Magic Kitchen, written and directed by Lee Chi-Ngai, is another movie to come down the tired romantic-comedy path. The movie sets up the conventional romantic triangle of Sammi Cheng, And Lau and Jerry Yan, but takes some interesting turns with the relationships. Sammi plays a cook who is asked to participate in the King Chef cooking show (a take on the hit show Iron Chef, from Japan). She takes the entire movie to decide if its the right thing for her to do. In between is the rise and fall of relationships of friends, lovers and unconsummated love.
While Magic Kitchen is diverting, it also has problems. Surprisingly, the food concept is just a prop device, since there is no food on display. You also never get a sense that Sammi can cook at all. The dubbing for Jerry Yan and Maggie Q was very distracting and took away from their performances. Why Maggie was cast over a native speaker is quizzical. Like Maggie, Jerry Yan was just plain bland. He may be eye candy for the ladies but a piece of wood in the acting department.
Magic Kitchen is for forgiving fans of Sammi Cheng and Andy Lau. For a movie that centers on a chef, but doesnt highlight any food or cooking, is a disappointment.
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