Let The Bullets Fly (2010) @ 让子弹飞

"I'm the director of this movie and this is what I get to do, okay Carina?"

At a glance:

Dubbed by the film's director as China's answer to Hollywood's Oceans Twelve (2004), Jiang Wen's Let The Bullets Fly 让子弹飞 is an immensely rich and successful genre-bender that will go down as one of the best movies in the past 10 years to all Mandarin-speakin territories. With even Feng Xiao Gang in a cameo appearance early in the film, Jiang Wen blends art house storytellin with commercial sensibilities to deliver an entertainin period caper about three men in 1920s warrin China - Bangde Ma (Ge You), Pocky Zhang (Jiang Wen himself in an inspired performance) and Huang (Chow Yun Fatt). It's black humour with lots of old school banditry seeped in a political battle of wits.
Bad news on the doorstep:
The cast turn in a five-star performance with each actor stealin the scenes of another; it's appropriately convoluted and sharply tackled. However, most reviewers note that some of the subtleties of language are perhaps lost to all but the native Chinese. The sequences are intelligent and weighted, although some CG work comes across very cartoonish.

Reminds me of:

The last time I had so much fun watchin a Mainland movie - One Foot Off The Ground (2006).

Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?
Four stars. Any viewer who manages to catch Let The Bullets Fly will know that the 30 over script drafts the director went over before finally bein satisfied was likely no exaggeration. With its two versions (one in Mandarin and one in Sichuanese), the film broke several box office records in Mainland China and Hong Kong, and received critical acclaim when it was released. One source has it down for a 730 million yuan (US$111.1 million) in box office, becomin the highest-grossin domestic film in China's cinematic history when it was released. Movie opens Stateside this week, almost two years since the Chinese first saw it.
Trailer for the curious:

Bonus material:

DID YOU KNOW? Chow Yun Fatt hasn't been in a Cantonese movie for 17 long years, since God Of Gambler Returns (1994), I think.

72 Tenants Of Prosperity (2010) @ 72 家租客

At a glance:
Referencing the Shaw Bros 1973 classic The House Of 72 Tenants, the decidedly crowded 72 Tenants Of Prosperity is a colourful (though not necessarily nutritious) addition to the Chinese New Year movie calendar which will invariably draw laughs among all followers of Hong Kong TV and cinema, especially those with a history of TVB fandom. There's like 180 known actors in it! In this 2010 reupdate, the paedophile politicians and brothel owners are missin and they've been replaced by fish ball noodle hawkers and manga sellers. We get intermittent flashbacks to 70s HK where the events of Sai Yeung Choi Street originally took place: 72 tenants who battled greedy landlords, with a love triangle that gave rise to a family feud. In the present day, the feud continues with the same triangle still festering but now it's a full-on Romeo and Juliet adventure as the next generation start to commit inter-family relationships of their own.
I can't remember if I cried:

When I read this cast list: Jacky Cheung, Eric Tsang, Anita Yuen, Lam Ka Tung, Charmaine Sheh, Fala Chen, Michael Tse, Bosco Wong, Linda Chung, Stephy Tang, Wong Cho Lam, Joyce Cheng, Lawrence Ng, Ron Ng, Kevin Cheng, Kenneth Ma, Kate Tsui. Kelly Chen, Sunny Chan, Joe Ma, Ben Wong, Natalie Tong, Leung Ka Ki, Timmy Hung, Joel Chan, Carina Lau, Alan Tam, Natalis Chan, Chin Siu Ho, Wayne Lai, Nancy Sit, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Sammy Leung, Dicky Cheung, Andy Hui, Tin Kai Man, Sam Lee, Ella Koon, Bernice Liu, Kayi Cheung, William So, Wu Fung, Louis Yuen, Raymond Lam, Justin Lo and Myolie Wu.
Watch out for:
Unlike similar projects with jarrin cameos, this one goes at it casual with a most light-hearted and non-committal approach. Story is funny in a giggly way and a truly inspired highlight is when Jacky Cheung and Wong Cho Lam do a play of Jackie's hit number.
Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?
Decent family fun. The film must also be credited with one of the most original and inoffensive way to execute the obligatory product placements. They un-apologetically sang our all the sponsor names to the tune of a traditional New Year tune while holding out title cards and liftin household appliances! Do tell the kids not to copy all the swearin. ★★★

Ashes Of Time Redux (2008) @ 東邪西毒：終極版

At a glance:
Nonchalant swordsman Ouyang Feng (Leslie Cheung, pic) lives the life of a desert vagabond, earnin his livelihood by subcontractin to others assassination gigs. Pitiless and cynical, his heart has long been wounded by a love he neglected then lost. But as the seasons come and go, so do friends and enemies alike, so he begins to reflect upon the origin of his solitude.
Bad news on the doorstep:
Edited from the 1994 release Ashes Of Time, Wong Kar Wai's 2008 redo can only attest to his ongoin legacy as the most celebrated HK director of these times and also the least understood as well. Whatever differences there are between the two versions that you can read about at length online, it remains that the story is essentially and annoyingly the same - a moody reflection of a hardened hitman who lives in the desert. It's talky, it's academic and it makes great viewin for art house aficionados who worship Wong for his colour palette choice.
Perennial wonderment:
If Leslie Cheung can live 300 years.
Reminds me of:
Sex in a very hot place.
Watch out for:
All-star cast of top actors - Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Maggie Cheung (pic), Carina Lau, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Charlie Young, Jacky Cheung and the departed Leslie Cheung. They go about ridin horses, wieldin swords and drinkin Chinese wine in a confusin wuxia story with wonderful music to comfort you.
Most memorable line:
"Do you know the difference between drinkin wine and drinkin water? The more wine you drink, the warmer you'll get. Water will only make you feel cold."
Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?
Best watched alone, Ashes Of Time redux or not, is a detached metaphorical piece without the arrogance of directorial indulgence but still suffers from the lack of mass appeal even among fans of Wong Kar Wai titles. If the catastrophic 1994 HK box office for this movie is anythin to go by, this revisionist project is best buried among the lesser of Wong's works. The movie thankfully does finish strong and leaves you with a very convalescent aftertaste.★★