Even motorbike enthusiasts will have a hard time getting revved up about Roaring Wheels. Director Aman Chang has fashioned a low-octane action-drama from a melodramatic script (by Chau Ting) that is virtually running on empty. Despite the presence of racing scenes choreographed by Bruce Law, the picture is less exciting than a jaunt on the MTR.

It is yet another attempt to transform singer Dave Wang Chieh into a big screen sensation. As the "racing god" Wong Fei, Wang broods, snarls, and limps (due to a rather contrived plot complication), but fails to display anything approaching the magic that has made him a recording star. Whether it is the fault of the director, script, or his own thespian talents, Wang demonstrates a singular lack of screen charisma.

The story doesn’t help. Through an expository first reel, we learn of Wong’s vow to never race again, and the death of his first wife—in childbirth, no less—when Wong breaks this vow. Three years later, he is a single father, raising his cute little boy in the obscurity of a seaside resort. He is an unsmiling wretch, his life brightened by the tiny tot and the unspoken love of his sister-in-law, Kelly (Maggie Siu).

The tranquil if dull existence is intruded upon by Fung (Moses Chan), a racing fanatic intent on wresting the title "God of Racers" from Wong. A mystery girl, Suki (Karen Mok), also shows up on the beach, in love with Wong and making Kelly green with envy. Suki has a puzzling relationship with Fung, though few viewers will care enough to solve the puzzle.

This is certainly one of Mok’s less interesting characters. The only actor to manage to inject some humanity into a role is Maggie Siu, who captures both the world-weariness and passion of the surrogate mother and lover.

A racing scene on Nathan Road was most certainly not easy to shoot, but the underlying motivation—Fung’s quest to become God of Racers—is so juvenile that one doesn’t really give a hoot. Two songs by Dave Wang are interpolated, proving that as far as Roaring Wheels is concerned, his talent behind the microphone is superior to that before the camera.

2 stars

This review is copyright (c) 2000 by Paul Fonoroff. All rights reserved. No part of the review may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.