by Brian Thibodeau » Mon Mar 14, 2005 3:57 pm
The first CONMAN movie, starring Andy Lau and Nick Cheung is pretty good. the second, CONMEN IN VEGAS adds Nat Chan to the mix and has him eating a s**t pie shaped like Mickey Mouse, but it does make excellent use of Vegas locations and has a fun motorhome-vs-helicopter climax. I thoroughly enjoyed CONMEN IN TOKYO despite, or perhaps because of, the mixed reviews. My expectations were lowered and perhaps I was less critical than I should have been, but if the viewer can suspend belief long enough to accept Chow Yun-fat's "retard" antics in GOD OF GAMBLERS, then it shouldn't be much of a stretch to watch Louis Koo battle Ben Lam in front of a roaring jet engine over a big bag of money. In fact, I much prefer CONMEN IN TOKYO to many of director Tony Ching Siu-tung's more heralded work (most of which was done under the guiding hand of Tsui Hark) because it ably shows off his tendencies towards exploitation-style filmmaking (for more of the same, check out NAKED WEAPON and BELLY OF THE BEAST.
There's also the ALL FOR THE WINNER "series" although the three unrelated films here are probably subject to as many mixed reviews as the CONMEN films. ALL FOR THE WINNER, of course, is the Stephen Chow/Ng Man-tat vehicle that launched Chow to superstardom, but it's uneven to say the least. 1995's SAINT OF GAMBLERS, which bears the same Chinese title (plus a "II") toplines the sometimes irritating Eric Kot, whose antics not unexpectedly detract from a film that is, stylistically and comedically, more consistent than the Stephen Chow version. The third in this "set," MY NAME IS NOBODY, is more a gambling drama despite the prescense of would-be funnyman Nick Cheung and industry vet Wong Jing in a major role. Nonetheless, it's fairly well-written and suprisingly entertaining.
One movie that takes a short look at the uniquely Chinese obsession with gambling is HOW TO GET RICH BY FENG SHUI from 1998, a pseudo-documentary hosted by Simon Loui and several B-movie mainstays that delves in to the world of the supernatural with tongue just barely planted in cheek. Topics covered include betting parlours with bad feng shui, how to win at horse racing, how to lose at Pai Kow, ghosts, spirits, channellers, miracles, etc. A very, VERY underrated movie and well worth seeking out.
One really fun sorta-gambling flick is the lesser-known but phenomenally entertaining Sibelle Hu starrer THE MIGHTY GAMBLER (1992). I dno't even know if this is available on VCD or DVD. I rented the tape from my local library and was blown away by all the action sequences. Like most of her films, this one looks a little rough around the edges and shot on a relatively low-budget. Sibelle's the daughter of a Casino owner who uncovers a plot by rivals to seize her establishment to settle an old debt with her dad. There are gambling scenes here and there, but more than enough gunfights and demolition derbies to satisfy even the most jaded action fan. THIS is the kind of movie that REALLY defined Hong Kong cinemas heydey. Just because you won't find the likes of it (and many, MANY like it) written up in all the HK film books, doesn't mean it isn't worthy of a view.
Hoping that helps...
Last edited by
Brian Thibodeau on Thu Nov 17, 2005 11:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.