Roaring Wheels (2000)
Reviewed by: j.crawford on 2006-02-28
Summary: Throttle Down
This entry in the Year of the Dog film program demonstrates that success can be an elusive trophy. Roaring Wheels became a turning point in director Aman Chang's career. He was a protege of Wong Jing's in the early 90's, working as an assistant director on films like City Hunter and Chinese Torture Chamber Story. In 1998, Chang got the director's credit on seven films that Wong produced and scripted while spending afternoons at the famous Jockey Club. Later, he had even more success with the films Body Weapon and Fist Power.

Roaring Wheels showed that musician Dave Wong Kit can't carry a motion picture as the lead actor. He's not awful here but he just doesn't have the screen charisma to carry a movie. Maggie Shaw is the movie star here. Her performance keeps the viewer mildly interested in the proceedings. The always delightful Karen Mok Man-Wai manages to shine through the murky cinematography and, despite the banality of the scenario, Moses Chan goes over the top again, standing out as he
did in Andrew Lau Wai-Keung's Legend of Speed.

The screenplay by Ching Tau is a pathetic, very weak rehash of the excellent Full Throttle and the aforementioned dismal Legend of Speed. Seaside locations guarantee good times for the film crew, but funds get used up quickly off screen resulting in poor production quality on screen. Aman Chang almost directed himself out of the film business with this effort and his next project, the legendary box office failure Twilight Garden.

happyfortune.org
Reviewer Score: 5