wang bo (andy lau) and wang li (rene lui) are lovers and thieves. the story begins with the pair delivering a stolen bmw via a long, cross-country drive which seems to be causing tension between them. after stopping off at a large temple, li takes the opportunity to pray, whilst bo sees an opportunity to pick some pockets, li walks out on her life of crime and bo. still, leaving your past behind you is never that easy; even with the help of a young, kind-hearted, temple craftsman, known as dumbo (wang baoqiang), li finds herself waiting for the same train home, as bo.

in a strange coincidence, dumbo is also set to board the train; he's planning to return to his home town, with a large amount of cash, which he plans to use to get married, buy a house and become a farmer. li's resolve, to walk on the straight and narrow, is going to be tested, especially as bo has his eyes on dumbo's money. still, keeping dumbo's money safe from bo, seems like an easier prospect than keeping it from uncle li (ge you) and his team of professional pick-pockets; leaf (lee bing-bing) and four eyes (gordon lam)...

‘a world without thieves’ is a slightly odd film. although it appears to have a relatively simplistic premise; how, when bad people try to accomplish good, it can be very difficult, it goes to great lengths to create a narrative which is as contrived and silly as it can be. the film is populated by a fairly improbable, yet strangely familiar, bunch of characters; there's a master pick-pocket, with a questionable code of morals, a grifter who has turned her back on crime and is intent on protecting a young, unbelievably naive, bumpkin and his cash. we also have a master criminal and his minions; the femme fatale and the geek. still, once the set up is established and we move from terra firma onto the rail road, the unexpectedly entertaining nature of the film takes over and, despite the uber-annoying dumbo (who you almost want to be ripped off), it's a surprisingly engaging and entertaining ride.

in a strange way, the cinematography of the film reflects this pattern. from the first shot of the film, throughout the journeys that bo and li make, to arrive on the train, the cinematography is riddled with lush, wide shots of the sky and landscape which they are travelling through. as they move from the buddhist temple to the railway station, the focus of the cinematography, like the narrative, becomes more focussed on the protagonists until, like them, it is restricted to the carriages of the train. the use of the train is definitely a strength of the film, allowing more possibilities than one would expect from such a, seemingly, restrictive location; the hustle and bustle of the passenger cars allow for the creation of a claustrophobic environment, whilst the opulence of the first class and dining carriages provide a welcome contrast, not only environmentally, but also highlighting the difference between bo and li's status in the world of thieves and that of uncle li.

now, tartan bill a world without thieves as "action/romance" but, i've gone with "drama" as i feel it is more accurate and, the only action to speak of is pick-pocketry* and slight of hand. (* yes, i know that isn't a real word.) still, despite feng xiaogang's best attempts to sabotage his own work, using a myriad of slow motion and effects, the numerous scenes of "action" are pretty good. there's some nicely choreographed 'distract and grab' sequences, some nicely worked scenes of pocket-picking and some interesting slight of hand tricks: still, i think your appreciation of these sequences may depend on your interest in such skills. personally, i'm a fan. there's also some nice cgi enhanced trickery; one scene, where bo shows (off) his own, unique, way of peeling a boiled egg and uncle li's response, which is particularly impressive.

feng xiaogang is an interesting director; best known for, his 2001 comedy/satire, ‘big shot's funeral’ or, his 2006 drama, ‘the banquet’, you'd be right to wonder where ‘a world without thieves’ sits in relation to these two films. well, i'm not quite sure, although he certainly doesn't seem to be tying himself to any particular genre, which seems to be the case here. the film is, on the whole, a drama but, within those confines, there are elements of action, moments which are thrilling and there's a touch of comedy here and there. as i have mentioned, the film does take a little while to find its feet, but once it gets going feng's mixtures of styles work well together and ensure that the pace travels as steadily as the film's location for the rest of the film. i'm not saying that this means that he's making a great film, but it certainly keeps things entertaining. personally, i think that the film has ideas above its station, in that it is presented in such a grandiose style, and i would have seen it as a grand failure, if i were to have watched it with high expectations. however, my expectations were for something which skated around being reasonable, at best, and found myself enjoying the ludicrous nature of it. take it too seriously and you may well be disappointed.

as for the cast of the film, in my opinion, ren lui is the main attraction, although ge you and lee bing-bing come close in their smaller roles. andy lau merely does a reasonable job here, he has been praised for a role that goes a little against type, but it shouldn't really have been much of a stretch for him to pull it off. one thing he should've pulled off, though, is a wig that should win a prize, for being so dreadful. rene lui, who i do like (particularly her turn in, the seemingly ignored ‘happy birthday’) and hope to see getting some good roles in the future, puts in a good performance next to the veteran lau even if she, also, isn't challenged too much. ge you, as you would expect, adapts well to his role and seems to have great fun as the, slightly campy, villain; uncle li. i would imagine that he also enjoyed working alongside lee bing-bing, for the majority of the film; lee is great as the sultry, cunning, student of uncle li. in fact, i take it back: rene lui is not the film's main attraction; lee bing-bing is. the low-point of the cast, unless you manage not to be annoyed by his performance and feel that he has perfectly encapsulated the persona of a ridiculously naive bumpkin, is wang baoqiang. still, the plot demands that he fulfils this role, so i can't just lay the blame at his feet...

so, in conclusion, what we have here is a film that seems to present itself as something bigger and better than it is, but still ends up being perfectly entertaining fare, despite having such pretensions. i think. for all i know, it may have been feng xiaogang's intention to create a film, which one sees, exactly like this. hang on, i'm off to watch the making of ‘a world without thieves’, back shortly...

...hmm, looks like was attempting something bigger and better. oh, well...