Crystal B
Madness that leads to understanding and relief. Tragic comedy or comic tragedy?? Do keep up, please? Definitely worth a watch or two...three. An absolute joy to watch unfold!
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
07/07/23
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Audience Member
It is somewhat confusing at first, but after a fairly surprising twist, the movie becomes more enjoyable and the comedy becomes much easier to understand. The acting is excellent, along with the beautifully-shot set. Over the course of its 1 hour and 48 minute runtime, the movie transforms from its nonsensical beginning to become surprisingly dramatic, tense, and great to watch.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
01/13/23
Full Review
jesse o
Not exactly sure what to feel about this. In some regards I enjoyed the film's structure and the presentation. It's not exactly the most unique, but it does add a lot of life to the film. On the other hand, I found the story to be incredibly convoluted and nonsensical. There's some stuff that happens that you don't really even know why they're happening. Like the subplot with the detectives wanting to come in and steal the container because they think it's full of money, what purpose does that serve in the context of what's going on? I'm pretty sure you won't be able to explain it because it serves none, other than to get some more people on screen. And there's also some issues with the chronology of the events. It's not to say that it jumps all over the place, like a Tarantino movie, but it's hard to follow sometimes because the transitions between scenes, or settings, isn't exactly the smoothest. While I know the film's characters were putting on an act so the Japanese would be duped into giving up, what they hope, would be a cure for the cholera that has spread throughout Beijing, it would've been a nice twist if you found out that these guys were just acting all along. Have the film play out exactly as it did, but then have the flashbacks at the end of them deliberating how to go about duping the Japanese when they do the big reveal. I can understand why they went about it the way they did, it sort helps make the movie a little more serious and important than it would've been otherwise, but I think it might have been a more than solid twist. With that said, I still think the more dramatic aspects of the film really help sell the desperation of the situation in which they find themselves in at this point in time. That was pretty good, even if the drama sort of undermines the comedy. Not that there really are that many truly funny moments in the film. Honestly I think this is a drama film with some comedic elements that deceitfully started out as a comedy. I can see how people might be thrown off. But this really is a drama first and foremost. The comedy is there to liven things up and not make everything so serious, but it doesn't always work, in my opinion. Of course a lot of the comedy may very well be lost in translation. Or it's something that will only make sense to someone who's actually lived in China. That probably happens more often than I notice, so it's to be expected. The film also has some decent action sequences near its climax. A lot of bullets are shot, so that was surprising. The characters themselves were likable, if not particularly complex. They have only one thing in mind and that's getting the cure for their people. That leaves little room for actual character development. But they're still likable in that they're fighting for a good cause, no matter what that might bring upon them. The movie, unfortunately, also got way too sentimental in its last act. I think it took away a lot from the film, because they're really overstating the point. You don't have to force that what they did was heroic down my throat. I can already tell that by their actions and that sentimentality does no justice to the characters. Not like they were great characters, as mentioned, but they were doing a good thing. Still, this is a decent movie at best. It's inconsistent and it has some flaws, but it's a decent enough watch. Won't set your world on fire, but it's fairly watchable.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
[img]http://english.cri.cn/mmsource/images/2013/04/11/0411mr.jpg[/img]
This action comedy from China is something different... amazingly different. Director Guan Hu was brave creating a story about Chinese suffering from oppression by the Japanese, and making a comedy happening just after people were reeling from the Nanjing Massacre. You think it is impossible to laugh in a movie describing the times when millions are without food while Japanese army started biological warfare on civilians - WRONG! Staring Liu Ye as the Chef, Huang Bo as the Scoundrel, Zhang Hanyu as the Actor, Liang Jing as the Chef's wife and Chie Tanaka as Japanese translator and undercover agent, this was one of the most hilarious comedies I've seen in Chinese cinemas.
The plot is serious, happening in 1942 when a team of Chinese covert agents kidnaps a Japanese general and his assistant who have a sample of the biological agent and knowledge of an antidote. In order to extract information from their captives, the team hole up in a restaurant and resorts to subterfuge and with members pretending to be a Japanese Chef, a highway man cum scoundrel and a classic Chinese actor.
Now if you think you can imagine that... don't even try! The story and acting in this movie is crazily unique, refreshing and more than amazing. For the first part of the movie you'll be left wondering if the three main characters played by Liu ye, Huang Bo and Zhang Hanyu are insane. It is not until almost half way through the movie that you find out they are not insane or trying to exploit the situation but actually patriotic covert agents putting on an act for the sake of their Japanese captives.
If you like a movie with excellent camera work, colourful cinematography and almost perfect blend of comedy, action and craziness , please, do not miss this one!
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/18/23
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