Give Them a Chance (給他們一個機會)

Give Them a Chance is bookeded by megastar Andy Lau. The opening sets up the Heavenly King of Cantopop as a benevolent Hong Kong entertainment deity who, grateful for all the opportunities and behind-the-scenes support through the years, wishes to bestow the same to others so that they can find success in the industry. Fast forward 95 minutes and there’s Andy, living out his dream of helping people make it big. The credits roll to footage from his 2001 concert featuring a group of background dancers shaking it like there’s no tomorrow. And they are the real stars of this movie.

The film gets an A for effort, not for Andy Lau’s altruism. It suffices as the feel good, based on a true story movie of the week, and though it occasionally tries to push those boundaries a little too far, it succeeds in corralling its audience’s sympathy towards the talented lower class teens who want a little more out of the life they’re dealt.

Despite their break dancing ambitions, the kids face one dead end after another. They’re hardly ace students, and the one healthy interest they have gets thwarted by adults who think they’re up to no good. Even the city won’t give them a break. During an outdoor performance, a cop tells them in the politest terms to shove off because wealthy tourists at a nearby hotel have complained about the noise, and we know who takes priority there.

Luckily there are some people who see potential in Hong Kong’s youth, including aspiring dancer turned action director Sam (Andy Hui) and injured former dancer Jack (Osman Hung), a pair of quarrelling brothers who try to put aside their grudges for the greater good and build a practice studio. Their story threads together the patchwork of teens who flock to the new dance haven. Brothers Durian and Kenny, each with his own medical issue, vie for the attention of longtime friend Money, who develops feelings for Jim, who is also on shaky terms with his older brother.

The amount of teen angst can be a little overpowering and is not helped by some of the actors, particularly Andy Lau’s goddaughter Ellis Tang who babbles like a preschooler. Howard Kwok, on the other hand, is very affecting as Kenny despite not saying anything. This could also have been a more inspiring and artistically successful film with stronger dance sequences and better music, but this was never supposed to be Step Up. Instead, the movie works from ground up and, like the kids, doesn’t have the package or polish of other commercial films. This doesn’t necessarily make it better but it does make it more satisfying to watch.

Released: 2003
Prod: Sam Wong 黃明昇, Ng Kin-Hung 伍健雄
Dir: Herman Yau 邱禮濤
Writer: Yeung Yee-Shan 楊漪珊; Herman Yau 邱禮濤
Cast: Andy Hui 許志安; Ellis Tang 鄧肇欣; Johnathan Cheung 張穎康; Walter Wong 黃家倫; Howard Kwok 郭浩東; Osman Hung 洪智傑; Eddie Pang 彭懷安; Anna Yau 丘凱敏; Jason Wong 黃益平; Joe Cheung 張同祖; Liu Kai-Chi 廖啟智; Anthony Wong 黃秋生; Mark Lui 雷頌德; Alex Fong Lik-Sun 方力申; Ronald Cheng 鄭中基; Stephanie Che 車婉婉; Wayne Lai 黎耀祥; Amanda Lee 李蕙敏; Andy Lau 劉德華
Time: 98 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