Of 2002's three big Christmas season movies- the others, of course, being Hero and Infernal Affairs- this is, surprisingly, in some ways the best. I wouldn't have expected it of a racy Sandra Ng vehicle, but I left the theater more thoroughly satisfied than after watching the other two, even if they are more to my normal taste.

As the comedy one would expect, it's plenty good enough. A lot of jokes I got, some I didn't, but Golden Chicken is certainly a good time, and the audience certainly seemed to appreciate it. There are a couple spots where the laughs fade for a while, but this movie is funnier than most.

Aside from that, the film is also a refreshingly LOCAL film in a time when all too many films are striving for international appeal. It is one of the most intimate looks at Hong Kong and its people in recent memory, and it pulls it off with biting humor and genuine feeling.

It's also well produced, with an overall accomplished look. While some of the fashions worn by Ng and her co-workers are a bit hard on the eyes, the movie isn't. Oh, and Ng gives one of her best performances ever and could've carried the movie without the heaps of cameos, most of which are actually funny, not just there for their own sake.

I don't want to overhype this movie too much, but I really hope it doesn't get lost among the excitement about the other, more macho films this season, because Golden Chicken, believe it or not, may just have more to offer than the Oscar-nominated Hero or the box-office king Infernal Affairs. Don't overlook it.