I felt compelled to write this review after reading so many comments referring to Shu Qi merely as the Chinese actress/girl. The gorgeous, talented, and multiple award winning (12) Taiwanese actress Shu Qi played Aryoung, the gangster's daughter. Shu Qi's father was played by the award winning (7) Ti Lung, who starred or co-starred in around 100 kung fu films. Ken Lo, another hard hitting action star played the Big Bad in Hong Kong. These fine actors' part of the story was a straight Hong Kong gangster movie, that's why they played them in a stern manner.
When Aryoung has to lay low in Korea with a bunch of goofball gangsters, the gangster farce begins. I actually enjoyed most of the comedy, especially the translator's liberal and less than literal translations. The five disparate characters bonded quickly into their own familial gang.
Shu Qi's deadly, fearless, and taciturn character played well off the three stooges of crime. I'm always pleased when the female lead isn't a damsel in distress. In this case, she played the rescuing or avenging hero more often than not and she was glorious when she was fighting.
This is one of those strange mash-ups of straightforward crime story and ridiculous crime comedy. For the most part it worked for me. Shu Qi can conjure up chemistry with just about anyone but I never bought the romance between her and the mullet-headed and not too bright leader of the Stooges, and would have been happy if they had not introduced a romance between them. Other than the forced romance and some of the over the top slap stick comedy I enjoyed this strange amalgam of Hong Kong and Korean movie.
When Aryoung has to lay low in Korea with a bunch of goofball gangsters, the gangster farce begins. I actually enjoyed most of the comedy, especially the translator's liberal and less than literal translations. The five disparate characters bonded quickly into their own familial gang.
Shu Qi's deadly, fearless, and taciturn character played well off the three stooges of crime. I'm always pleased when the female lead isn't a damsel in distress. In this case, she played the rescuing or avenging hero more often than not and she was glorious when she was fighting.
This is one of those strange mash-ups of straightforward crime story and ridiculous crime comedy. For the most part it worked for me. Shu Qi can conjure up chemistry with just about anyone but I never bought the romance between her and the mullet-headed and not too bright leader of the Stooges, and would have been happy if they had not introduced a romance between them. Other than the forced romance and some of the over the top slap stick comedy I enjoyed this strange amalgam of Hong Kong and Korean movie.
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