more pleasurable pursuits.

Both tweak their stock characters for this agreeable romantic comedy. Yeung retains her energetic and somewhat biting onscreen persona as Yan, wedding planner for the well-to-do. She dials up the intensity though as a taskmaster and company owner who goes all out to deliver the perfect nuptials for her demanding clients. Along the way, she delivers some sharp jabs at the absurdity of the industry. On the other side of the bed, TVB prince Lam reprises his television duties as the romantic hero Fung, the main difference being his heightened state of undress.

Their relationship begins after a one night stand extends into a very awkward work affair. Fung is unexpectedly dispatched as the celebrant of several weddings under Yan’s direction. She’s not pleased, as Yeung tries to convey with pouty chin and angry saucer eyes, but after he helps her out of a few tight spots, she begins to soften. Not only does Fung secure a performance by Lady Gaga thus winning Yan another spendthrift client, he also accompanies her on a drinking binge following a disastrous TV interview.

It turns out that under Yan’s flinty exterior lies a jilted bride clutching a messy bouquet of confusion, insecurity, and regret. She may still have a thing for her photographer ex (Kot), but she also finds Fung’s youth and optimism refreshing. The couple bond over rotisserie chicken, and other things, but she can’t bring herself to acknowledge the relationship in front of her coworkers or friends.

Yeung is well matched against both costars, bringing something akin to character development for a female role in Hong Kong film. The casual viewer may be surprised that the woman charging the corridors in the business district Central, or in this case Cyberport, has an interior life. She is genuinely conflicted about choosing between Raymond Lam and Eric Kot, and that takes convincing. Meanwhile, Lam, in his big screen return (minus a minor part in 72 Tenants of Prosperity), is not tasked with much acting; he nevertheless manages a good impression of an eager boyfriend.

He does his company proud, as does a vacuous gaggle of TVB regulars who pop in to support the cause. Hong Kong’s premiere television station, by default, does what it does best – promote itself. Pageant princesses Kate Tsui, Bernice Liu, and Oceane Zhu, along with entertainment stalwart Teresa Mo constitute Yan’s preening entourage. Pierre Ngo is a camp one-note stereotype. Even TVB’s pastry bedfellow, Kee Wah, makes an appearance. Such a love-in is sure to keep the television loyalists happy, but it’s an affair non-fans will also find satisfying.

Miriam Yeung and Raymond Lam’s “First Sight” (初見).

Released: 2010
Prod: Lawrence Cheng 鄭丹瑞; Ren Yue 任月; Zhao Jun 趙軍; Stephen Lam 林炳坤
Dir: Barbara Wong 黃真真
Writer: Lawrence Cheng 鄭丹瑞; Hau Wing-Hang 侯穎桁
Cast: Miriam Yeung 楊千嬅; Raymond Lam 林峯;  Chrissie Chau 周秀娜; Pierre Ngo 敖嘉年; Teresa Mo 毛舜筠; Eric Kot 葛民輝; Mak Ling-Ling 麥玲玲; Kate Tsui 徐子珊; Bernice Liu 廖碧兒; Oceane Zhu 硃璇; Richard Ng 吳耀漢; Ken Hung 洪卓立; Kylie Weng 翁佳妮; Kathy Yuen 湯怡; Tats Lau 劉以達; Ankie Beilke 貝安琪; Lily Ho 何傲兒; Samantha Ko 高海寧
Time: 99 min
Lang: Cantonese
Country: Hong Kong
Reviewed: 2013