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正將 (2001)
The Cheaters


Reviewed by: PAUL MARTINEZ
Date: 10/10/2004
Summary: The Title gives it away

The Cheaters are supposed to be a group of 5 conmen in the film. Actually it's the producers of this inane nonsense that are the true cheaters. They cheated myself & everyone else who paid to see this junk.

The plot was so simple at first then quickly got extremely confusing. This was not because of plot twists it was because it was horribly explained.

Jordan Chan, who is one of my favorite actors was ok here, but what was up with that voice? As someone said earlier he sounded like he had marbles in his mouth. The rest of the cast was ok as well. It's hard to give praise for performances when they're not doing anything that makes sense.

A really disappointing effort. Don't even let me get started on the suprise killer. Which didn't make a drop of sense. Ughh. Beware.

Reviewer Score: 2

Reviewed by: Dyogenez
Date: 12/29/2002
Summary: not the worst

Perhaps i've seen too many terrible movies to think of this movie as bad. The storyline is a little slow at first, but it was interesting enough, to me at least, to keep my attention on the caper at hand. Unfortunately with this movie almost all the information is revealed piece by piece, meaning any desciption of events would almost certainly give away much of the movie. To put it vaguely, a group of 5 confident conmen get jobs at a major corporation in an attempt to squander the business out of millions. The trouble comes when they learn of another party also trying to steal from the same company. The pace is slow, and storyline confusing, which did sometimes make me turn away and come back to it, feeling even more lost. The acting in this one was definetely a saving grace though. In all it's an OK story, executed very well, resulting in a mederocre film.

5/10.


Reviewed by: Inner Strength
Date: 04/14/2002
Summary: Dull

I agree with Paul Fonoroff, it takes time to get going, and when it does it doesn't last long, and it looks like there will be a climax at the end, but no such effect.

Rating [2/5]


Reviewed by: Sydneyguy
Date: 02/20/2002
Summary: Pretty bad

Oh man, this movie is bad. Unentertaining, so much so it's a drama rather than a slick crime movie. But the ending was quite good but thats all i can recommend about this movie.

It's slow pace, and thinks getting down mysteriously (because you dont see it happening, like taking photos) doesn't add to the suspense of the movie.

The actors do their part well but the poor script (well the basic plot was good) just destory's the movie.

Roger


Reviewed by: Paul Fonoroff
Date: 05/22/2001

Many films start out strong and peter out by the end. The Cheaters has gotten the order different, starting out as a rather humdrum "Sting" type story, perking up in the middle and concluding with a resounding whimper.

You gotta give director Billy Chung credit, for most Cantonese crime capers don't even have a good middle. It's just that the scriptwriters wrote themselves into a corner and, in the denouement revealing the biggest cheater of them all, decided to go with the least likely suspect. The trouble is, there's a good reason why this character (whose identity will not be revealed here) remained unsuspected. The conclusion is so confusing and unconvincing that one suspects that it's not just the protagonists who are cheaters.

The gang of five conducting the scams are an attractive lot, consisting of four guys-Alex Fong, Jordan Chan, Ken Wong, and Chapman To-and one gal, Hern Lam Pik-yan. With their flashy cars and showy behavior, it's a wonder they enjoy the anonymity that is a chief requirement in fleecing the high rollers that make up the bread and butter of these cheaters' trade. This goes double for Jordan Chan, a ladies man who numbers among his conquests a tycoon's daughter, Sonja Kwok Sin-nei.

One forgets about plot implausibilities when an unexpected series of murders jolts The Cheaters to life during its midsection. Also noteworthy is a flamboyant auto chase between Alex Fong and nemesis Simon Lui (in a typically cool and threatening role) that takes us from TST East to Hung Hom, proof that even low budget Hong Kong pictures display a certain expertise in their action sequences.

The movie also warrants a small footnote in the annals of cinematic and financial history as being the first to use the newly formed MPF (Mandatory Provident Fund) as the background to a monetary scam. The film was shot during the Christmas 2000 season, and the holiday lights and countdown to 2001 outside Times Square will surely be a source of nostalgia to future audiences. In the year 2001 itself, though, The Cheaters will cause barely a blip on most viewers' cinematic radar screens.

2 Stars

This review is copyright (c) 2001 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.

Reviewer Score: 4

Reviewed by: Rab99bit
Date: 05/17/2001
Summary: Not my kind of movie

One woman and 4 men form the "Cheaters", a partnership solely for cheating the rich through gambling and other resources. They finally come up with a plan to take-over a corporation through fraudulent means. Their plans fail and this eventually leads to their downfall. One by one the gang is eliminated, leaving one survivor - guess who ?
The sound system from the VCD was irritating, to say the least. Jordan Chan appears to be talking with marbles in his mouth. The storyline is not clear even after 2 viewings. What is Alex Fong doing in a movie of this quality ? If you have bought or rented the VCD / DVD just to see his handsome face, you will not be disappointed (and there's also a ridiculous love-making scene thrown in !).